Company certificates from the FNMT, Spain's Royal Mint, last 2 years and cannot be renewed: before or after expiry, you apply again. If you are the sole or joint-and-several director of an SA or SL, it is all done online with your electronic ID card (DNIe) or your FNMT personal certificate (€24 plus VAT). Otherwise you need the legal-entity certificate, with a Companies Register certificate and an identity check online or at an office (€14 plus VAT).
Can a company's digital certificate be renewed?
Not at the FNMT (Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre). The terms and conditions of the legal-entity representative certificate put it this way: "La FNMT-RCM no contempla la posibilidad de renovar los Certificados de Representante de Persona Jurídica. Una vez caducado el Certificado, se deberá solicitar uno nuevo para poder seguir utilizando los servicios del Proveedor de Servicios de Confianza" (the FNMT does not provide for renewing these certificates; once expired, a new one must be requested to keep using the service). The terms for the sole or joint-and-several director certificate say the same, and its renewal page states that it "no se puede renovar online" (cannot be renewed online) and points you to a new application.
All three FNMT representative certificates are valid for 2 years, and the date is inside the certificate itself.
So "renewing" the company certificate means, in practice, applying again. The only difference between doing it before or after the expiry date is whether the company spends a few days unable to sign anything.
Watch one detail in those same terms: "la solicitud de un nuevo Certificado del mismo tipo" (applying for a new certificate of the same type) is a ground for revoking the old one. Do not apply for the new one halfway through a tax filing. Plan it so the application, the identity check and the download follow one another.
Which company certificate do you need?
The FNMT offers three representative certificates, and the right one depends on the first letter of the entity's tax number (NIF) and on the applicant's role (FNMT, question 1136).
At a glance
| Sole or joint-and-several director | Legal entity | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | SAs (NIF A) and SLs (NIF B) whose sole or joint-and-several director is registered at the Companies Register | Directors acting jointly, attorneys, managing directors, liquidators and every other entity with legal personality (letters C, D, F, G, J, N, R, V and others) |
| How you apply | Online only, with a DNIe or an FNMT personal certificate | Online application plus an identity check online (NIF A, B, C and D only) or at an office |
| Paperwork | None: the FNMT checks the Companies Register | A recent Companies Register certificate and, if needed, a notarial power of attorney |
| Price (October 2026) | €24 plus taxes (€29.04 with VAT) | €14 plus taxes (€16.94 with VAT) |
| Validity | 2 years | 2 years |
| Renewal | No: you apply for a new one | No: you apply for a new one |
The prices come from the FNMT price list, which only accepts card payments. The third type, for entities without legal personality (communities of owners, joint ownerships, temporary business joint ventures), is free and we cover it in digital certificate for a community of owners.
The sole or joint-and-several director certificate (administrador único o solidario) "NO puede ser solicitado por administradores mancomunados, apoderados, consejeros, presidentes" (cannot be requested by directors who must act jointly, attorneys, board members or chairs), nor by directors acting together (administradores conjuntos), liquidators or companies whose sole or joint-and-several director is another company (FNMT). All of them need the legal-entity certificate (persona jurídica).
What if it is not from the FNMT?
The FNMT is not the only provider. The ACCV, for example, issues an "entity representative" certificate (Representante de entidad) for people with authority to represent a legal entity. As of October 2026 it costs €33.88 as software or €55.55 on a card, VAT and postage included, and it lasts 3 years. It cannot be renewed either: according to the ACCV, "la renovación consiste en solicitar un nuevo certificado" (renewal means applying for a new certificate).
For companies with NIF A, B, C or D, its paperwork initially asks only for the entity's tax number and a signed statement (declaración responsable), because the ACCV checks the Companies Register itself. The software version is downloaded after video identification or from its personal area.
The Tax Agency (Agencia Tributaria, AEAT) accepts certificates from authorised providers, not only the FNMT.
How do you get a new sole or joint-and-several director certificate?
This is the shortest route, because there is no paperwork and no office visit. According to the FNMT, "Este certificado sólo puede pedirse de forma On Line" (this certificate can only be requested online):
- Set-up. Install the software the FNMT lists on your computer.
- Application. You identify yourself with your DNIe or your FNMT personal certificate, valid and not revoked. You choose a password: you will need it to download the certificate and, if you forget it, it cannot be recovered.
- Download and payment. "Aproximadamente 1 hora después" (about one hour after) applying, with your application code, you download and install the certificate, pay by card and make a backup copy.
Three conditions worth checking first:
- Your personal certificate must come from an in-person or video identity check. The FNMT paperwork guide for A and B companies accepts the personal certificate "si se ha obtenido de manera presencial o con vídeo identificación" (if it was obtained in person or by video identification). If yours was not, use the DNIe.
- Five years since you last identified yourself in person. The DNIe application page only allows the online route if "no se ha superado el plazo máximo de 5 años desde la personación e identificación física del representante" (no more than 5 years have passed since the representative appeared and was identified in person), based on article 7 of Law 6/2020 on electronic trust services.
- The Companies Register must be up to date. The FNMT checks the databases of the Association of Registrars (CORPME) to confirm your position is registered and current. If you were appointed recently and the appointment is not registered yet, you cannot apply this way. And the company's tax number must be final, not provisional.
Why does it cost more than the legal-entity certificate? Because its price "incluye el pago de una tasa al CORPME" (includes a fee paid to CORPME) for checking the appointment online, which replaces the Register certificate you used to have to obtain (FNMT, question 1662).
Something new on the way: the FNMT has published a page for getting this certificate with video identification, but as of October 2026 it is marked "Apartado en construcción" (under construction) and asks people not to apply through it.
And the legal-entity certificate (directors acting jointly, attorneys, boards)?
Here there is paperwork and an identity check. There are four steps (FNMT):
- Set-up of your computer.
- Online application: you receive an application code by email.
- Identity check of you and of your authority to represent, online or at an office.
- Download, payment and backup, about an hour after the identity check.
What documents do you need?
For an SA or SL, the FNMT paperwork guide asks for:
- A Companies Register certificate (certificación registral from the Registro Mercantil) showing the appointment and that it is current, verifiable with a secure verification code (CSV).
- A Companies Register certificate of the entity's registration, also with a CSV.
- Both issued within the 15 working days before the identity check at the office. If they are more than 15 days old on the day of the appointment, the date you booked the appointment counts. And the FNMT insists: "No se admite ningún tipo de nota simple / informativa" (no informative extract of any kind is accepted).
- If you are not a sole or joint-and-several director, or a managing director (consejero delegado) with every power except those that cannot be delegated, but a voluntary representative, a notarial power of attorney with a special clause to apply for the certificate (the FNMT gives an example in the annex to that guide).
Two common cases:
- Directors who must act jointly (administradores mancomunados). As many as the articles of association require must attend, or one of them is given a notarial power of attorney with a special clause. You also have to provide documents showing the minimum percentage of shareholding.
- Annual accounts not filed. The closure of the company's register sheet "en principio, no afecta a la personalidad de la sociedad y a la capacidad del representante" (does not, in principle, affect the company's legal personality or the representative's capacity), so the certificate can be issued if the company's situation is proven (FNMT, question 1709).
If you still have the notarial power of attorney from the last application, it will probably still work: according to the FNMT, unless it sets a time limit or a specific purpose, "los poderes notariales no caducan, sino que se otorgan y se revocan" (notarial powers do not expire; they are granted and revoked) (question 1690). The Companies Register certificate, on the other hand, has to be ordered fresh every time.
Do you have to go to an office?
Not always. The identity check page offers two routes:
- Online identity check, only for entities with NIF A, B, C and D, through the Tax Agency's online registry. The representative identifies themselves with an FNMT personal certificate "obtenido con vídeoidentificación o con acreditación presencial y no proceder de una renovación online" (obtained by video identification or an in-person check, and not from an online renewal), and attaches the Register certificates and, where needed, the power of attorney.
- In person: at Correos post offices (no appointment needed), Tax Agency offices (appointment needed), the CNMV (the securities regulator) or the Foral Community of Navarre, and at Spanish consulates. Someone else can go for you, but only with your signature on the contract legalised before a notary.
What about the director's personal certificate?
Both online routes depend on it. If your FNMT personal certificate expires, or came from an online renewal, you lose the shortcut and have to go to an office or use the DNIe.
The FNMT lets you renew the personal certificate in the 60 days before it expires, as long as it has not been revoked. "Si ya ha caducado no se podrá renovar" (once expired, it cannot be renewed). And if you got it by identifying yourself with another certificate or the DNIe, or have already renewed it once, they will not issue another without an in-person identity check.
Behind that rule is Law 6/2020. Its preamble explains that "encadenamiento" (chaining) is not allowed when renewing qualified certificates "utilizando uno vigente, más que una sola vez" (using a valid one, more than once). And its article 7.6 only waives a new in-person check if "el período de tiempo transcurrido desde la identificación fuese menor de cinco años" (less than five years have passed since the identification).
If you have a valid DNIe, the FNMT video identification is another way out: it costs €2.99 plus taxes (the certificate itself is free) and is reviewed in about 48 working hours.
What if the company certificate has already expired?
Apply for a new one by the route that fits your case: it is the same process as above. An expired certificate cannot be extended, and a revoked one "no puede ser activado de nuevo" (cannot be activated again) (FNMT, question 1682).
The urgent part in the meantime is official notices. Legal entities must deal with public authorities electronically (art. 14.2.a, Law 39/2015, the general administrative procedure law). And a compulsory electronic notice "se entenderá rechazada cuando hayan transcurrido diez días naturales desde la puesta a disposición de la notificación sin que se acceda a su contenido" (is treated as refused once ten calendar days have passed since it was made available without anyone opening it) (art. 43.2). The clock runs even if the company has no certificate.
To avoid being blind to the Tax Agency while the new one arrives, there are two stopgaps:
- An authorisation at the Tax Agency (apoderamiento). It lets someone else act online "con su propio certificado electrónico de usuario" (with their own electronic certificate) (AEAT, how to grant it). Online it is granted with an electronic signature; without the company's certificate, you can do it in person at an AEAT office with the official form, or by public deed or a private document with the signature legalised before a notary. For notices, the authorisation to register is the GENERALNOT procedure, and the authorised person has to confirm it on their side (AEAT, access to DEHú notices through authorisation).
- Your adviser's "social collaboration" status (colaboración social). A registered social collaborator can file returns on behalf of clients with its own certificate, and its employees registered as delegates can use their personal or employee certificate (AEAT).
The limit of both: they work with the Tax Agency. Each authority has its own register of authorisations (art. 6, Law 39/2015), so for Social Security, the town hall or the regional government you need their authorisation or the company's certificate.
When do you need a new one before it expires?
When the representation changes. Law 6/2020 requires the representative and the entity to "solicitar la revocación de la vigencia del certificado en cuanto se produzca la modificación o extinción de la citada relación de representación" (request revocation of the certificate as soon as the representation changes or ends) (art. 5.1.e). And the FNMT terms say: "No utilizar el certificado cuando varíen los datos del representante y solicitar la revocación del mismo" (do not use the certificate when the representative's details change, and request its revocation).
With the sole or joint-and-several director certificate, the FNMT may get there first: it revokes it automatically when CORPME reports a change that must be registered: the director leaving or the appointment expiring, a change in the type of directorship, the company's tax number being revoked, a move of registered office, a change of name or legal form, liquidation, insolvency or the company ceasing to exist. In those cases the fee is not refunded.
Note the change of registered office or name: the company can lose its certificate without any change of director.
If you need to revoke it yourself, there are three ways: at an AEAT, CNMV or Navarre office; on the FNMT website (online cancellation); or by phone, with the application code.
Can your accountant keep the company's certificate?
They should not. The FNMT points out that its certificates "son personales e intransferibles" (are personal and non-transferable) and that it "recomienda encarecidamente que el certificado no se entregue a terceros" (strongly recommends not handing the certificate to third parties). It also cites a May 2019 note from the Secretary of State for Digital Progress stating that "la transferencia de la posesión o la revelación de las claves de un certificado electrónico" (transferring possession of an electronic certificate or revealing its keys) does not comply with the law (FNMT, certificate custody). And it warns that many websites offering help to obtain one "se quedan con copia del certificado del usuario" (keep a copy of the user's certificate).
The proper ways for an advisory firm (asesoría or gestoría) to work for a client are the ones above: an authorisation at the Tax Agency or social collaboration. If the client wants someone at the firm to hold a representative certificate for the company, the route is a notarial power of attorney with a special clause and a legal-entity certificate in that person's own name, which they keep themselves.
How do you avoid being caught out again?
For each company, record:
- Type of certificate, provider and whose name it is in.
- Expiry date, copied from the certificate itself.
- The expiry date of the director's personal certificate and how it was obtained (in person, by video or renewed online), because that decides whether you can do everything online.
- Current notarial powers of attorney and authorisations at the Tax Agency and other authorities.
- Upcoming Companies Register changes (appointments, registered office, name) that could revoke the certificate.
For the dates, use our expiry tracking template in Excel. If you look after many companies, Renewals emails you before each certificate expires, checks the dates every morning and keeps each company isolated in the database. More ideas for firms in automation for advisory firms.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to renew a company digital certificate in Spain?
Since it cannot be renewed, you pay for a new certificate. At the FNMT, as of October 2026, €29.04 with VAT for the sole or joint-and-several director certificate and €16.94 for the legal-entity one. At the ACCV, €33.88 as software.
Can an expired company certificate be renewed?
No. Neither expired nor valid ones: FNMT representative certificates are not renewed and you have to apply for a new one. If it has already expired, the process is the same; the urgent thing meanwhile is to watch electronic notices, which count as refused after ten calendar days.
Can I get the company certificate without visiting an office?
Yes, in two cases. The sole or joint-and-several director certificate is requested online only, with a DNIe or an FNMT personal certificate obtained in person or by video. The legal-entity certificate allows an online identity check for companies with NIF A, B, C and D, using an FNMT personal certificate that did not come from an online renewal.
Which certificate does a director who acts jointly need?
The legal-entity representative certificate: the sole or joint-and-several director one cannot be requested by directors who must act jointly. As many of them as the articles of association require must attend, or they give one of them a notarial power of attorney with a special clause.
How long is a company digital certificate valid?
FNMT representative certificates, 2 years; the ACCV entity representative certificate, 3 years. The exact expiry date is inside the certificate.
Sources
- Law 39/2015 on the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations, arts. 6, 14 and 43.
- Law 6/2020 on certain aspects of electronic trust services, preamble and arts. 5 and 7.
- FNMT: representative certificates.
- FNMT: sole or joint-and-several director certificate.
- FNMT: applying for the sole or joint-and-several director certificate with a DNIe.
- FNMT: renewing the sole or joint-and-several director certificate.
- FNMT: sole or joint-and-several director certificate with video identification (under construction).
- FNMT: legal-entity certificate.
- FNMT: identity check (legal entity).
- FNMT: paperwork for companies with NIF A and B.
- FNMT: price list for representative certificates.
- FNMT: terms and conditions of the legal-entity certificate.
- FNMT: terms and conditions of the sole or joint-and-several director certificate.
- FNMT: validity of representative certificates.
- FNMT: which representative certificate to request.
- FNMT: steps for the sole or joint-and-several director certificate.
- FNMT: why representative certificates differ in price.
- FNMT: automatic revocation of the sole or joint-and-several director certificate.
- FNMT: reactivating a revoked certificate.
- FNMT: certificate when annual accounts have not been filed.
- FNMT: does a notarial power of attorney expire?
- FNMT: how to revoke a representative certificate.
- FNMT: when to renew the personal certificate.
- FNMT: personal certificate with video identification.
- FNMT: recommendations on certificate custody.
- ACCV: entity representative certificate.
- ACCV: paperwork for entities with NIF A, B, C and D.
- Tax Agency: how to obtain an electronic certificate.
- Tax Agency: how to grant an authorisation.
- Tax Agency: access to DEHú notices through authorisation.
- Tax Agency: filing returns as a social collaborator.
This article explains the law and published court criteria as of the update date. It is not a substitute for advice from a lawyer on a specific case.