To sell a flat in Spain, the seller has to bring the notary a certificate showing what they owe the community of owners (comunidad de propietarios). It is issued by whoever acts as the community's secretary (this can be the property manager), with the president's approval, within seven calendar days of the request. Without it the notary cannot authorise the deed, unless the buyer expressly waives it. The rule is in article 9.1.e of the Horizontal Property Act.
Below you will find who signs it, what happens if it is missing, what changes in Catalonia, and two templates: the certificate for a sale and the one a community uses to claim from an owner in arrears.
What is the community debt certificate? There are two with similar names
When people search for a "community debt certificate" they can mean two different documents under the Horizontal Property Act (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal, LPH), the law that governs blocks of flats in Spain. They are worth keeping apart, because different people ask for them, for different reasons.
| At a glance | Certificate for a sale (art. 9.1.e LPH) | Certificate for a claim (art. 21.3 LPH) |
|---|---|---|
| What it is for | So the notary can authorise the deed of sale | To file a payment order claim against an owner in arrears |
| Who needs it | The seller | The community |
| Who signs it | The secretary, with the president's approval | The secretary, with the president's approval, except for a professional secretary-administrator |
| What it certifies | The seller's debts, which must match what they declare in the deed | The owners' meeting resolution approving the debt, with the amount and a breakdown |
| Deadline to issue it | Seven calendar days from the request | The law sets none |
| What goes with it | The seller's declaration in the deed | Proof the debtor was notified and, depending on the province, proof of an attempt to negotiate (MASC) |
The first is the one notaries, buyers and estate agents ask for. The second is the property manager's business when an owner stops paying. There are templates for both at the end.
Who issues the sale certificate and who signs it?
Article 9.1.e LPH says the certificate "será emitida en el plazo máximo de siete días naturales desde su solicitud por quien ejerza las funciones de secretario, con el visto bueno del presidente" (shall be issued within a maximum of seven calendar days of the request by whoever acts as secretary, with the president's approval).
Who is the secretary? It depends on how the community is organised (article 13 LPH):
- If the bylaws or the owners' meeting (junta de propietarios) have not appointed anyone separately, the president carries out the duties of secretary and administrator.
- The roles of secretary and administrator can be held by the same person. The administrator, or secretary-administrator, can be an owner or a professional with a recognised qualification.
In practice, if the community has a property manager (administrador de fincas) who also acts as secretary, they issue the certificate and the president adds their approval (visto bueno). If no secretary has been appointed, the president signs it, since they hold that role.
Signing it has consequences. The same article adds that the secretary and president "responderán, en caso de culpa o negligencia, de la exactitud de los datos consignados en la misma y de los perjuicios causados por el retraso en su emisión" (shall be liable, in the event of fault or negligence, for the accuracy of the details stated and for any loss caused by delay in issuing it). A certificate that says "up to date" when it is not, or that arrives late and makes the signing fall through, can cost the person who signed it money.
How long do they have to give it to you?
Seven calendar days from the request. Calendar days means weekends and public holidays count.
Three practical tips:
- Ask early. If the signing is in five days, the property manager is within the law even if it arrives on day six. Ask as soon as there is a date at the notary, and in writing, so it is clear when the clock started.
- Make sure it is current on the day of signing. The law requires the certificate to match what the seller declares "en este momento" (at that moment), meaning at the deed, and sets no validity in days. If a fee falls due between the certificate and the signing, ask for an updated one or bring proof of payment.
- Have the owner request it. Providing it is the seller's obligation. If the estate agent or the buyer is handling it, they should bring the owner's written authorisation. In 2017 the Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) found that a community had breached its duty of confidentiality by certifying an owner's debts to their tenant, at the tenant's request, without the owner's consent (procedure A/00232/2017). It applied the previous law and the case was closed without further measures, but the lesson still holds: the certificate goes to the owner or to someone they authorise.
The LPH does not say who pays for the certificate and sets no fee. Ask the property manager before you request it.
What happens if the seller does not provide the certificate?
Under article 9.1.e, without the certificate "no podrá autorizarse el otorgamiento del documento público, salvo que fuese expresamente exonerado de esta obligación por el adquirente" (the public deed cannot be authorised, unless the buyer has expressly released the seller from this obligation). In other words, the notary will not sign unless the buyer expressly waives it.
Waiving it is possible, but it carries a risk for the buyer: the charge on the property (afección real). The buyer, "incluso con título inscrito en el Registro de la Propiedad" (even with title registered at the Land Registry), answers with the flat itself for what previous owners owed towards general expenses, up to "la parte vencida de la anualidad en la cual tenga lugar la adquisición y a los tres años naturales anteriores" (the part already due of the year in which the purchase takes place and the three previous calendar years).
An example: if you complete the purchase on 10 March 2026, the flat answers for fees due in 2026 up to that date and for those of 2023, 2024 and 2025. The community can no longer pursue anything before 2023 against the flat, only against the former owner.
The courts apply that limit strictly. The Segovia Provincial Court (Audiencia Provincial; judgment 182/2025 of 8 July) reduced the amount owed by a company that had bought a flat at auction. The lower court had made it pay all the former owner's arrears, because those debts appeared as seizures noted at the Land Registry. The Provincial Court was clear: "El comprador del inmueble solo responderá de aquellas deudas respecto de las que el inmueble tenga una afección real" (The buyer of the property will only answer for those debts for which the property is legally charged). It ordered the company to pay the three previous years plus the current one at the date of the award; the 2016 and 2017 fees were left out. To reach that, it cited the Supreme Court (Tribunal Supremo; judgment 363/2022 of 4 May, which refers to judgment 211/2015 of 22 April): the charge "solo se activa cuando la propiedad del inmueble se transmite" (is only triggered when ownership of the property is transferred), and the new owner answers "con el propio inmueble adquirido" (with the property acquired), not as a personal debtor.
The three-year limit comes from the 2013 reform (Law 8/2013); before that, the charge covered the year of purchase and only the previous year. And it is not only about regular fees: article 10.2.c extends the same charge, on the same terms, to special levies (derramas) for compulsory maintenance and accessibility works.
Two warnings for the seller:
- The debt is still theirs. The flat answering for it does not release them: the community can still claim what they owed.
- They must report the sale. Article 9.1.i requires the change of ownership to be reported to the secretary "por cualquier medio que permita tener constancia de su recepción" (by any means that leaves a record of receipt). If not, the seller remains liable for debts arising after the sale "de forma solidaria con el nuevo titular" (jointly with the new owner), unless the community already knew by other means or the sale was common knowledge.
What should the certificate say?
The LPH only requires it to show the "estado de deudas con la comunidad" (state of debts with the community) and to match the seller's declaration. For it to be genuinely useful to the notary and the buyer, include:
- The community: name, tax number (NIF) and address.
- The flat or premises, and its owner.
- Whether the owner is up to date or, if not, how much they owe, broken down by item and period.
- The date or fee it has been checked up to.
- The date of the request and the date of issue.
- The secretary's signature and the president's approval.
When there is no debt, this is what people search for as a "zero debt certificate" (certificado de deuda cero): the same document, with the "up to date" option.
One point to watch: special levies that have been approved but are not yet due. The LPH does not require the certificate to mention them. Ask about them separately and put in the contract who pays them. In Catalonia they are compulsory, as you will see below.
What if the flat is in Catalonia?
In Catalonia, article 9 LPH does not apply. Article 553-5 of the Civil Code of Catalonia (Código civil de Cataluña) does, with differences that matter:
| LPH (art. 9.1.e) | Civil Code of Catalonia (art. 553-5) | |
|---|---|---|
| What the flat answers for | The part due of the year of purchase and the three previous calendar years | The part due of the current year and the four previous years, counted from 1 January to 31 December |
| What the certificate shows | The state of debts | Also common expenses and reserve fund contributions approved but not yet due |
| President's approval | Always | Not needed if a professional managing the property acts as secretary |
| Who can waive it | The buyer | The parties, expressly |
| Deadline to issue it | Seven calendar days | Article 553-5 sets none |
According to the note in the consolidated text, the four-year period applies to transfers and to debts claimed in court from 20 June 2015.
Template: debt certificate for selling a flat
Adapt it to your community. The Spanish version of this article has the same template in Spanish. The law does not ask for the owner's ID number or bank account: leave them out.
CERTIFICATE OF DEBTS WITH THE COMMUNITY (article 9.1.e of the Horizontal Property Act)
[Name], as secretary of the Community of Owners [name], tax number [NIF], address [address],
CERTIFIES:
That, according to the community's accounts and records, the owner of [flat or premises: floor and door], [name]:
[Option A] Is up to date with payment of the community's general expenses, including the fee for [month and year].
[Option B] Owes the community €[amount], broken down as follows: [item, period and amount of each outstanding sum].
Special levies or expenses approved by the owners' meeting and not yet due at this date: [item, date of resolution, amount and due date / none].
Issued at the request of the owner, made on [date], to be provided with the deed of transfer of the property.
In [place], on [date].
Secretary: [signature] · Approved by the president: [name and signature]
The other certificate: the one the community needs to claim from an owner in arrears
If the person looking for a certificate is the property manager because an owner is not paying, it is a different document. Article 21.3 LPH requires the payment order application (proceso monitorio, the fast-track court procedure for debts) to be accompanied by "un certificado del acuerdo de liquidación de la deuda emitido por quien haga las funciones de secretario de la comunidad con el visto bueno del presidente" (a certificate of the resolution approving the debt statement, issued by whoever acts as the community's secretary with the president's approval). What the law says about it:
- Signature. The president's is not needed if the secretary is a professionally qualified secretary-administrator "que no vaya a intervenir profesionalmente en la reclamación judicial de la deuda" (who will not act professionally in the court claim for the debt).
- Content. "En este certificado deberá constar el importe adeudado y su desglose" (This certificate must state the amount owed and its breakdown).
- Notification. You must also provide the document proving "haberse notificado al deudor" (that the debtor has been notified); failing that, the community notice board or a visible place in the building for at least three days.
- What can be claimed. Approved fees accruing up to the notification of the debt, and the costs of the claim, including the secretary-administrator's, charged to the debtor.
The Civil Procedure Act (Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil, art. 812.2) allows the payment order procedure precisely when the debt is shown "mediante certificaciones de impago de cantidades debidas en concepto de gastos comunes de Comunidades de propietarios" (by certificates of non-payment of sums owed as common expenses of communities of owners).
Watch out for the MASC. Since 3 April 2025, Organic Law 1/2025 has required an attempt to negotiate before suing (an "appropriate means of dispute resolution", medio adecuado de solución de controversias, MASC), and its article 5 does not exclude the domestic payment order procedure. Whether the community fees version needs one is a question the Provincial Courts do not answer in the same way. The Valencia Provincial Court, in its unified criteria of 15 June 2026, requires it, but considers that "será suficiente si en tal acuerdo de liquidación la junta pone de manifiesto su voluntad de alcanzar un acuerdo" (it will be enough if, in that resolution approving the debt, the meeting shows its willingness to reach an agreement). That is why the template below includes that sentence. Other courts ask for more, and the certificate alone is not enough: we go through it province by province in Claiming unpaid community fees under the MASC rule, and the MASC deadline calculator gives you the dates.
Template: certificate of the resolution approving the debt
CERTIFICATE OF THE RESOLUTION APPROVING THE DEBT STATEMENT (article 21.3 of the Horizontal Property Act)
[Name], as secretary of the Community of Owners [name], tax number [NIF],
CERTIFIES:
That the owners' meeting held on [date], at the [first / second] call, approved under item [number] of the agenda the statement of the debt of [name], owner of [flat or premises], for a total of €[amount], broken down as follows:
- Ordinary fees for [months and year]: €[amount].
- Special levy for [item], approved on [date]: €[amount].
- Reserve fund for [period]: €[amount].
That in the same resolution the meeting stated its willingness to reach a payment agreement with the owner before bringing a court claim.
That the resolution was notified to the debtor on [date] by [means and address] [or: that, notification having been attempted without success, it was posted on the community notice board on [date] for at least three days].
Issued for the purposes of the payment order procedure in [place], on [date].
Secretary: [signature] · Approved by the president: [name and signature] (not needed if signed by a professional secretary-administrator who will not act in the claim)
Has anything changed in 2026?
Not for these certificates. Articles 9 and 21 LPH have not been amended since Law 10/2022 of 14 June. The most recent reform of the LPH, Law 4/2026 of 1 October, in force from 23 October 2026, changes article 10.1.b (accessibility works) and adds a provision on public grants for those works. It touches neither the certificate nor the charge on the property.
How to keep track of it at an estate agency or a property management firm
In a sale, the certificate is one more document in the file. The tricky part is timing: ask too late and it will not arrive for the signing; ask too early and a fee may fall due before you sign.
In our CRM, each deal lives in one file with its documents in folders, contacts, reminders and history, so you can set a reminder to request the certificate ten days before the signing and keep it in the sale's folder. If you want to see how it fits the rest of an agency's work, we cover it in automation for estate agents.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the community debt certificate cost?
The Horizontal Property Act sets no fee and does not say who pays. Providing it with the deed is the seller's obligation. Ask the property manager before you request it.
How long is the certificate valid?
The law gives it no validity in days. What it requires is that it matches what the seller declares when signing the deed. If a fee falls due between issue and signing, ask for an updated one or bring proof of payment.
Can the buyer or the estate agent request it?
The obligation is the seller's, and an owner's debts are personal data. The safe course is for the owner to request it, or for the agent to bring the owner's written authorisation. In 2017 the AEPD found that a community breached its duty of confidentiality by certifying an owner's debts to their tenant without the owner's consent.
What if the property manager takes more than seven days?
The secretary and the president are liable, where there is fault or negligence, for any loss caused by the delay. If the signing cannot wait, the buyer can expressly waive the certificate, but accepts that the flat answers for debts from the year of purchase and the three previous years.
Does the buyer pay the previous owner's debts?
Only with the flat itself and only up to that limit: the part due of the year of purchase and the three previous calendar years (four in Catalonia). Everything else remains the seller's personal debt.
Sources
- Law 49/1960, on Horizontal Property (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal), arts. 9.1.e, 9.1.i, 10.2.c, 13 and 21 (consolidated text).
- Law 5/2006, Book Five of the Civil Code of Catalonia, art. 553-5.
- Civil Procedure Act (Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil), art. 812.
- Organic Law 1/2025 of 2 January, on measures for the efficiency of the Public Justice Service, art. 5.
- Law 4/2026 of 1 October (BOE of 3 October 2026).
- Segovia Provincial Court, Section 1, judgment 182/2025 of 8 July (ROJ SAP SG 257/2025), citing Supreme Court judgments 363/2022 of 4 May and 211/2015 of 22 April.
- Valencia Provincial Court, unified criteria on MASC, 15 June 2026, criterion 1-b.
- AEPD, procedure A/00232/2017 (resolution R/02104/2017).
This article explains the law and published court criteria as of the update date. It is not a substitute for advice from a lawyer on a specific case.