Q&A: What can I do if my passport wasn’t stamped when entering Spain?

Short Answer

• Try to avoid the problem in the first place by asking border guards, politely but firmly, to stamp your passport.
• Alternatively, declare your entry at the nearest police station to your point of entry upon entering.
• Alternatively, declare your entry at police stations or immigration offices within three business days of entering.
• Alternatively, save convincing evidence of your arrival. (Last resort).

Long Answer

What is the problem, anyway?

While national and European legislation allows for Spanish citizens and EU/EEA citizens, as well as their family members, to enter and exit without the need for passport stamps —or, indeed, even passports— any third country national not specifically exempted must have their passport stamped upon entering Spain. Unfortunately, there are three cases in which you may not have had your passport stamped:

1. You crossed an external border (“external border” means a border between a Schengen Area state, in this particular case Spain, and a non-Schengen Area state, such as the United States of America) directly into Spain, but border guards simply didn’t stamp your passport with an entry stamp.
   • Example: You fly from Shanghai to Madrid and border guards simply wave you in upon seeing your blue eagle passport.
2. You crossed an external border generally, then made your way to Spain by any means of transportation.
   • Example: You take a boat from Izmir (Turkey) to Thessaloniki, whose border guards may or may not have stamped your passport, then fly “internally” from Athens to Barcelona.
3. You crossed an internal border (“internal border” means a border between Schengen Area states).
   • Example: Having completed your holiday in Lisbon, you drive back from Lisbon to your flat in Seville.

In any of these cases, Spanish authorities may presume you to be in Spain irregularly, that is, without meeting the legal requirements to be present in Spain. This isn’t merely a hypothetical problem: it’s happened before (see below).

(This is an actual denial of residence received by an actual foreign citizen for not having a Spanish entry stamp on their passport).

Do I need a stamp?

Essentially, the only people who don’t need passport stamps are:

• Spanish citizens, who may enter Spain with a passport or with a DNI.
• EU/EEA citizens, who may enter Spain with a passport or with their national ID.
• Family members of Spanish or EU/EEA citizens with a valid EU family member residence card.

If you don’t fall into one of these categories, you most likely need a stamp.

What can I do, then?

1. Try to avoid the problem in the first place by asking border guards, politely but firmly, to stamp your passport.

(A foreign citizen dutifully obtaining an entry stamp at an external border. We don’t actually know where this is, but it looks close enough.)

This option only really applies to case 1, crossing an external border directly into Spain.

As usual, show the border guard at your point of entry your passport, your TIE, and, if applicable, your return authorization (autorización de regreso). If the border guard waves you through without stamping your passport, politely but firmly ask the guard to stamp your entry in Spain on one of the available pages on your passport. You can always blame Extranjería — “es que en la Oficina de Extranjería me dijeron que era necesario” — or your lawyer.

Usually, this’ll suffice and the border guard will, begrudgingly, acquiesce. The exchange may be unpleasant, but you’ll save yourself a lot of grief (see below).

2. Alternatively, declare your entry at the nearest police station to your point of entry upon entering.

(Aeropuerto Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas has a National Police precinct on-site. Ask a staff member to direct you there!)

This option only really applies to case 1.

If the border guard at your point of entry refuses to stamp your passport, you’re not out of luck. Major points of entry, such as Aeropuerto Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas, have National Police stations on-site. Ask port of entry staff to point you to the comisaría de la Policía Nacional —not Guardia Civil.

You’ll need your passport, TIE (if you have one), return authorization (if you have one), proof that you’ve just arrived (e.g., your airline ticket), and a form called “DECLARACIÓN DE ENTRADA EN TERRITORIO ESPAÑOL” (which you can download here).

As with the border guards, your friendly copper may tell you:

• That filing a declaration isn’t required,
• That you can always do it later,
• That they don’t particularly want to do it,
• Etc.

Once again, politely but firmly insist that you’d like to file your declaration of entry. Blame it on us, on your lawyer, on the Immigration Office, etc.

Usually, this’ll suffice and the officer will, begrudgingly, file your declaration of entry and provide you a document proving your filing.

3. Alternatively, declare your entry at police stations or immigration offices within three business days of entering.

(A Spanish National Police precinct.)

You’ve tried finessing border guards, you’ve tried persuading the police at your point of entry, and you’ve come up with a big fat zero? Don’t panic.

Article 13 of the Spanish immigration regulation gives you three business days (“días hábiles”) to file a declaration of entry. “Business days” means any day excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and official public holidays in your Spanish place of residence —if you don’t yet reside in Spain, use the public holidays of the city in which you’re staying. This is an important point. Many police officers will insist that you must’ve filed your declaration of entry within three calendar days. Sometimes this is a misunderstanding of the regulation, sometimes it’s a way to avoid having to do work. Politely but firmly insist that the regulation clearly says business days; show them article 13 of the regulation if necessary.

As with option 2 above, you’ll need your passport, TIE (if you have one), return authorization (if you have one), proof that you’ve just arrived (e.g., your airline ticket), and a form called “DECLARACIÓN DE ENTRADA EN TERRITORIO ESPAÑOL” (which you can download here).

In principle, you can file this declaration at any National Police precinct, as well as at Immigration Offices. You can search for police precincts here. Police precincts with specific immigration faculties can be found here.

Your funcionario de turno may, for example, tell you:

• That they can’t stamp your passport and wish to send you away, in which case you may wish to tell them that you’re not asking for a passport stamp, you’re asking for a declaration of entry;
• That the three days started counting upon your entry into the Schengen Area (say, in France), in which case you may wish to tell them article 13 is specifically about entering Spain; or
• That you’re not required to file a declaration of entry, in which case you can blame your fictitious, hard-nosed lawyer, a previous bad experience with the Immigration Office, etc.

If all goes well, the officer will, almost always begrudgingly, file your declaration of entry and provide you a document proving your filing.

4. Alternatively, save convincing evidence of your arrival. (Last resort).

(This is what we want to avoid.)

If all else fails, and very much as a last resort, you can collect and store convincing evidence of your arrival in Spain. You see, while article 12 of the EU Schengen Border Code allows states to presume your irregularity, this presumption can be rebutted.

What types of evidence are convincing and tend to prove your arrival in Spain? While there’s no set, limited list of evidence —our legislation specifically refers to “any evidence admissible in law”— we recommend the following:

• Your boarding pass, train or ferry ticket, or any other such document identifying you, the date and the place of entry in Spain.
• Bank records showing you made a transaction immediately upon or shortly after arriving in Spain, showing the date and place of the transaction.
• Uber or Cabify receipts show you traveled with them immediately upon or shortly after arriving in Spain, showing the date and place of your travel.
• Work, school, or medical attendance records showing that you attended immediately upon or shortly after arriving in Spain, showing the date and place of your attendance.
• A selfie, ideally uploaded to a social medium like Instagram, immediately upon or shortly after arriving in Spain, and, ideally, in front of a recognizable landmark (e.g., in front of the Ayuntamiento de Madrid).

More is more.

Your collection of evidence can be used in immigration and citizenship procedures where a date of entry is in question.

If you’d like to confirm whether you’re exempt from passport stamp requirements (and, soon, EES entries), if you’d like to discuss the alternatives to passport stamps provided in this article, or if you’d like to discuss what to do in case none of these options is viable for you, consult a lawyer. You can request a consultation with our partner firm, Melcart Abogados, here.