Spain has no single national licence for agents. What exists instead is a patchwork of regional registers, and the rules differ by region.
Buyers from abroad often assume that anyone who shows a flat in Spain holds a licence. In Spain that assumption is wrong. This guide explains what can and cannot be checked, region by region. It is informational and not legal advice, and regional rules change, so confirm the current position on the official pages mentioned below.
Is the profession regulated?
At national level there is no single licence that every estate agent must show. The professional title of Agente de la Propiedad Inmobiliaria (API) exists, but sources agree that it is not a general condition for working as an agent, and one source claims the opposite, so treat any agent who says "I am licensed by the state" as a prompt to ask which register and which number.
What does exist is a set of regional registers, introduced by the autonomous communities, which have competence over housing. They are not the same everywhere.
- Catalonia: the Registro de Agentes Inmobiliarios de Cataluña is public and registration is mandatory for agents established there. The Generalitat page lists a shop-front or physical address (unless the service is fully remote), training or a relevant degree, a civil liability insurance policy and a surety. Registered agents must show an official plaque and a number on their stationery and advertising. The insurance and surety amounts in the Decree can be updated, so ask for the current figures instead of relying on an old article.
- Valencian Community: Decree 98/2022 created a register that was reported as mandatory, with a transition period of about a year from October 2022. The competition authority challenged some of its articles, and I could not find the outcome, so confirm the current status with the regional housing department.
- Balearic Islands: the official register page describes registration as voluntary under Law 3/2024. Earlier sector sources spoke of a mandatory register, and there are reports of further changes, so confirm on the official page.
- Madrid and Andalusia: Madrid has been reported to have a voluntary register with plans to make it compulsory, and Andalusian housing law sets entry requirements for a register of residential agents. Check the regional register directly rather than assuming.
Where to check
- Catalonia: the Generalitat page on the register (tramits.gencat.cat) points to a public search for registered agents run by the Agència de l'Habitatge de Catalunya. Search by company name and compare the registration number with the plaque and the contract.
- Other regions: search the housing department's website for "registro de agentes inmobiliarios" in that region, and check whether the entry exists, who the legal entity is, and whether the registration number appears on the agent's contract.
- Company data: ask for the company name, tax number (CIF) and registered address, and check them in the commercial register through a local lawyer. A trade name on a website is not a company.
- The property itself: whatever the agent says, the owner and the charges are shown by an extract from the Property Registry (nota simple). Ask for it before you pay anything; see the Spain buying guide and the pre-purchase checklist.
How the commission works
In most resales the seller pays the agent, because the agent is hired by the seller. Consumer guides say the buyer may still pay in some cases, for example when a buyer-side agent is hired under a separate contract, and new-build agents are often paid by the developer. The point for you is to ask in writing: who is the agent's client, who pays, how much, and when it is due. Read more in who pays the estate agent and whose side they are on and in contracts and forms that bind you.
Red flags
- The agent works in a region where registration is mandatory and cannot give a registration number.
- A reservation fee is requested before you have seen an extract from the Property Registry or a video tour with the address visible.
- The money is to be paid into a personal account or to an account in a different country from the company.
- The agent insists on one lawyer, notary or translator, who is "theirs". See lawyer recommended by the agent or developer.
- Pressure of the kind "another buyer is paying today".
- Documents arrive only as photos or screenshots.
For wider fraud patterns see property scams abroad: the most common schemes.
What an independent adviser adds
A register tells you that a company exists. It does not tell you whether the property is clean. A lawyer who is not paid by the agent can obtain the nota simple, check debts and community fees, planning and tourist-licence status, and review the reservation and purchase contracts. See notary or lawyer: who do you need abroad and one agent or one lawyer is not enough.
How we help
D.H. Realting is a Warsaw-based independent consultant that vets local lawyers and agents before introducing them, so the checks above are done by someone who is not paid by the seller. This text is informational and is not legal, tax or investment advice.