Other · Spain
Trámite de audiencia: the file is about to be decided — this is the window to be heard
This letter says an administrative procedure affecting you is about to be decided, and grants a last window to inspect the file (expediente) and submit arguments and documents before the resolution is drafted. After it closes, the administration decides.
How serious: routineAlso called: trámite de alegaciones, puesta de manifiesto, audiencia al interesado
The trámite de audiencia exists in almost every Spanish administrative procedure — tax audits, sanction files, extranjería applications, subsidy revocations. It is the formal chance to be heard before a decision is made.
The letter identifies the procedure and the file number, and often lists where and how to consult the expediente. Inspecting the file shows exactly what evidence the administration will decide on.
It is a procedural step, not a decision itself: nothing has been resolved yet. The resolution comes after this window, and it will carry its own payment or appeal deadlines.
Who sends it
Any Spanish public administration — the AEAT, ayuntamientos, the Seguridad Social, extranjería offices, the DGT and others. It is a procedural step, not tied to one body; the letter names the specific office handling the file.
Wording like 'trámite de audiencia', 'puesta de manifiesto del expediente', or 'para que alegue lo que convenga a su derecho', with a deadline of 10 to 15 days. It identifies the procedure and file number, and often lists where and how to consult the expediente.
The deadline
Between 10 and 15 days, as fixed in the letter (Ley 39/2015 art. 82.2: 'en un plazo no inferior a diez días ni superior a quince'; identical range in tax procedures, Ley 58/2003 art. 99.8)
Between 10 and 15 days, as fixed in the letter, counted from the day after notification (Ley 39/2015 art. 82.2: 'en un plazo no inferior a diez días ni superior a quince'; the identical range applies in tax procedures, Ley 58/2003 art. 99.8).
If you do nothing
The step is simply deemed completed and the administration resolves on the evidence already in the file (Ley 39/2015 art. 82.3 lets it close early only on an express declaration that no alegaciones will be made; under art. 73.3, a party who misses a trámite's deadline can be declared to have forfeited it, though action taken before — or on the day — that forfeiture is notified is still admitted and takes effect). No fine follows from silence itself — what is lost is the best chance to influence the outcome.
How it escalates
- 01The procedure moves straight to resolution based on the file as it stands.
- 02Whatever the resolution imposes (a denial, a sanction, a liquidation) is then notified with its own payment and appeal deadlines; from that point only recursos remain.
- 03In sanction procedures, an ignored acuerdo de iniciación that contains a precise finding can itself become the propuesta de resolución (Ley 39/2015 art. 64.2.f).
Common questions
Is this letter itself a fine or a decision?
No. It is a procedural step announcing that a decision is close, and opening a 10–15 day window to inspect the file and submit arguments. The actual resolution comes later, with its own deadlines.
Is there a penalty for not responding?
No fine follows from silence itself. The step is deemed completed and the administration resolves on the evidence already in the file — the loss is the chance to influence the outcome.
Can the file be seen before writing anything?
Yes. The letter identifies the expediente and usually where and how to consult it — electronically or at the named office.
Sources
Facts verified against the sources below on 28 August 2026.