The community can charge interest from the day each fee falls due, approve proportionate deterrents, take away the defaulting owner's vote, claim through the fast-track court procedure in the Horizontal Property Act (with attachment if the owner contests it) and, if the flat is sold, go after the flat itself for the current year and the three before. Since 2025, several provinces also require an attempt to negotiate first. And don't wait: the Supreme Court applies a five-year limit to community fees.
Below is the full map of options and the order to use them in. The step-by-step claim is in How to claim unpaid community fees under the MASC rule, and the letter to the owner in arrears is in Community fees demand letter.
What can the community do about an owner who won't pay? At a glance
| Tool | What it achieves | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Interest from the due date | The debt grows on its own, with no demand needed | LPH, art. 21.1 |
| Deterrents approved at a meeting | Higher interest, or temporary loss of use of services or facilities | LPH, art. 21.1 |
| List of owners in arrears in the meeting notice | The owner can speak at the meeting but not vote | LPH, arts. 15.2 and 16.2 |
| Debt statement, notice and attempt to negotiate | The requirements before going to court | LPH, art. 21.3; LO 1/2025 |
| Proceso monitorio | An order to pay within twenty days, or enforcement | LPH, art. 21; LEC, arts. 812 to 818 |
| Pre-emptive attachment (embargo preventivo) | If the owner contests, attachment without the community posting security | LPH, art. 21.4 |
| The flat's liability (afección real) | If it is sold, the flat answers for the year of sale and the three before | LPH, art. 9.1.e |
| Mediation or arbitration | An alternative to court | LPH, art. 21.6 |
All of this is in the Horizontal Property Act (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal, LPH), the law that governs every community of owners (comunidad de propietarios) outside Catalonia. Its article 21 was rewritten by Law 10/2022, in force since 16 June 2022. In Catalonia, the rules are in book five of the Catalan Civil Code; the differences that matter most are below.
What should you do as soon as a payment is late?
No law requires a friendly reminder, but it is the cheapest step there is and sometimes it is enough. Before anything else:
- Send a written reminder and keep proof of sending. An "extrajudicial claim by the creditor" interrupts the limitation period (Civil Code, art. 1973). A dated reminder already does some work.
- Check the address for notices. Every owner must give the secretary an address in Spain; if they have not, the flat itself counts, "surtiendo plenos efectos jurídicos las entregadas al ocupante del mismo" (with full legal effect for notices handed to whoever occupies it) (LPH, art. 9.1.h). You will need it later.
- Check what the owners' meeting (junta de propietarios) approved. If it agreed interest or deterrents, apply only those, and only from the date they were agreed.
- Don't post the debt in the entrance hall or the residents' group chat. The Spanish Data Protection Agency (AEPD) only accepts the notice board in one specific case, explained below.
Can the community charge interest or surcharges?
Yes, in two ways. The first is automatic: "los créditos a favor de la comunidad devengarán intereses desde el momento en que deba efectuarse el pago correspondiente y éste no se haga efectivo" (sums owed to the community accrue interest from the moment payment was due and not made) (LPH, art. 21.1). No prior demand is needed.
The second is decided by the meeting. The same article allows "medidas disuasorias frente a la morosidad" (deterrents against non-payment) for as long as the owner stays in arrears, and gives two examples: interest above the legal rate, or "privación temporal del uso de servicios o instalaciones" (temporary loss of use of services or facilities). There are four limits:
- They cannot be "abusivas o desproporcionadas" (abusive or disproportionate).
- They cannot affect "la habitabilidad de los inmuebles" (whether the home is fit to live in). Think of shared facilities rather than services to the home.
- They can "en ningún caso" (under no circumstances) be retroactive.
- They can be written into the community's bylaws (estatutos).
The Supreme Court (Tribunal Supremo) showed where the line is in its judgment 1468/2026 of 22 September. On one hand, it said that "la ley no limita estrictamente las medidas susceptibles de ser adoptadas a las consignadas en la norma" (the law does not strictly limit the measures to those listed): article 21.1 gives examples, not a closed list. On the other, it upheld the annulment of a €0.50-a-day late surcharge in a community in Castellón where the annual fee was €135 per parking space. A year of non-payment generated €182.50 in surcharges, which the Provincial Court worked out as default interest of 135.18%, "claramente desproporcionado" (clearly disproportionate). The Supreme Court added another flaw: with a flat daily surcharge, a €10 debt generates the same surcharge in a year as not paying the whole fee.
The practical lesson: if the meeting approves a surcharge, make it proportionate to what is owed (a percentage), not a fixed amount per day.
Can an owner in arrears vote? Can you publish the list?
They cannot vote. Owners who "en el momento de iniciarse la junta" (when the meeting starts) are not up to date with all overdue debts, and have neither challenged them in court nor deposited the amount with a court or notary, "podrán participar en sus deliberaciones si bien no tendrán derecho de voto" (may take part in the discussion but have no vote) (LPH, art. 15.2). The minutes record them, and they do not count towards majorities.
Nor can they challenge the meeting's resolutions while they owe money: to do so they must be up to date with all overdue debts or deposit them with the court first (LPH, art. 18.2). The exception is resolutions that set or change each flat's share of costs (cuota de participación).
The meeting notice must include "una relación de los propietarios que no estén al corriente en el pago de las deudas vencidas a la comunidad" (a list of owners not up to date with overdue debts) and warn that they lose the vote (LPH, art. 16.2). That list goes in the notice each owner receives, not on the wall. In its FAQ on owners in arrears, the AEPD recommends sending it by post, in the letterbox or on a password-protected intranet, "evitándose cualquier medio que pueda suponer el acceso por terceros" (avoiding any channel third parties could access). The notice board is only allowed when delivery to the owner's address has proved impossible (LPH, art. 9.1.h), and then "deberán acreditarse los intentos de notificación" (the delivery attempts must be proved). There is a template in Owners' meeting notice template with arrears list.
How do you claim the debt in court?
Through the special payment order procedure (proceso monitorio) of the LPH, which the Civil Procedure Act (Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil, LEC) allows when the debt is proved "mediante certificaciones de impago de cantidades debidas en concepto de gastos comunes de Comunidades de propietarios" (by certificates of unpaid community charges) (LEC, art. 812.2). It covers all shared costs, "tanto si son ordinarios como extraordinarios, generales o individualizables, o fondo de reserva" (ordinary or extraordinary, general or individual, or the reserve fund) (LPH, art. 21.2). You need three things first:
- The debt statement resolution. The meeting approves the debt (liquidación) and the secretary issues a certificate showing "el importe adeudado y su desglose" (the amount owed and its breakdown), countersigned by the president, unless it is signed by a qualified professional secretary-administrator who will not act in the claim (art. 21.3). If that professional secretary-administrator is the one bringing the claim, the meeting must agree to it (art. 21.2).
- Notice to the debtor. To the address they gave or, if they gave none, to the flat. If that proves impossible, on the notice board or another visible place, with a signed record, for at least three days (arts. 9.1.h and 21.3).
- The attempt to negotiate, depending on where the building is. Since 3 April 2025, Organic Law 1/2025 has required a prior attempt at an appropriate means of dispute resolution (medio adecuado de solución de controversias, MASC) in the special procedures of book IV of the LEC, which includes the monitorio (art. 5.2). Whether that covers the community fees monitorio is disputed, and the Supreme Court has not settled it. The Alicante courts of first instance extend the requirement to every special procedure in book IV. The Valencia Provincial Court (Audiencia Provincial) requires it for the community monitorio, although "será suficiente si en tal acuerdo de liquidación la junta pone de manifiesto su voluntad de alcanzar un acuerdo" (it is enough if the debt resolution records the meeting's willingness to reach an agreement). The Asturias court, by contrast, exempts the monitorio "derivado de la Ley de Propiedad Horizontal donde el requerimiento previo es suficiente" (under the Horizontal Property Act, where the prior demand is enough). The province-by-province table is in the MASC article.
If you make the attempt, the owner has thirty calendar days from receipt to reply; with no meeting and no written answer, the attempt ends without agreement (LO 1/2025, art. 10.4.a). From receipt you have one year to file (art. 7.3). The MASC deadline calculator does the sums.
The initial monitorio application needs neither a lawyer (abogado) nor a court representative (procurador) (LEC, art. 814.2). You can include the approved fees falling due up to the notice of the debt and "todos los gastos y costes que conlleve la reclamación" (all the costs of the claim), charged to the debtor (LPH, art. 21.3).
What happens after you file?
The court orders the owner to pay within twenty days, or to file an objection explaining why they do not owe the money (LEC, art. 815.1). For community debts, the order goes to the address they gave the community or, if they gave none, to the flat (art. 815.2). Then there are three paths:
| What the owner does | What happens |
|---|---|
| Pays | The case is closed (LEC, art. 817). If you used a lawyer or procurador, the owner also pays their fees, within the limits of art. 394.3 LEC (LPH, art. 21.5) |
| Neither pays nor objects | The monitorio ends and the community applies for enforcement, which follows the rules for enforcing judgments (LEC, art. 816). From the enforcement order, the debt bears the legal interest rate plus two points (arts. 816.2 and 576) |
| Objects | The case goes to trial. The community can ask for pre-emptive attachment of the debtor's assets, which the court grants "en todo caso" (in every case) and without security (LPH, art. 21.4) |
Since 20 March 2024, LPH money claims are decided in the short-form trial (juicio verbal) "sea cual fuere dicha cantidad" (whatever the amount) (LEC, art. 250.1.15, as worded by Royal Decree-law 6/2023). For the objection stage, the general rules on lawyers and procuradores apply (art. 818.1). The LEC lets parties act without them in juicios verbales determined by amount when it does not exceed €2,000 (arts. 23.2 and 31.2). Because a fees claim goes to the juicio verbal by subject matter rather than amount, ask a lawyer whether the community can act alone below that figure. Above it, plan on having both.
If the community wins outright, the costs order includes its lawyer's and procurador's fees "aunque no hubiera sido preceptiva" (even if their involvement was not compulsory) (LPH, art. 21.5).
To enforce against the flat, the community can also sue the registered owner "a efectos de soportar la ejecución sobre el inmueble inscrito a su nombre" (so that enforcement can fall on the property registered in their name) (LPH, art. 21.2). If you will sue several people and your province requires a MASC, the Valencia and Asturias courts agree you must attempt negotiation with each of them.
What happens to the debt if the owner sells the flat?
It does not disappear. 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 in general charges, up to "la parte vencida de la anualidad en la cual tenga lugar la adquisición y a los tres años naturales anteriores" (the part of the year of purchase already due and the three previous calendar years) (LPH, art. 9.1.e). If the sale is signed in 2026, the flat answers for what fell due in 2026 and for 2023, 2024 and 2025.
That is why the seller must bring the notary a certificate of their community debts, which the secretary issues within seven calendar days. We explain it, with a template, in Community debt certificate.
Three more rules from the same article:
- Priority. Fees for the current year and the three before are preferred debts under article 1923 of the Civil Code, in the order set by article 9.1.e itself, without prejudice to the priority of wage claims.
- Selling without telling the community. A seller who does not notify the change of ownership remains liable for later debts "de forma solidaria con el nuevo titular" (jointly with the new owner) (art. 9.1.i), unless the community learned of it another way or the sale was common knowledge.
- Catalonia. The flat answers for the part of the current year already due and the four previous years, "contados del 1 de enero al 31 de diciembre" (counted from 1 January to 31 December) (Catalan Civil Code, art. 553-5), for sales and court claims from 20 June 2015.
When do unpaid community fees become time-barred?
After five years. The Civil Code sets that period for "cualesquiera otros pagos que deben hacerse por años o en plazos más breves" (any other payments due yearly or at shorter intervals) (art. 1966.3), and the Supreme Court applies it to community fees. In its judgment 1197/2023 of 21 July, it restates what it held in judgment 242/2020 of 3 June, repeated in 182/2021 and 769/2021: "la doctrina aplicable ha de ser la de entender que en estos casos resulta de aplicación el plazo de prescripción de cinco años del artículo 1966-3.º CC" (the applicable doctrine is that the five-year limitation period of article 1966.3 of the Civil Code applies in these cases).
The case shows what is at stake. A community in Tenerife was claiming €187,403.03 in fees unpaid between 1998 and 2017. The first-instance court and the Provincial Court had applied the general fifteen-year period of article 1964 (the rule before Law 42/2015 cut it to five). The Supreme Court applied the five years of article 1966.3 and ordered payment only of fees from 11 May 2012 onwards. Why that date? Because on 11 May 2017 the community had sent a burofax (a certified postal communication with proof of content and delivery) demanding the debt, which interrupted the limitation period. It went to one of the flats because the owner had never given another address, and the debt was also posted on the notice board; for the Supreme Court, that was exactly what article 9.1.h requires.
Two ways to interrupt the period:
- An extrajudicial claim, such as a written demand (Civil Code, art. 1973).
- The MASC request to negotiate, from the date of the attempt to deliver it to the owner's address or through the electronic channel the parties have used before (LO 1/2025, art. 7.1).
If the building is in Catalonia, note that the Catalan Civil Code sets three years for "las pretensiones relativas a pagos periódicos que deban efectuarse por años o plazos más breves" (claims for periodic payments due yearly or at shorter intervals) (art. 121-21.a). Check the period with a lawyer before treating old fees as still recoverable.
Can you use mediation or arbitration?
Yes. The LPH expressly allows it: claims for community charges and the reserve fund "también podrá ser objeto de mediación-conciliación o arbitraje" (may also go to mediation, conciliation or arbitration) (art. 21.6). For the purposes of LO 1/2025, mediation, conciliation, an independent expert's opinion and a confidential binding offer all count as an attempt to negotiate, as does direct negotiation between the parties (art. 5.1). If you want a firm proposal that binds the community as soon as the owner accepts it, there is a template in Binding offer for unpaid community fees.
A practical order for property managers
- From the due date: interest runs (art. 21.1). Send a written reminder with proof of sending.
- At the next owners' meeting: the owner appears on the arrears list in the notice and cannot vote. Approve the debt statement and record the meeting's willingness to reach an agreement, which is what the Valencia court asks for.
- After the meeting: one letter that notifies the debt, proposes a payment plan and invites the owner to negotiate, sent with proof of receipt. The template is in Community fees demand letter.
- After thirty days without a reply: file the monitorio, with the certificate, the notice and the proof of the attempt, within the year.
- Always: check the date of the oldest fees. Anything left unclaimed for more than five years may be lost.
How do you keep a record of every notice?
Almost everything above depends on proving what was sent, to whom and when: the reminder that interrupts the limitation period, the notice of the debt and the attempt to negotiate. If you do it by email, our Certified email product sends the document from the community's or firm's own domain and records, for each recipient, delivery, opening and download with date, time and IP address, plus a SHA-256 fingerprint anyone can check on a public page. Opening is indicative; the download is the strong evidence. It is not a qualified eIDAS trust service and does not replace a burofax: it is electronic evidence that a judge assesses freely if it is disputed.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the community have to claim unpaid fees?
Five years from each fee, according to the Supreme Court, which applies article 1966.3 of the Civil Code. The period is interrupted by an extrajudicial claim or by a MASC request to negotiate. In Catalonia, the Catalan Civil Code sets three years for periodic payments.
Can the community cut off services to an owner who won't pay?
The meeting can agree a temporary loss of use of services or facilities as a deterrent, with no retroactive effect. It cannot be abusive or disproportionate, or affect whether the home is fit to live in (LPH, art. 21.1).
Do you need a lawyer to claim the fees?
Not to file the monitorio application (LEC, art. 814.2). If the owner objects, the general rules apply: above €2,000, plan on a lawyer and a procurador. If the community wins outright, their fees are included in the costs even if their involvement was not compulsory.
Who pays the fees if the flat is sold with debts?
The law speaks of sums owed "por los anteriores titulares" (by the previous owners), but the buyer answers with the flat itself for what fell due in the year of purchase and the three before (four in Catalonia). That is why the notary needs the debt certificate, unless the buyer waives it.
Can an owner in arrears vote at the meeting?
They can speak but not vote if, when the meeting starts, they are not up to date and have neither challenged nor deposited the debt (LPH, art. 15.2). Nor can they challenge resolutions without first paying or depositing the debt (art. 18.2).
Sources
- Law 49/1960, on Horizontal Property (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal), arts. 9, 15, 16, 18 and 21 (consolidated text; arts. 9 and 21 as worded by Law 10/2022).
- Organic Law 1/2025 of 2 January (Ley Orgánica 1/2025), arts. 5, 7 and 10.
- Civil Procedure Act (Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil), arts. 23, 31, 250, 576, 812, 814, 815, 816, 817 and 818.
- Civil Code (Código Civil), arts. 1964, 1966 and 1973.
- Law 29/2002, first law of the Catalan Civil Code, art. 121-21.
- Law 5/2006, book five of the Catalan Civil Code, art. 553-5.
- Supreme Court, Civil Chamber, judgment 1197/2023 of 21 July (ROJ STS 3355/2023).
- Supreme Court, Civil Chamber, judgment 1468/2026 of 22 September (ROJ STS 3785/2026).
- Valencia Provincial Court, unified criteria on MASC, 15 June 2026, criteria 1-b and 3.
- Criteria of the Alicante courts of first instance, 4 April 2025, criterion 1.
- Asturias Provincial Court, guidance criteria of 19 November 2025, criteria 4 and 6.
- AEPD, FAQ on posting the list of owners in arrears on the notice board.
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.