Declaring a property purchase above €500,000 (form D-2A)

The legal basis

The text is Real Decreto 571/2023, de 4 de julio, on foreign investment (inversiones exteriores), in force from 1 September 2023. It repealed the earlier Royal Decree 664/1999, so older descriptions citing that decree are out of date. The forms and procedure are in Orden ECM/57/2024, in force from 1 February 2024.

Article 3 defines the foreign investor as a “non-resident” within article 2 of Ley 19/2003. For individuals, that is a person whose habitual residence is abroad, with habitual residence taken from the tax rules. A UK, Canadian or US national living in Spain and tax resident here is a resident for this purpose; a Spaniard living abroad is a non-resident. Nationality does not decide it. The investor may be asked to prove non-resident status (article 4 of the Orden).

Article 4.h) lists as a declarable investment “the acquisition of real estate located in Spain by non-residents, whose amount exceeds €500,000”. Exceeding means above that figure; a purchase at exactly €500,000 is not covered by the wording. The rule concerns the amount of the investment, not the number of properties; the text does not say how several purchases are added together, so ask the notary if you buy more than one.

Declaration after the purchase

Under article 5.1 the declaration is “compulsory and subsequent” to the investment. There is no prior authorisation for an ordinary home purchase. The investment is made on a date, and the deadline runs from it:

• Article 14.1 of the Orden: the transaction is declared on form D-2A, “within a maximum period of one month counted from the date of carrying out the investment”.
• If a Spanish notary was involved, the date is the one on which the deed was formalised before the notary.
• If the holder changes residence or moves domicile, the date taken is that of the change of residence or domicile.

A total or partial disposal of a declared property is reported on form D-2B, also within a maximum of one month (article 15 of the Orden). Where a property passes between two non-residents, the buyer files a D-2A and the seller a D-2B (article 15.5), with the notary doing it where a Spanish notary acted.

Who files

Article 5.2 of the Royal Decree says that, in general, the non-resident owner declares. Two special cases:

• A Spanish notary was involved. Article 5.3.b) says the notary sends the information to the General Council of the Notariat, which centralises it and passes it to the Registry. If you have handed the notary all the data needed, you are released from the duty. If not, the notary must expressly warn you of it. In the Orden’s wording, the notary incorporates a copy of D-2A in the protocol and sends the data electronically (article 14.3).
• A consul acts as notary abroad. The Royal Decree exempts consuls and heads of consular affairs performing notarial functions abroad from this declaration; the obligation then falls only on the non-resident owner, who files D-2A with the Registry and attaches a copy of the document recording the purchase (article 10.1 of the Orden). The Royal Decree adds that the diplomatic official may refuse to act after assessing the circumstances.

The declaration belongs to the investor’s side of the file, so ask your notary at the signing whether the D-2A is part of the service.

What if the money comes from a non-cooperative jurisdiction?

Article 5.5 adds a rule for investments whose immediate or ultimate origin is in a “non-cooperative jurisdiction” as listed in Orden HFP/115/2023. For real estate above the €500,000 threshold, the declaration must be made before the investment, and the whole of it is declared afterwards too, without thresholds. The list itself was not read for this guide; if funds come from an offshore structure, ask a lawyer before signing.

What it does not do

• It is not a visa and grants no residence right.
• It does not replace the NIE, which you need for the deed. See the guide on military zones for the other foreigner-specific check on a purchase.
• It does not set the tax; for costs see the purchase costs calculator.

Consequences of not declaring

Article 25 of the Royal Decree makes non-compliance an infringement within the meaning of article 8 of Ley 19/2003, and article 7 of the Orden applies the sanctions regime of that law. The scale of fines in Ley 19/2003 was not read for this guide; ask the registry or a lawyer for the amount in your case.

Which professional to consult

The notary (notario) who authorises the deed, or a lawyer registered with a Spanish bar association (colegio de abogados) if the deed is signed abroad before a consul, can tell you whether the declaration is covered. Payotte does not recommend professionals.