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Interactive guide · Renting · Royal Decree-law 28/2026
The lease that renews itself: what changes on 15 November
Royal Decree-law 28/2026 rewrites Article 10 of the Urban Leases Act (LAU). When a main-residence lease reaches five years (seven if the landlord is a company), it is no longer extended year by year up to a maximum of three, but in blocks of five or seven years, with no limit. If the landlord does not want to continue, they must give six months' notice and, in most cases, compensate the tenant. This guide explains what changes, who is affected and what to do now, whether you let out flats or rent your home.
Awaiting ratificationThe decree was published on 7 October and comes into force on 15 November 2026. The Standing Committee of Congress is due to vote on it on 12 November: if it is overturned, it will never apply for a single day and the previous Article 10 will remain in force. We will update this guide with the result.
RatifiedThe Standing Committee of Congress ratified the decree. It has been in force since 15 November 2026 and applies to current main-residence leases, for expiry dates after that date.
OverturnedThe Standing Committee of Congress did not ratify the decree, so it never came into force. The previous Article 10 of the LAU still applies: tacit annual extensions up to three years and four months' notice from the landlord. We keep the guide as a reference to what it proposed.
The essentials in four ideas
- Continuity becomes the rule. After five years (seven if the landlord is a legal entity), the lease is extended in blocks of five or seven years, one after another, as long as neither party gives notice.
- The landlord's notice period rises from four to six months. The tenant's stays at two. If nobody gives notice in time, a new block begins.
- Not renewing costs money. A landlord who gives notice of non-renewal compensates the tenant with the higher of two amounts: twelve months' rent or one month for each year the tenant has lived in the flat, calculated on the upper value of the reference index (or on the current rent, if there is no index for that home).
- There are six grounds with no compensation (own or family need, flat not lived in, another home in the municipality, new contract, offer rejected…). They must be stated expressly, in detail and in writing in the notice.
01
Where we stand
The dates that matter
- 2 October 2026Congress overturns the previous decrees (RDL 26/2026 and 27/2026). Elections are called for 29 November.
- 7 October 2026The BOE publishes RDL 28/2026 (automatic renewal) and RDL 29/2026 (the other rental measures, in force from the 8th). Non-renewal notices sent before this date remain valid and trigger no compensation; later ones already fall, according to the preamble, under the new regime.
- 12 November 2026Vote scheduled in the Standing Committee of Congress. With its current make-up, the outcome is uncertain.The Standing Committee ratified the decree.The Standing Committee overturned the decree.
- 15 November 2026Entry into force. It applies to current main-residence leases, for expiry dates from that day onwards.It was the planned date of entry into force. As it was overturned beforehand, the new Article 10 never applied.
- 2027 to 2030Leases signed between 2019 and 2022 use up their extensions. They are the bulk of the leases the new regime will affect at their next expiry.
02
Before and after
What changes in Article 10
The decree does not touch the minimum lease term (five years, or seven if the landlord is a legal entity, art. 9.1 LAU) nor the option to recover the flat out of need during that minimum term (art. 9.3). What changes is what happens after those five or seven years.
| When the 5 or 7 years are up | Until now | With RDL 28/2026 |
|---|
| Extension if nobody gives notice | Year by year, up to a maximum of three more years (8 or 10 years in total). After that, end of the lease or tacit renewal under the Civil Code. | Blocks of five years (seven if the landlord is a legal entity), successive and with no limit, as long as neither party gives notice. |
| Landlord's notice | Four months before expiry. | Six months before the lease or any of its extensions expires. |
| Tenant's notice | Two months. | Two months. Unchanged. |
| Compensation for not renewing | Did not exist. | Yes, unless there are legal grounds: the higher of twelve months' rent or one month per year of residence, on the upper value of the reference index. Paid when the home is handed back. |
| Extension agreed after a notice | Free. | Cannot be shorter than five or seven years. |
| Changing terms on extension | Possible, within the legal limits. | Clauses in the extension that worsen the original terms for the tenant are void. |
| Extraordinary extensions | One year for vulnerability against a large landlord; up to three years in a stressed housing area. | They remain (moved to sections 5 and 6). They cannot be combined; the stressed-area one takes priority. When it ends, the lease terminates on the notice that triggered it and the compensation, if due, is paid then. |
| Sale of a let flat | The buyer takes over the lease. | The buyer also takes over the obligation to compensate if they do not renew. |
Source: sole article of RDL 28/2026 (new wording of art. 10 LAU) and sole transitional provision.
03
Tool
Work out the compensation
The law sets the compensation as the higher of two amounts, calculated on the upper value of the range that applies to the home in the state rental price reference system. If there is no individual value for the home, the monthly rent in force on the date of the notice is used. Periods under a year are prorated by months, and those under a month by days.
Remember: there is no compensation if one of the grounds in section 2 applies (part 05 below), nor when the tenant could have requested a legal extension binding on the landlord and did not. If they request it and it applies, the compensation is paid when that extension ends.
04
Tool
Your notice calendar
Tell us when the lease or the current extension expires and we will tell you the deadline for each party to give notice, which regime applies to that expiry and until when the lease would be extended if nobody says anything.
05
The exceptions
When you do not have to pay compensation
Section 2 of the new Article 10 lists six grounds. All of them must be stated expressly, in detail and in writing in the notice: a burofax that only says "I will not renew" does not avoid the compensation.
a · Own needThe landlord (an individual) needs the flat
As a permanent home for themselves or relatives up to the second degree (children, parents, siblings, grandchildren, grandparents), or for a spouse after a separation, divorce or annulment ruling. If nobody moves in within three months of hand-over, barring force majeure, the tenant receives the compensation.
b · Flat not lived inThe tenant does not live there
If they have not lived in the home for more than six of the last twelve months, unless there is a justified reason (health, work, studies, caring for relatives) or the people in Article 7.1 (spouse, children) have kept living there.
c · Another homeThe tenant has another suitable home in the municipality
Owned outright or with a real right of use or enjoyment, and can move into it.
d · New contractThe parties sign a new lease
A main-residence lease, for the same home.
e · Offer rejectedThe tenant rejects a formal offer
Made within the notice period, with a minimum term of five or seven years and a rent in line with the rules of Article 17.6 (that of the previous lease, with the extra 10% only in the listed cases), even if the flat is not in a stressed area.
AlsoLegal extension not requested
There is no compensation either when the tenant met the requirements to request a legal extension binding on the landlord (vulnerability, stressed area, the extraordinary one in RDL 29/2026) and did not. If they request it, they are paid when that extension ends.
06
Leases already signed
How it affects what is already under way
- It applies to all main-residence leases in force on 15 November, for expiry dates of the lease or its extensions after that date.
- Notices sent before 7 October. Non-renewal notices validly sent before publication remain valid and trigger no compensation, even if the tenant later obtains an extraordinary extension.
- Notices between 7 October and 14 November. The preamble says that decisions not to extend taken since publication are already subject to the new regime. A burofax sent in these weeks for an expiry after 15 November may trigger compensation: have it checked before sending it.
- Expiry dates before 15 May 2027. If there are less than six months to expiry when it comes into force, the landlord can still give notice with four months.
- Leases already on tacit annual extension. They stay on it, under the previous regime, until the three years are up. After that the new Article 10 applies to them.
- Leases on tacit renewal (those that carried on without a new lease after the extensions ran out). They enter the new regime at the first renewal expiry after 15 November. For the five or seven years, the time of the original lease and of the renewal are added together. Demands to end it sent before 7 October are valid and trigger no compensation.
- How it fits with the two-year extraordinary extension in RDL 29/2026. It does not apply when the new five- or seven-year extension applies. If it applies to a lease with a valid notice, the lease ends when the two years are up and, if none of the grounds in section 2 apply, the compensation then becomes due.
07
In practice
What to do now
If you let out flats
- List the leases that reach five or seven years between 2027 and 2030, with their expiry date and their status (initial term, tacit extension, tacit renewal).
- Decide in good time for each one: carry on (nothing to do), offer a new lease (formal offer within the notice period, five or seven years and rent in line with Article 17.6) or recover the flat (need documented in the notice and occupation within three months).
- Prepare the notice by a reliable means (burofax), six months in advance and with the grounds stated expressly and in detail if there are any.
- If you are going to sell a let flat, bear in mind the buyer inherits the lease and, if they do not renew, the compensation. Say so in the negotiation.
- If the tenant's departure is already decided, include the compensation in your figures with the calculator above.
If you rent your home
- Check when your lease reaches five or seven years and whether it is on tacit extension or tacit renewal. The calendar above tells you.
- Keep the burofaxes and their dates: the date of the notice decides whether there is compensation.
- If the landlord does not renew, ask for the notice in writing with the grounds. If they claim own need, the flat must be occupied within three months; otherwise you can claim the compensation.
- If the flat is in a stressed area (Barcelona is), you can request the extraordinary extension of up to three years. The compensation, if due, is paid when it ends.
- Always compare an offer of a new lease with what you would receive: rejecting a valid offer leaves you without compensation.
08
Catalonia
What is added in Barcelona
- Stressed housing area. Barcelona and more than 300 Catalan municipalities are declared stressed residential market areas. In them, the extraordinary extension of up to three years takes priority over the others, and the rent of any new lease is capped by the previous lease and, if the landlord is a large landlord, by the reference index.
- Catalan Law 11/2026. Since July, in Catalonia any direct or indirect amount paid by the tenant counts as rent, and schemes to get around rent control are banned. An offer of a new lease that raises the rent through fees or services is not a valid offer for the purposes of the decree.
- Division of powers. The state decree governs the civil side of the lease (term, notice, compensation). Rent, the definition of a large landlord, advertising and penalties in Catalonia are still governed by Catalan law. A lease in Barcelona must comply with both.
Frequently asked questions
Before contacting us
Does it affect a lease signed in 2021?
Yes, if it is in force on 15 November 2026. The new regime applies to expiry dates after that date. A 2021 lease with an individual landlord reaches five years in 2026: if it has already entered tacit annual extension, it stays on it until the three years run out and then moves to the new regime.
I have already sent the non-renewal burofax. Do I have to pay compensation?
If you validly sent it before 7 October 2026, no: the notice remains valid and triggers no compensation, even if the tenant later obtains an extraordinary extension. If you sent it afterwards, the preamble considers it already under the new regime. Check it with us before taking anything for granted.
Can I raise the rent on extension?
On extension the terms of the lease stay the same, and clauses in the extension that worsen them for the tenant are void. The rent only changes through the agreed annual update, capped by the IRAV and, until 31 December 2027, by the 2% limit in RDL 29/2026 (0% if the rent already exceeds the reference index).
How do I find the upper index value for my home?
In the state rental price reference system (SERPAVI), by entering the address and features of the flat. If the system does not return an individual value, the compensation is calculated on the rent in force on the date of the notice.
And seasonal, room or commercial leases?
The decree only affects main-residence leases. Seasonal and room leases have their own regime, which changed on 8 October with RDL 29/2026 (see the guide). Commercial premises and offices stay the same.
What happens if it is overturned on 12 November?
It never comes into force and the previous Article 10 continues to apply: tacit annual extension up to three years and four months' notice. We will update this guide the same day.
Profinca · Since 1982
Leases expiring between 2027 and 2030?
We review each lease against Spanish and Catalan law, calculate the compensation and prepare the notice or the offer of a new lease. And if you manage your rentals with us, we do it for you and remind you of every expiry.
Notice · This guide covers Royal Decree-law 28/2026 of 6 October (BOE of 7 October 2026), together with Catalan law in force in October 2026, and is for information only. The tools give indicative results and do not replace a review of each lease or individual legal advice. Profinca supports you on the property side and, when needed, with the specialists on its team.
