Spanish Abbreviations & Acronyms

DNI, IVA, RENFE, ONG. Decode everyday Spanish abbreviations and acronyms.

Government and ID

AbbreviationFull formEnglish
DNIDocumento Nacional de IdentidadNational ID card (Spain)
NIENúmero de Identidad de ExtranjeroForeigner ID number
NIFNúmero de Identificación FiscalTax ID number
CURPClave Única de Registro de PoblaciónPopulation registry (Mexico)
INEInstituto Nacional ElectoralElectoral institute (Mexico)
S.A.Sociedad AnónimaPublic limited company
S.L.Sociedad LimitadaLimited company

Everyday abbreviations

AbbreviationFull formEnglish
IVAImpuesto sobre el Valor AñadidoVAT / sales tax
AVEAlta Velocidad EspañolaHigh-speed train (Spain)
RENFERed Nacional de FerrocarrilesNational rail network (Spain)
ONGOrganización No GubernamentalNGO
RRSSRedes SocialesSocial media
RRHHRecursos HumanosHuman Resources (HR)
UEUnión EuropeaEU
EE.UU.Estados UnidosUSA
RAEReal Academia EspañolaRoyal Spanish Academy

Written abbreviations

WrittenFull formEnglish
Sr. / Sra.Señor / SeñoraMr. / Mrs.
Dr. / Dra.Doctor / DoctoraDr.
Ud. / Vd.UstedYou (formal)
etc.etcéteraetc.
p. ej.por ejemploe.g.
NúmeroNumber / No.
Avda. / Av.AvenidaAvenue
C/CalleStreet
Pza.PlazaSquare
Spanish doubles letters for plural abbreviations

EE.UU. = Estados Unidos (not EU!)
RRSS = Redes Sociales
RRHH = Recursos Humanos
CC.OO. = Comisiones Obreras (labor union)
This is a uniquely Spanish convention — each letter is doubled for plural.

Quick quiz

1. National ID in Spain = _____.

2. VAT / sales tax = _____.

3. USA in Spanish abbreviation = _____.

4. Social media abbreviation = _____.

5. Human Resources = _____.

6. High-speed train (Spain) = _____.

7. Street in an address = _____.

8. For example = _____.

9. Spanish doubles letters for _____.

10. Royal Spanish Academy = _____.

Explore more Spanish resources

Free tools for translation, text-to-speech and language learning.

Learn Spanish HubTranslator