Certificate of No Urban Infraction
A certificate of absence of town-planning infractions on a property is a document that may be requested by the owner or his representative or a potential buyer before signing a sale and purchase agreement.
Which document is this, for what purpose will it be used?
It is an official document certifying that a property, residential building or land plot is not subject to sanctions for a current violation of town planning. In other words, it confirms that no case of violation of town planning regulations has ever been brought against the property in question, and even if it has, the statute of limitations has expired.
Is this certificate mandatory, in what cases is it usually requested and how to obtain it?
Recently it has become a very common practice in European countries. This document is more and more frequently requested in Spain, especially in the case of foreign buyers, but also in the case of young Spaniards buying their first home.
Even though its provision is not actually mandatory before the purchase or sale of a property is finalised, the purchaser has the right to request such a document.
Who is responsible for sanctions and further remediation?
It is important to highlight that the buyer is not liable for sanctions imposed on the previous owner,but he/she has the right to know about possible town planning violations, if any. These infringements may, for example, arise from an illegal enlargement of the property for which the owner was sanctioned and which are still associated with the property before the statute of limitations has expired.
If part of the property does not meet planning regulations, the new owner will not be penalised for this, but there is a risk that the building cannot be legalised and will eventually have to be demolished, in which case the costs will be borne by the purchaser. In such cases, the sanction dossier is issued for the residential property and not for an individual, regardless of who the current owner is after the property purchase transaction.
Precisely in order to be aware of possible problems associated with the property you are buying, you can request a certificate on the presence or absence of violations of urban planning legislation.
We would like to emphasise that this certificate can be requested by both the owner and the potential buyer of the property.
To order this certificate, it is necessary to submit the following documents:
- A written application indicating the Applicant's personal information, the property, and the reason for the request.
- A photocopy of the property location map.
- Proof of payment of the relevant municipal tax established by the administration of each locality.
In case the application is submitted by a third party, it is also necessary to submit an authorisation with a photocopy of the DNI or NIE of the representative and the represented person.
The timeframe for issuing this document varies from 2 weeks to 3 months depending on the municipality.
If you have any questions regarding the request of a certificate of absence of sanctions for infringement of the town planning regulations, please contact Arcostec Group and we will be happy to assist you.
