Regularization: there are already scams asking for up to 60 euros for a free appointment.

The extraordinary regularization has just started and there are already those who want to make some quick money. Beware, the appointment booking is free, but on Facebook and WhatsApp groups you'll find all kinds of offers: they ask for between 25 and 60 euros for a slot in one of the 400 available offices. Which ones? Well, 30 from Social Security, 371 from Post Office, and five from Immigration offices spread across Madrid, Alicante, Valencia, Almería, and Murcia. So, you know, don't be fooled.

“I can get you an appointment in Alicante on the 23rd for 25-30 euros, you pay after confirmation,” says a reseller in a Latinos in Spain group. Sofía, a Colombian who has been here a year, says she has been asked for up to 50 euros. This very morning she was queuing at the Spanish Commission for Refugee Aid (CEAR) in Madrid, where they issue the vulnerability certificate – one of the documents you need. And there, a huge sign said they were serving “without an appointment,” so people rushed in en masse. A full-fledged pull effect.

“We call 060 over and over, but you spend half an hour and they don't pick up,” complains María Fernanda, also Colombian. The lack of information is total. In Catalonia, another WhatsApp seller offers appointments in Barcelona for 50-60 euros, and instantly sends you a screenshot of an appointment for the same day at a Post Office in L’Hospitalet. At La Farga in L’Hospitalet, hundreds of people with appointments were queueing; some had spent the night there. “I slept on the floor,” says one.

The ministry repeats that everything is free, but between not finding out and the rush, many end up paying. And it's not new: the appointment mafias have been working for years with bots that collapse the system to request asylum, the TIE or renewals. Prices vary according to urgency, and the channels range from Facebook and Telegram to Wallapop or phone centers. Some have even paid 500 euros for an appointment. Be careful, don't let it happen to you.

Mauricio Valiente, the director general of CEAR, asks for patience: “All people will be attended to and those who meet the requirements will access regularization.” And he warns: do not fall into “the trap of scams.” CEAR will set up workshops to filter what is needed and, in some cases, they will manage the applications themselves. By the way, there is also trouble getting appointments at the Transport Consortia, such as the one in Madrid, where they give you an appointment for a month later. A spokesperson says there is no resale there because appointments are personalized. So, you know: patience and don't get caught.

If you have difficulties with your appointment or procedure, write to us on Telegram: https://t.me/cita_extranjeria