Blog category
Forgery & Counterfeiting
7 articles on forgery & counterfeiting: penalties, case law and defense strategy. See the practice area →
Article 392 CP: Document Forgery by a Private Individual (Material vs Ideological)
Art. 392 CP punishes a private individual who forges a public, official or commercial document with 6 months to 3 years. Its key defence: a private individual answers only for material forgery; ideological falsehood is atypical.
I Received a Counterfeit Note in Good Faith and Spent It: Is It a Crime? (Art. 386 CP)
Paying with a counterfeit note without knowing it was fake is not a crime. It is only an offence to pass it on once you know it is counterfeit, and with a far lower penalty than the forger's (3-6 months or a fine), not the 8-12 years of the maker.
Forgery of Postage Stamps and Stamped Effects (Art. 389 CP)
Article 389 CP punishes forging or distributing postage stamps and stamped effects in Spain. Offence, penalties by role and value, and lines of defence.
Usurpation of public functions (Art. 402 CP): when impersonating an authority or public officer is a crime in Spain
What Art. 402 CP punishes, how it differs from the improper use of a uniform (402 bis) and from professional intrusion (403), and how this charge is defended.
Forgery of an ID Card, Passport or Licence: Art. 392 CP
Forging or using a false ID card, passport or driving licence is forgery of an official document by a private individual (art. 392 CP). Penalties and defence.
Credit Card Forgery: Article 399 bis of the Criminal Code
Article 399 bis CP punishes forging, holding for distribution or using forged credit or debit cards and traveller's cheques, with penalties of up to eight years.
Document Forgery: Art. 390-399 CP ▷ Types and Penalties 2026
Altering a payslip, forging a signature on a contract or modifying a public document are serious offences. We analyse the types of document forgery.
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