Power of attorney to buy property in Spain: how it works

How a power of attorney to buy property in Spain works: signing it in Spain, at a consulate or abroad with an apostille, what to include and how to revoke it.

Last checked 17 October 2026

What you will learn

Why the power must be signed before a notary
Where to sign it: in Spain, at a consulate, or at home
What it should cover, and how to revoke it

A power of attorney to buy property in Spain lets someone you trust, usually your own lawyer, sign for you at the notary when you cannot travel. Spanish law requires it to be a public document, because the deed it serves is one. You can sign it before a Spanish notary, at a Spanish consulate, or before a notary in your own country with an apostille and a translation. A good power is specific, limited to what the purchase needs, and easy to revoke.

Why the power must be a public document

The rule. The Spanish Civil Code says that a power for an act that has to be done by public deed must itself be a public document, and a house purchase is done by public deed. It also says that a mandate in general terms covers only acts of administration: for acts such as selling or mortgaging property, the power must say so expressly, and a power to buy should name the purchase just as clearly. A private letter of authority, however well written, will not do.

How the notary uses it. The person you appoint brings an authorised copy of the power to the signing: the official copy issued by the notary, never a photocopy. The notary of the deed records its details and states that, in his or her judgement, the powers are sufficient for the act. Spanish notaries can also send authorised copies to each other electronically.

Where to sign a power of attorney to buy property in Spain

Before a notary in Spain. If you are in Spain for viewings, the simplest route is to sign the power at any Spanish notary before you fly home. It is then a Spanish public document, with no apostille or translation needed. If your Spanish is not fluent, make sure you understand every clause before you sign; ask the notary how the text will be explained or translated to you.

At a Spanish consulate abroad. Spanish embassies and consulates can act as notaries, and a power signed there is a Spanish public deed. The Spanish embassy in Dublin, for example, describes the procedure: you send a description of the powers, the embassy prepares the document, and you sign in person with your passport and, if you are a foreign national, your NIE. The fee depends on the length of the document, the number of people granting it and the number of copies.

Before a local notary, with an apostille. You can also sign before a notary in your own country. The Dublin embassy states that such a deed counts as a public document in Spain only once it has been apostilled (or legalised) and translated into Spanish. The apostille comes from the 1961 Hague Convention, which applies in Spain and in all the main buyer countries, including the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark. In the UK, the government's legalisation service charges £45 per paper document or £35 for an e-Apostille, and its standard paper service usually takes up to 25 working days plus postage.

A point to check first. Spanish law accepts foreign public documents in its registries only where the foreign authority performed functions equivalent to those of a Spanish one and the document has the same or the closest effect in its country of origin, as article 60 of Ley 29/2015 puts it. In practice, the Spanish notary who will use your power judges this. Send the draft to that notary, or to your Spanish lawyer, before you sign it abroad, not after.

By videoconference. Since 9 November 2023 the Spanish notarial law also allows some documents to be signed with a Spanish notary by videoconference, including powers for specific acts and the revocation of powers. General and preventive powers are excluded, and you need an electronic identification accepted by the Spanish administration. Ask the notary whether this route works in your case.

What the power should cover

Specific, not general. The Spanish notaries distinguish general powers, which reach far into your affairs, from special powers for a single act, such as the purchase of one property. For a purchase, the special power is the safer choice. It names the property, with its address and its registry and cadastral references where known, the price or a maximum price, and the acts the person you appoint may carry out.

What it usually covers. Signing the private contract and the deed; paying the deposit and the price; applying for your NIE, since the Spanish consulates ask for a power that expressly authorises it (see our guide to the NIE number in Spain); paying the purchase taxes and registering the deed; and putting the utilities and the IBI in your name.

If there is a mortgage. The bank will have its own requirements, so ask it before the power is drawn up. The mortgage law also requires the borrower to appear before a notary to receive the notary's explanation of the loan in person before signing, which limits how far a power can replace you.

Risks, safeguards and revoking it

Safeguards. A power is only as safe as the person who holds it. Appoint someone with no interest on the other side of the deal, usually your own independent lawyer. Limit the power to the property and a maximum price, do not let the person you appoint contract with themselves, and ask for a copy of everything they sign for you. Naming two people who can each act alone means one illness does not stop the purchase.

Revoking it. You can revoke a power at any time, by a deed of revocation before a notary. The Spanish notaries explain the procedure: the notary notifies the person you appointed and asks for the authorised copy back, and if a different notary revokes it, the original notary adds a note to the original deed so that no new copies are issued. Under the Civil Code, a power also ends on the death of either side.

Tell the people who matter. The Civil Code protects third parties who deal in good faith with someone acting under a power that has already ended, and a revocation does not affect a person the power was meant for until that person is told. So when you revoke, inform your bank, the agent and the seller's lawyer as well.

The wording of a power has legal effects in two countries, so have it drafted or checked by an independent Spanish lawyer and confirmed by the notary who will use it. The practical step: if you are in Spain for viewings, sign a specific power before you go home, so the purchase never waits for your next flight. Then look at the investment properties on the Costa Blanca North, or read how buying from abroad works with us.

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Written by Nicolas Strebel.