Nota simple: how to get one online, and what it tells you (and doesn't) before you buy

The nota simple is the cheapest document in the whole purchase, and the one people most often skip. Order it before you pay any deposit.

The Land Registry (Registro de la Propiedad) is national, so the document, its price and the online office are the same whether the flat is in Madrid, Barcelona or a village in Galicia. What changes by region is the rule on community debts, covered below.

What it shows, and what it doesn't

Shows	Doesn't show
The property's description (address, floor, door, registered size)	Community-fee debts
The owner or owners, and their share	Unpaid IBI (property tax)
Mortgages	The flat's physical condition
Seizures (embargos) that have been noted	Works done without a permit
Usufructs, easements, other rights	Tourist licences, cèdula, ITE
Limits on the owners (e.g. insolvency notes)	Anything never registered

Source: Registradores. Community debts and unpaid IBI stay attached to the flat by law even though they aren't registered, so you check them separately (below).

How to get one online

1. Go to the Registradores' online office (sede electrónica) (Registradores).
2. Search by address, registry property number (finca) or IDUFIR/CRU code. Searching by the owner's name needs a digital certificate.
3. State your reason, such as "possible purchase". The registrar must accept it as a legitimate interest. You don't need the owner's permission, but the owner can find out who asked.
4. Pay €9,02 + VAT (Registradores).
5. You get a PDF link by email, usually within a few hours. The official pages say anything from under two hours to 24 hours.

There's also a nota online (€12,03 + VAT) that stays updated for 10 days. It's useful if you're close to signing (Registradores blog).

How to read it

• In the description, check the floor and door match the flat you saw, and that the registered size is in the same range as the listing (see the square metres guide).
• The owners (titularidad) must match the people selling. If there are three owners (heirs, an ex-couple), all three must sign. Ask early whether they're in agreement.
• Under charges (cargas):
  • A mortgage is normal. It gets paid off and cancelled at the notary on the day you sign.
  • An embargo is a red flag. Someone is owed money and has a claim on the flat. Don't pay a deposit until you know how it will be cleared.
  • Short tax notes (afecciones fiscales) are routine.

If anything reads like Latin, send it to your lawyer before the arras.

Nota simple vs certificate

The nota simple is for information only. It can't prove anything against third parties. Only a registry certificate (certificación) is legal proof of what's registered. A charges certificate costs about €24,04 before tax (Registradores). For a normal purchase, the nota simple plus the notary's own registry check is enough.

Community debts: Madrid and Catalonia compared

Community debts aren't in the registry, but the flat answers for some of them after you buy it. How far back depends on where it is.

In Madrid and most of Spain, the national Ley de Propiedad Horizontal applies (art. 9.1.e). The buyer answers with the flat for the unpaid general expenses of the part of the current year already due, plus the three previous calendar years (BOE).

In Catalonia, the Catalan Civil Code applies instead (Ley 5/2015, BOE). The flat answers for community debts (ordinary fees, extraordinary charges and the reserve fund) for the part of the current year already due, plus the four previous calendar years.

Both rules make the seller declare the flat's payment status at the notary and hand over a certificate of debts from the community's secretary. Without it the deed can't be signed, unless you expressly waive it. Don't waive it. Under the national law the secretary must issue the certificate within seven days of being asked.

Unpaid IBI

Ask the seller for the last IBI receipt. Unpaid property tax also follows the flat, and the notary must ask about IBI debts and warn you about them at signing (Ley de Haciendas Locales, art. 64, BOE). It's easy to check and easy to forget.