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Terminating a rental contract in Spain: the notice periods you cannot afford to miss

Up to date to August 2026 · LAU art. 9, 10 and 11 · art. 1566 CC

When letting in Spain, the sting is not in the signing but in the ending. The deadlines are hard, they differ by situation, and miss one and you can easily be tied to the contract for another year — or three. These are the rules, route by route.

Residential tenancy: the law decides when you can terminate at all

Under a residential tenancy (art. 2 LAU) the tenant is entitled to an extension of up to five years — seven if the landlord is a legal entity. Within that period you cannot, as landlord, simply “give notice”, whatever the contract says: terms that give the tenant less than the law are void. The openings that do exist:

Landlord — end of term

Give notice four months before the end

If you want to end the contract at the end of the five (or seven) years, you must give formal notice at least four months before the end date (art. 10 LAU). If you do not, the contract rolls over tacitly in one-year periods, up to a maximum of three additional years. The tenant needs only two months for the same moment.

Landlord — own use

The narrow route of art. 9.3

One exception breaks through the five years: after the first contract year, you need the property as a principal residence for yourself or for first-degree family (including after divorce). Conditions: you are a private landlord, the reservation is stated expressly in the contract, and you give at least two months' notice. If you then fail to occupy the property within three months, the tenant may return under the old contract — or claim compensation.

Tenant — early exit

After six months, with thirty days' notice

After six months the tenant may leave at any moment with thirty days' notice (art. 11 LAU). Compensation — at most one month's rent per remaining contract year, pro rata — can only be claimed if that clause is in the contract. If it is not, the tenant leaves without paying.

Temporada: ends by itself — if you pay attention

A seasonal let (art. 3.2 LAU) has no statutory extension: the contract ends on the agreed date. But watch out for the trap in the Civil Code: if the tenant stays on fifteen days past the end date without you demonstrably objecting, tacit continuation arises (tácita reconducción, art. 1566 and 1581 CC) — month by month, on a monthly rent. One timely burofax before or immediately after the end date prevents that. And did your “temporada” in fact never end because the tenant simply lives there? Then the problem is not the termination but the regime: reclassification into a residential tenancy.

What is never allowed, under any regime: changing the locks yourself, putting belongings outside, cutting off water or electricity. Taking the law into your own hands is a criminal offence in Spain, even if the tenant does not pay or does not leave. An eviction always runs through the courts (desahucio). Acting formally and in time — burofax, the right deadlines — is your only strong position.
Form matters. A WhatsApp message or a phone call is not a notice you can rely on later. Use a burofax with confirmation of receipt and content: that is the form of evidence Spanish courts expect.

The right notice periods, already in your contract

The contracts from SpanishRentalContract.com contain the termination and renewal rules that belong to your regime — including the art. 9.3 reservation and the art. 11 compensation clause, with the article of law beside every clause.

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Frequently asked questions

Can I get out of the contract after the first term?
With a residential tenancy, only at the end of the statutory five (or seven) years, and only with formal notice at least four months in advance. Otherwise the contract rolls over tacitly in one-year periods, up to three additional years (art. 10 LAU).
When may I reclaim the property for my own use?
After the first year, as a private landlord, for yourself or first-degree family, with the reservation stated expressly in the contract and two months' notice (art. 9.3 LAU). Not moved in within three months? Then the tenant may return or claim compensation.
Can my tenant leave early?
Yes, after six months with thirty days' notice (art. 11 LAU). The compensation of at most one month's rent per remaining year applies only if it was agreed in the contract.
Does temporada end by itself on the end date?
In principle, yes — but fifteen days of sitting still after the end date means tacit continuation (art. 1566 CC). One timely burofax prevents it.
Further reading Letting legally in Spain: the three regimes and what is actually required → The 11-month myth: why that construction can cost you your property → Spanish rental contract template: what it must contain in 2026 →

Sources: Ley 29/1994 (LAU), art. 9, 10 and 11 · art. 1566 and 1581 Código Civil. Reference date: 1 August 2026. General information, not legal advice; in a live dispute or an eviction, a lawyer is the right route.