New coastal legislation reforms – Pérez-Llorca

The Spanish Government recently approved a significant reform on legislation regulating real estate property on Spanish coasts (the ‘Coastal Reform‘).

The Coastal Reform intends to establish a framework whereby legal relations along the coast may continue in the long-term. This Reform is also a response to the fact that there have been an increasing number of conflicts as a consequence of the rules applicable to Spanish coasts since the previous legislation entered into force.

The principal aim of the Coastal Reform is not to hinder economic development in any way but rather to protect environmental values. It therefore intends to increase legal certainty within the regime applicable to real estate properties.

In this respect, the Auken Report, approved by the European Parliament, questioned and criticised existing Spanish legal certainty in coastal regulation and called on Spain’s Government and its regional administration to carry out a thorough review and to revise all legislation affecting the rights of individual property owners as a result of massive urbanisation, in order to clarify conditions applicable on private real estate properties located on public domain land.

The Coastal Reform has introduced, among others, the following changes:

Concessioner’s rights

As a general rule, a duration of 75 years has been established for the concession’s rights for real estate properties located on public domain lands. Concessions that were already in place before the entry into force of the Coastal Reform may be extended for a maximum period of 75 years.

In order to access these rights, the Coastal Reform has introduced a compulsory procedure to legalise the concessional situation of real estate properties located on public domain lands.

In addition, the duration of short-term occupation has also been increased from one year to a maximum of four.

Transactions concerning concessional rights

The Coastal Reform introduces the possibility of transferring real estate property rightson properties located on public domains lands. These kinds of transfers will only be valid if the public authorities acknowledge that the purchaser has complied with the conditions of the concession.

It also introduces the possibility of transferring those concessional rights through inheritance.

Conservation and maintenance

Carrying out certain activities regarding the renovation and protection of buildings located on public domain lands or protected easement areas has also been made easier, allowing the execution of works, limiting activities in these areas and not allowing further construction to be undertaken. Protecting the coastal environment should also be of the utmost importance, which means adequately maintaining the buildings located in these areas.

Legal status of public domain lands

Under the Coastal Reform, clearer criteria are introduced regarding the definition of what constitutes ‘public domain lands’. Under the previous legislation, land was classified on a case-by-case basis, which in practice meant there was no one way of establishing the limits of public domain lands. With the Coastal Reform, clearer criteria have been introduced in order to properly define the boundaries of properties located on public domain lands.

As an example, the Coastal Reform introduces more reasonable criteria in relation to building developments located in areas next to man-made canals. According to this Reform, real estate properties located in these building developments are now subject to new rules establishing that piers, quays and soils next to man-made canals are not considered to be public domain land. As a result of the Coastal Reform, these areas are not regulated by the restrictive conditions that apply to constructions located on public domain lands.

The new regulation brings in a change that will allow for the orderly revitalisation of economic development within coastal areas, while providing a consistently protective regime for the preservation and safeguarding of our coastline.

Juan Rodríguez Cárcamo is a Public Law Partner at Pérez-Llorca. He can be contacted at jmrodriguez@perezllorca.com