The frame of an application
A Spanish application to an authority, the solicitud or instancia, has a fixed order. You refer to yourself in the third person, give your ID and address for service, separate facts from request with the capitalised headings EXPONE and SOLICITA, and close with place, date and recipient.
- 1
Personal details
D./Dña. name, con DNI number y domicilio a efectos de notificaciones en address
- 2
EXPONE
The facts, point by point, each point introduced with Que.
- 3
SOLICITA
The request itself, usually Que se plus subjunctive.
- 4
Place, date, recipient
En Valencia, a 16 de octubre de 2026, signature, and below it the office in capitals: SR. ALCALDE-PRESIDENTE DEL AYUNTAMIENTO DE VALENCIA.
A short application
Doña Laura Gil Ortega, con DNI 12345678Z y domicilio a efectos de notificaciones en la calle Colón 14, 46004 Valencia,
Ms Laura Gil Ortega, ID no. 12345678Z, address for service Calle Colón 14, 46004 Valencia,
EXPONE: Que con fecha 3 de septiembre abonó la tasa de basuras correspondiente al ejercicio 2026, y que dicho importe se le ha cargado por duplicado.
states: that on 3 September she paid the waste collection charge for 2026, and that this amount has been debited from her twice.
SOLICITA: Que se le reintegre el importe cobrado indebidamente.
requests: that the amount wrongly charged be refunded to her.
When you sign a declaration or a record, el abajo firmante or la abajo firmante takes the place of the name: the undersigned. The verb then goes into the third person: La abajo firmante declara bajo su responsabilidad que los datos son ciertos. In letters and appeals the first person is also common: solicito, adjunto, comunico. What matters is that you stick to one.
Formulas with a precise legal effect
These formulas are not decoration. Each one sets up a relationship between rules or rights that an everyday word only approximates. Their English equivalents come from legal English too.
The key formulas
| Formula | Meaning | English |
|---|---|---|
| sin perjuicio de | what follows remains unaffected | without prejudice to |
| a (los) efectos de | purpose or scope | for the purposes of |
| con efectos desde | when something takes legal effect | with effect from |
| en virtud de | legal basis | pursuant to, by virtue of |
| de conformidad con | in line with a rule | in accordance with |
| en su caso | only if the case arises | where applicable |
| en el plazo de diez días hábiles | deadline excluding Sundays and holidays | within ten working days |
Formulas in context
Solicito la devolución del importe, sin perjuicio de las acciones legales que pudieran corresponderme.
I request a refund of the amount, without prejudice to any legal action I may be entitled to take.
The request does not rule out suing.
Comunico mi baja como socio con efectos desde el 1 de enero de 2027.
I hereby cancel my membership with effect from 1 January 2027.
The cancellation applies from that day.
En virtud de lo dispuesto en el artículo 14 de la ordenanza, solicito la exención de la tasa.
Pursuant to Article 14 of the by-law, I request exemption from the charge.
The legal basis comes first.
Adjunto el contrato de alquiler y, en su caso, el certificado de empadronamiento.
I enclose the tenancy agreement and, where applicable, the certificate of registration.
The certificate only if it is required.
From everyday sentence to official sentence
Official Spanish replaces everyday verbs with technically precise ones: pagar becomes abonar, devolver becomes reintegrar, mandar becomes remitir, pedir becomes solicitar. The sentence becomes more impersonal and more precise, but no longer than necessary.
Everyday Spanish
Ya pagué la multa, pero quiero que me devuelvan el dinero y, si hace falta, iré a juicio.
I've already paid the fine, but I want my money back and I'll go to court if I have to.
Official Spanish
Habiendo abonado la sanción, solicito su reintegro, sin perjuicio de las acciones judiciales que, en su caso, procedan.
Having paid the penalty, I request its refund, without prejudice to any legal proceedings that may be appropriate.
Certificates and declarations end with a fixed closing formula: Y para que así conste, firmo la presente en Valencia, a 16 de octubre de 2026. Literally: and so that it is on record, I sign the present document.
