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Paperwork

Paperwork for a new baby in Spain

A new baby comes with forms. These are the ones asked of new parents in Spain, in the order they come, each from the official page that sets it. Read it together or on your own: every step says who usually does it.

In short

  • 2 steps before the birth and 4 after it, each one taken from an official page.
  • Registering the birth: within 72 hours from hospital (or 10 days to declare).
  • Each step says who usually does it: the parent giving birth, the other parent, or either of you.
  • No amounts here: they change every year and depend on income. The official page under each step has today’s figure.

What is due in Spain, and when?

Every step at a glance
StepWhenWho
Arrange maternity leave with workFirst 6 weeks straight after the birthThe parent giving birth
Arrange the partner’s leave with workFirst 6 weeks straight after the birthThe other parent
Register the birthWithin 72 hours from hospital (or 10 days to declare)Either of you, or together
Add the baby to your health insuranceFirst weeksEither of you, or together
Register baby for primary careFirst weeksEither of you, or together
Claim the family benefitsOnce the baby is registeredEither of you, or together

What to do before the birth in Spain

Arrange maternity leave with work

When: First 6 weeks straight after the birth

Who: The parent giving birth

In Spain each parent has 19 weeks of prestación por nacimiento y cuidado de menor. The first 6 are taken full time straight after the birth, the rest within the baby’s first 12 months. You apply to the INSS through Tu Seguridad Social.

Official page: Seguridad Social

Arrange the partner’s leave with work

When: First 6 weeks straight after the birth

Who: The other parent

The partner has the same 19 weeks of prestación por nacimiento y cuidado de menor: the first 6 full time straight after the birth, the rest within the baby’s first 12 months. Apply to the INSS through Tu Seguridad Social.

Official page: Seguridad Social

What to do after the birth in Spain

Register the birth

When: Within 72 hours from hospital (or 10 days to declare)

Who: Either of you, or together

In Spain the maternity unit usually registers the birth electronically within 72 hours. If it did not, you must declare it at the Registro Civil within 10 days.

Official page: BOE Ley 20/2011

Add the baby to your health insurance

When: First weeks

Who: Either of you, or together

For a baby under 3 months, the Registro Civil sends the birth to the INSS, so healthcare is recognised without paperwork. You can check it, or add the baby as a beneficiary, on Tu Seguridad Social.

Official page: Seguridad Social

Register baby for primary care

When: First weeks

Who: Either of you, or together

In Spain, assign a pediatra at your centro de salud and start the revisiones del niño sano.

Official page: AEP (Familia y Salud)

Claim the family benefits

When: Once the baby is registered

Who: Either of you, or together

Mothers with a child under 3 can receive the deducción por maternidad as a monthly advance instead of waiting for the tax return. It is requested with modelo 140 at the Agencia Tributaria, online.

Official page: Agencia Tributaria

What differs by region in Spain?

Some steps work differently from one region to another. These are the ones that differ from the national rule above, each from its own official page.

Comunidad de Madrid

Use Comunidad de Madrid’s rules in the app

Start researching nurseries

When: Around weeks 20 to 28

Who: Either of you, or together

In the Comunidad de Madrid, public escuelas infantiles (0 to 3) have been free since 2019, and places go mainly through one admission round in March (for 2026/27, 11 to 25 March 2026). Look at the centres near you and note the next round.

Official page: Comunidad de Madrid

Checked against Comunidad de Madrid, Consejería de Sanidad (citizen portal and Biblioteca Virtual), Boletín Oficial de la Comunidad de Madrid (BOCM), checked on 10 October 2026
What the official pages say

Plan the escuela infantil application

When: The March admission round

Who: Either of you, or together

For a public place in the Comunidad de Madrid you apply in the March admission round; the final lists for 0 to 3 come out in June, then enrolment. Private centres keep their own lists, so ask each one.

Official page: Comunidad de Madrid

Checked against Comunidad de Madrid, Consejería de Sanidad (citizen portal and Biblioteca Virtual), Boletín Oficial de la Comunidad de Madrid (BOCM), checked on 10 October 2026
What the official pages say

Ask for the Documento de Salud Infantil

When: Before leaving hospital

Who: Either of you, or together

Before leaving hospital in the Comunidad de Madrid, ask for your baby’s Documento de Salud Infantil, the child health booklet. It records the dates of the heel prick and the hearing test.

Official page: Comunidad de Madrid

Checked against Comunidad de Madrid, Consejería de Sanidad (citizen portal and Biblioteca Virtual), checked on 10 October 2026
What the official pages say

Register baby for primary care

When: First week

Who: Either of you, or together

In the Comunidad de Madrid, ask for the baby’s health card (TSI) at your centro de salud, or online with a DNI electrónico or digital certificate, and ask for a pediatra and an enfermera there. The first check is 48 to 72 hours after leaving hospital, always before the end of the first week. The Padrón is updated by itself from the Registro Civil.

Official page: Comunidad de Madrid

Checked against Comunidad de Madrid, Consejería de Sanidad (citizen portal and Biblioteca Virtual), Hospital Universitario Infanta Leonor (SERMAS), Hospital Universitario 12 de Octubre (SERMAS), checked on 10 October 2026
What the official pages say

Review childcare costs and support

When: Through the toddler years

Who: Either of you, or together

In the Comunidad de Madrid, the public escuelas infantiles (0 to 3) have been free since 2019. Places go through the March admission round each year, so check the dates if you want a place for next school year.

Official page: Comunidad de Madrid

Checked against Comunidad de Madrid, Consejería de Sanidad (citizen portal and Biblioteca Virtual), Boletín Oficial de la Comunidad de Madrid (BOCM), checked on 10 October 2026
What the official pages say

Questions parents ask

How much will we get?

This page does not say, on purpose. Amounts change every year and depend on income and work, and a wrong figure is worse than none. Each step links the official page that has today’s amount and the rules for your case.

Is this legal advice?

No. It names each step, who usually does it, where and by when, as the official pages put it. Your own case can differ: your employer, your registry office or the office named on each page has the last word.

Does this apply if I am doing it on my own?

Yes. The steps are the same together or on your own. A step marked for the other parent, such as their leave, only applies if there is one.

How current is this?

Each step links the official page it was read on. Where a step rests on a sentence we re-read every week, the date it was last read is under it, and if the official page changes the step says it is being re-checked instead.

In the app

Your paperwork, dated and shared

Syncry turns this list into your family’s own checklist: each deadline counted from your due date or your baby’s birthday, split between the two of you or all yours, a reminder before each one, and ticked off together.

How we check every fact