Demand Letter Pack

Spain · Rental deposit

Your landlord in Spain kept your deposit (fianza): ask for it back in writing

Spanish law gives a landlord a fixed period to return the deposit after you hand back the keys. After that, the balance earns legal interest without you having to ask. If the money has not come back, a formal letter sets out these rules and gives a final date to pay. It also invites the landlord to negotiate, which the law now requires before a court claim. You get it in Spanish or English.

Start your letterFrom €49, paid once. No account needed.

The questions, and the documents that come with the letters (checklist, timeline, next steps and memo), are in English. The letters can be written in Spanish or English.

Other languages: Español

The rules your letter follows

Taken from the official sources listed below. Interest rates change from time to time; these are the current ones.

Period for the landlord to return it
1 month
From the day you hand back the keys.
Legal interest on the deposit
3.25%
Until 31 December 2026. Runs on the balance not returned from the end of that period, without any demand.
Time to pay in the letter
10 days
You can choose up to 30 days.
Wait after the request to negotiate
30 days
Calendar days from the day the landlord receives the letter. If there is no reply, a court claim may be filed after that.
Limitation period
5 years
From the day the deposit became repayable. Catalonia may differ.
Court
Tribunal de Instancia
Juicio verbal for claims up to €15,000. Above €2,000, a lawyer and a procurador must file the claim.
How to send it
Burofax
With acknowledgement of receipt and certified content. Send it by email too.

What Spanish law says about the fianza

When the tenancy ends, the landlord must return the balance of the deposit. If it has not been returned within 1 month of the day you handed back the keys, that balance earns legal interest (interés legal del dinero), without you having to claim it.

The landlord may keep only what covers damage or unpaid amounts they can prove. The letter disputes the deductions you disagree with and asks for the evidence behind any damage claimed, such as photos, a signed record or repair invoices.

Negotiation comes before court

A tenant's claim for the deposit is an ordinary civil claim. Under the law on the efficiency of the justice service, it needs proof of an earlier attempt to negotiate (a MASC). Your letter is that attempt. It invites the landlord to negotiate the return of the deposit, says how to reply and states that it is the request to negotiate.

If the landlord does not reply, a claim may be filed once 30 days have passed from the day they received the letter. The final date in the letter is the date to pay, not the date from which you can go to court.

If the landlord still does not pay

Claims up to €15,000 are heard in a juicio verbal at the Tribunal de Instancia (formerly the Juzgado de Primera Instancia). Above €2,000, a court claim must be filed through a lawyer and a procurador. The escalation memo in the Complete pack explains the route, but does not choose a step for you.

Where the rules come from

What is in the envelope

Word and PDF files you can edit before you send anything.

  1. 01

    Demand letter

    The formal letter, in the language you choose, with your amount and payment details. The deadline, and any interest and costs, follow the local rules.

  2. 02

    Evidence checklist

    What to keep and what to enclose, checked against the files you uploaded.

  3. 03

    Timeline

    Your dispute date by date, including the dates still to come.

  4. 04

    Next steps

    How to send the letter so you can prove it arrived, and what to do with each kind of reply.

  5. 05

    Final formal demandComplete

    A shorter second letter with a last deadline, for when the first one passes.

  6. 06

    Escalation memoComplete

    Court, collection agencies and lawyers: what each route involves. It describes the options; it does not choose one for you.

How it works

  1. Today

    You answer the questions. It takes about ten minutes, and your answers are saved as you go.

  2. Today

    You check the summary and pay. A few minutes later your documents are ready, in Word and PDF.

  3. When you are ready

    You sign the letter and send it yourself, so it comes from you.

Questions

My landlord says they need time to inspect the flat.

The period is 1 month from the day you handed back the keys. After that, any balance not yet returned earns legal interest. Any deduction must cover damage or unpaid amounts the landlord can prove.

Nobody checked the flat when I moved out.

The letter says so and asks the landlord for evidence of any damage they rely on.

How long can I wait?

The claim is time-barred 5 years after the deposit became repayable. A written demand such as the letter, and the request to negotiate, interrupt that period. Catalonia has its own civil code, and its period may differ.

Can I have the letter written in English?

Yes. Spanish is the default; you can choose English if your landlord reads it more easily.

P.S.

Your documents are written by an AI system and checked automatically against your answers and the local rules. No lawyer reviews them. They are document drafts and general information, not legal advice. Your answers are deleted 30 days after delivery, or sooner if you ask.

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