Tenant rights in Spain, with the Catalan rules for Barcelona

• You and the landlord agree the initial term, but if it is shorter than five years (or seven years if the landlord is a company or other legal entity), the lease is extended year by year at your choice until it reaches that minimum. You can leave at the end of any year by giving 30 days' notice.
• Under the version in force on 8 October 2026, after the minimum period the lease is extended by up to three more years in annual steps unless either party gives notice (the landlord at least four months before the end, the tenant at least two). RDL 28/2026 changes this from 15 November 2026 so that leases renew for successive five- or seven-year periods, with compensation in some cases if the landlord does not renew; check the version that applies to your contract.
• A landlord who is a private individual can only end the lease early after the first year to live in the home themselves or house close family, and only if this was stated in the contract.

• Deposit (fianza): exactly one month's rent for a home, paid in cash or by transfer when you sign.
• Additional guarantees (for example a bank guarantee or extra deposit): at most two months' rent for leases of up to five (or seven) years. You cannot be required to take out rent-default insurance.
• Rent in advance: the landlord cannot demand more than one month in advance.
• Agency and contract costs: real-estate management and contract formalisation costs cannot be passed on to the tenant in any form.
• Rent payment: monthly, within the first seven days of the month unless agreed otherwise.

• Annual rent updates cannot exceed the change in the official IRAV index (Índice de Referencia para la Actualización Anual de los Contratos de Arrendamiento de Vivienda). If the contract mentions an update but no index, the IRAV applies.
• In areas declared stressed housing markets (zonas de mercado residencial tensionado), the rent of a new lease generally cannot exceed the last rent paid for that home in the previous five years (updated), and large landlords are also capped by the state reference price index.

The landlord must return the deposit, minus justified deductions for damage or unpaid amounts. If it is not returned within one month of handing back the keys, it accrues statutory interest. Take dated photos when you move in and out, and keep every receipt.

• Deposit register: in Catalonia the landlord must lodge your deposit with the Institut Català del Sòl (INCASÒL) within two months of signing. According to INCASÒL, this also applies to room rentals and other split lettings signed from 14 July 2026.
• Seasonal and room rentals: INCASÒL notes that Catalan Law 11/2025 on housing measures applies to seasonal and room contracts signed from 1 January 2026.
• Rent caps: Barcelona is a declared stressed market. According to the Generalitat, the rent of a new contract may be at most the last rent of a contract in force in the previous five years, updated; if the landlord is a large landlord (gran tenidor), the rent must also stay below the state reference price index, and the lower limit applies. If the home has not been rented in the last five years, the index is the cap for all landlords. Landlords must tell you the previous rent and state it in the contract.
• Exceptions: rent may rise by up to 10% if qualifying refurbishment, energy-saving or accessibility works were finished in the previous two years, or if the lease or extension is for ten years or more.
• Help: Barcelona's network of Housing Offices (Oficines de l'Habitatge) gives free information, legal advice and mediation between tenants and landlords; book in advance.