EX-00 Form: Residence on Exceptional Grounds

The EX-00 is the generic residence-authorisation model: the form used where no specific EX form covers the route. In practice it is the one most often associated with residence on exceptional grounds — the family of routes referred to as arraigo, plus protection and collaboration cases.

One caution before you download anything. Sources disagree on the EX-00: some describe it as the exceptional-circumstances application, others as the model for a stay authorisation and its extensions, and the official information sheets for arraigo cite EX-10. Check the hoja informativa published for your specific route on the Ministry portal and use the form it names. Filing the wrong model does not lose your rights, but it does mean a requirement and weeks of delay.

What "exceptional grounds" covers

• Arraigo social — years of residence in Spain plus a job offer or means, family ties or a social integration report.
• Arraigo sociolaboral — one or more work contracts meeting the minimum hours and salary required.
• Arraigo familiar — family ties with Spanish nationals or minors.
• Arraigo socioformativo — a commitment to complete regulated training.
• Arraigo de segunda oportunidad — for people who held a residence authorisation in the previous two years and could not renew it, for reasons unrelated to public order.
• Protection cases: victims of gender violence, of trafficking, of labour exploitation, and people who collaborate with the authorities.
• Humanitarian grounds, including serious illness and certain crimes suffered in Spain.

Under the current regulation (Real Decreto 1155/2024, in force since 20 May 2025) every arraigo route except familiar requires two years of continuous stay — previously three — with absences of no more than 90 days in that period. All arraigo authorisations allow work from day one, employed or self-employed.

Who files it, and where

The application is filed by the person concerned at the Oficina de Extranjería of the province where they live, in person with an appointment or electronically with a digital certificate. Each modality has its own evidence, and the exact model may differ by modality — confirm it in the official information for your route before filling anything in.

The fee is not the card fee

Exceptional-circumstances files carry fee 790 code 052, not the 790 code 012 you pay later for the card itself. They are two different payments at two different stages, and paying the wrong one suspends the file until it is corrected.

Documents that appear in nearly every modality

• Full copy of a valid passport.
• Proof of continuous stay in Spain for the period your route requires — registration history (empadronamiento histórico) is the usual evidence.
• Criminal record certificate from your country of origin, apostilled or legalised and translated, and where relevant a certificate from Spain.
• The specific evidence of your route: job offer or contract, social integration report, family documents, training enrolment.
• Receipt for the fee.

The mistakes that cost files

• Filing before the required period of stay is complete — the file is refused on the date, not on the merits.
• Gaps in the registration history, which break the proof of continuous stay.
• A criminal record certificate without apostille or without a sworn translation.
• Confusing the arraigo routes: the evidence for sociolaboral does not work for social.
• Assuming the 2026 extraordinary regularisation is still open. Its filing window (Real Decreto 316/2026) closed on 30 June 2026 and was not extended; arraigo is the ordinary route that remains.

After approval

• You have one month from the notification to book the fingerprint appointment for the card, with form EX-17 and the paid fee.
• The card is collected later at a separate appointment.
• The authorisation is temporary and has to be renewed; the renewal has its own requirements, normally around work or means.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I get the EX-00 form in English?

The official forms are published in Spanish by the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, free of charge. English versions circulating online are unofficial translations — file the Spanish form, and use a translation only to understand the fields. Confirm which model your route names in its official information sheet, because arraigo sheets cite EX-10.

Is the EX-00 the same as arraigo?

No. Arraigo is the ground you apply on; the EX form is just the paper it is filed on. The routes share a family of forms, which is why the modality box matters — and why you should confirm the exact model on the official sheet for your route.

Do I need a job offer?

It depends on the modality. Arraigo sociolaboral is the one built on a work contract; arraigo social relies on family ties or a social integration report; familiar, socioformativo and segunda oportunidad each have their own conditions.

Can I file without a lawyer?

Yes, the application can be filed by the person concerned. The evidence in these routes is judged strictly, so many applicants use a lawyer for the file itself.

Does Citapre file the application?

No. We obtain the appointments — the Oficina de Extranjería filing appointment and the police appointments for fingerprints and card collection.