Spain has already published two new royal decree laws on housing with measures that directly affect tenants, property owners, and those looking to buy their first home.
The government of Pedro Sánchez approved the regulations on October 6, and the Official State Gazette (BOE) published them on Wednesday, October 7.
This refers to the Royal Decree-Law 29/2026, which contains the broadest housing measures package, and to the Royal Decree-Law 28/2026, which focuses on the duration and renewal of rental contracts for primary residences.
The two texts come after the parliamentary rejection of the previous housing decrees. CiberCuba explained which measures had become ineffective after that vote.
Now the situation is different for a fundamental reason: the Congress of Deputies and the Senate have been dissolved due to the call for general elections on November 29.
Who has to approve the decrees now?
Royal decree-laws are regulations with the force of law that the Government can approve directly in situations of extraordinary and urgent necessity, but they are provisional in nature.
Article 86 of the Constitution establishes that they must be submitted to a validation or repeal vote within 30 days following their enactment.
Normally, that decision corresponds to the Congress of Deputies. However, since October 6, the Cortes are dissolved due to the electoral call.
In this situation, the Permanent Deputation of the Congress is activated, the body that maintains certain parliamentary functions between the dissolution of one Chamber and the constitution of the next.
The article 78 of the Constitution grants the powers established for legislative decrees during this period.
Therefore, it will be the Permanent Deputation, and not the new Congress resulting from the elections on November 29, that must pronounce on these two decrees within the constitutional timeframe.
In addition, each decree is subjected to its own validation. It is possible for both to be validated, for both to be rejected, or for one to proceed while the other does not.
The first decree will come into effect on October 8
The Royal Decree-Law 29/2026 establishes as a general rule its entry into force on October 8, 2026, one day after its publication in the BOE, although some specific provisions have their own deadlines.
This means that their measures begin to have legal effects without the need to wait first for the vote of the Permanent Deputation.
The validation will come later, within the maximum period stipulated by the Constitution.
If the Permanent Deputation approves it, the decree will remain in effect. If it decides to repeal it, it will cease to be in effect at that moment.
Extraordinary extension of up to two years for certain rentals
One of the most impactful measures for tenants is the recovery of an extraordinary extension of up to two years for certain regular housing contracts.
The measure allows for annual extensions to be requested, with a maximum of two additional years, for certain contracts whose mandatory extension period, tacit extension, or other situations outlined by the regulation end before December 31, 2028.
Among the requirements, it is stipulated that the tenant must be up to date with rent payments and have been so for the previous eight months.
During this extension, the terms and conditions of the current contract remain in effect as a general rule.
The regulation includes exceptions where the owner may not be obligated to accept the extension, including certain agreements between the parties or the landlord's demonstrated need to reclaim the property in legally established cases.
Extraordinary limit on certain rent increases
The decree also reestablishes an extraordinary regime for the annual updates of certain rents until December 31, 2027.
When the rent exceeds the corresponding limit of the state reference system, an increase will not take place.
In other cases, the landlord and tenant can reach a new agreement regarding the update. If no new agreement exists, the increase cannot exceed 2%.
Therefore, the 2% does not function exactly as an identical limit for any rental and any situation, but rather within the conditions set by the new decree.
New rules for temporary and room rentals
Royal Decree Law 29/2026 also regulates temporary rentals and room contracts in greater detail.
Temporary housing contracts must be justified by a valid reason that truly reflects their temporary nature. The regulation aims to prevent contracts that effectively operate as habitual rental agreements from being categorized as temporary rentals to circumvent the protections established in the Urban Leasing Law.
Previous temporary contracts will continue to be governed by the regime they were under until the agreed-upon term expires. If they are renewed afterward, they must be adapted to the new regulations.
Specific limits for room rentals are also introduced, including rules regarding the total rents when different rooms in the same dwelling are rented out simultaneously.
10% deduction on rent in the personal income tax (IRPF)
The decree also introduces a new state deduction for certain taxpayers who pay rent for their primary residence.
Taxpayers with a taxable base less than 33,007.20 euros per year will be allowed to deduct 10% of the amounts paid for rent, with limits that vary according to income level.
The maximum deductible amount reaches 11,630 euros for individuals with a taxable basis of up to 23,007.20 euros, and decreases progressively for those who fall between that amount and the established maximum limit.
Loans of up to 50,000 euros at 0% to buy your first home
Another notable change is the creation of the TU CASA mechanism, managed through the Official Credit Institute (ICO).
The program will allow for the enhancement of a private mortgage through public financing equivalent to the lesser amount between 20% of the property's value and 50,000 euros.
The loans will have an interest rate of 0% and will not charge fees.
The measure is intended to facilitate the purchase of the first primary residence for individuals who can afford a mortgage but have difficulties in saving the necessary amount for the down payment.
CiberCuba detailed this mechanism and the requirements that are still pending development.
The second decree will not come into effect until November 15
The situation regarding Royal Decree-Law 28/2026 is different.
The text itself explicitly states that it will come into effect on November 15, 2026.
This decree modifies Article 10 of the Urban Leasing Law and significantly changes the system for renewing contracts for primary residences.
Once at least five years of the contract have passed, or seven years if the owner is a legal entity, the lease may be automatically extended for new successive periods of five or seven years, unless either party communicates its intention to terminate it.
The owner must notify of non-renewal at least six months in advance, while the tenant has a notice period of two months.
Compensation when the owner decides not to renew
The same decree establishes compensation in certain cases when the owner validly communicates that they do not wish to continue with the contract.
The amount will be the higher of two figures: twelve monthly payments calculated according to the corresponding value of the state reference system for rental prices, or one monthly payment for each year that the tenant has resided in the property.
When an individualized value cannot be obtained through the state reference system, the current monthly income will be used as a reference.
The decree outlines several exceptions in which this compensation will not be required, so it cannot be interpreted as an automatic compensation in any contract termination.
It also establishes a transitional regime: valid communications of non-renewal made before the publication of the new decree retain their effectiveness and are not automatically subject to the new compensation.
The Permanent Deputation will have to decide beforehand
Although RDL 28/2026 sets November 15 as the date of entry into force, it remains subject to the same constitutional procedure as any royal decree-law.
The Permanent Deputation must express its position on its validation or repeal within 30 days following its promulgation.
That deadline ends before November 15. Therefore, by the time the planned date for the implementation of the new renewal and compensation system arrives, it should be known whether the decree has been validated.
If validated, the new rules will take effect on November 15 as stipulated by the regulation.
If it is repealed by the Permanent Deputation, those new rules would not come into effect on that date.
What happens while waiting for the vote?
The difference between the two decrees is therefore fundamental.
The RDL 29/2026 will come into effect on October 8 and will remain in force until it is repealed in parliamentary voting.
The RDL 28/2026 has a delayed entry into force until November 15 and must also go through the oversight of the Permanent Deputation beforehand.
For tenants and landlords, this means that not all the announced measures take effect simultaneously.
And what would happen after the elections on November 29th?
If the decrees are validated, the general elections do not automatically eliminate them.
They would continue to be part of the current legislation even if the government changes after November 29.
An Executive in the future and a new parliamentary majority that wish to modify or eliminate these measures would subsequently need to approve another regulation with sufficient authority to do so.
Therefore, the first important date is not the election date, but rather the date of the Permanent Deputation's voting: it will be that body that determines in the coming weeks which of these measures will be solidified in the new political landscape that will begin after November 29.
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