Registering a Baby’s Birth in Barcelona as Foreign Parents
The paperwork after a baby is born in Barcelona to non-Spanish parents, in the order it usually happens, and why being born in Spain does not usually make the child Spanish.
A baby born in a Barcelona hospital is usually registered by the hospital itself, which sends the parents’ signed declaration electronically to the Registro Civil (Civil Registry) within 72 hours. If that does not happen, or the birth was outside a hospital, parents have 10 days to declare it at the registry. Being born in Spain does not usually make the child Spanish.
How does hospital registration work?
Under article 46 of the Civil Registry Law (Ley 20/2011), hospitals and clinics must report each birth to the registry office within 72 hours. Before you leave the hospital:
- Staff identify the mother and take the baby’s footprints alongside the mother’s fingerprints for the medical birth report.
- You fill in the official declaration form: the baby’s name, the order of surnames and the parentage.
- Both parents (or the one present, depending on your situation) sign in front of staff and show ID: passport, NIE card or national ID.
- The hospital sends the form and the doctor’s birth report electronically to the Civil Registry of the municipality where the hospital is.
- Once the birth is entered, the registry issues an electronic literal birth certificate (certificación literal) and makes it available to you.
Some cases need you to go to the registry in person, for example when parentage cannot be recorded from the declaration alone. Unmarried fathers can usually declare paternity at the hospital if the mother agrees and there is no legal conflict.
What if the hospital does not send it?
Article 47 of the law gives parents and the other people obliged to report a birth 10 days to declare it at the Civil Registry office, with the official form and the doctor’s certificate. After that period, registration needs a separate file (expediente) decided by the registry, which takes longer. Check the Ministry of Justice electronic office for how the Barcelona registry handles in-person declarations.
The libro de familia (family book) that older guides mention has been replaced by the individual electronic record. You request birth certificates online or at the registry when needed.
Is the baby Spanish?
Usually not. Spain does not grant nationality simply for being born on Spanish soil. Article 17 of the Civil Code makes a child Spanish from birth in these cases:
| Situation | Spanish at birth? |
|---|---|
| At least one parent is Spanish | Yes |
| Both parents are foreign, and at least one was also born in Spain (except children of accredited diplomats) | Yes |
| Both parents are stateless, or neither parent’s country gives the child a nationality | Yes |
| Parentage cannot be established | Yes |
| Both parents foreign, born abroad, and their country passes on nationality | No |
A child born in Spain who is not Spanish at birth can apply for nationality by residence after only one year of legal residence, under article 22 of the Civil Code. Our guide to Spanish citizenship by residence covers the process. Meanwhile, register the baby with your own country’s consulate and apply for a passport.
Does the baby need a residence permit?
Yes, if the parents are non-EU nationals living in Spain. The baby gets a temporary residence permit as a minor born in Spain, linked to a parent’s permit:
- Form EX-25, signed by a parent who holds a residence permit.
- Copies of the baby’s and the parent’s passports, and the Spanish birth certificate.
- Proof of the parent’s residence: permit decision, visa or TIE.
- Fee on form 790 code 052.
According to the ministry’s information sheet, you must apply within six months of the birth, at the Oficina de Extranjería (immigration office) of the province or online through the government’s electronic office. If you miss that window, the family reunification rules and their requirements apply instead. Once the permit is granted, the baby needs a TIE card with fingerprints taken by the police. Babies of EU citizens follow the EU registration route; see our guide to the EU registration certificate.
Padrón, health card and leave: what comes next?
- Padrón: add the baby to your registered address at the Ajuntament with the birth certificate and your ID; see our guide to empadronamiento in Barcelona.
- Social Security: register the baby with the INSS (national social security institute) as a beneficiary of a parent. Hospitals can sometimes start this with your consent.
- TSI health card: apply to CatSalut once the baby is on the padrón and the INSS registration is done, and choose a pediatrician at your local CAP (primary care center).
- Birth leave: each working parent applies for paid leave from the Seguridad Social; our guide to birth and childcare leave explains how.
- NIE: a non-Spanish baby gets an NIE number through the residence permit or EU registration, which banks and some services will later ask for.
Bottom line
Bring both parents’ passports and NIE or TIE cards to the hospital, so the declaration can be signed and sent before you are discharged. Note the six-month deadline for the baby’s residence application on day one, and request the baby’s passport from your consulate straight away, because the application needs a copy of it.
FAQ
Which surnames will the baby have?
You state the name and the order of surnames on the declaration form. If your country’s naming rules differ from Spanish practice, ask the hospital staff or the registry what proof is needed.
Does registering the birth cost anything?
The Ministry of Justice describes the hospital communication system as free for parents. Fees apply later for the residence permit and the TIE card.
Can we register the birth only at our consulate?
No. A birth in Spain must be registered in the Spanish Civil Registry. Consular registration for your own country is a separate, additional step.
