You've found a property on the Costa del Sol, the seller says it's free of debts and the agent wants a reservation deposit to take it off the market. Checking that from abroad feels hard, and it matters, because an uncancelled mortgage, a court seizure order or someone else's right to use the home stays attached to the property when it changes owner, and nobody tends to mention these at a viewing.
The check is a nota simple, a short official extract from Spain's Land Registry (Registro de la Propiedad) that shows a property's description, its registered owner and any charges against it. You can order one online for 9.02 euros plus VAT, it usually arrives by email within a day, and an English translation is available for an extra fee.
In this guide, you'll learn what a nota simple shows and what it leaves out, how to order one from abroad, what it costs and how to read the charges section before you pay anything.
What a nota simple is, and what it isn't
The nota simple summarises what's registered against a property, meaning its description, who owns it on the register and what charges or restrictions affect it. The Colegio de Registradores, Spain's association of land registrars, describes it as purely informative, and according to the Colegio any registrar can issue it, wherever the home is.
For checking a property before you buy, the nota simple is enough. The certificación registral (registry certificate) is a public document signed by the registrar and, according to the Colegio, the only way to prove to third parties that a property is free of charges or subject to them, which is why it's used in court cases and formal procedures.
Don't confuse the Land Registry with the Catastro, the property survey run by Spain's Ministry of Finance. The Catastro describes properties for tax purposes and is free to search, but it doesn't record mortgages, seizures or other charges. The two are linked by the referencia catastral (cadastral reference), although the floor area in each doesn't always match.
How to get a nota simple online from abroad
You don't need to be in Spain, own the property or open an account. Article 221 of the Ley Hipotecaria (Spain's Mortgage Law) opens the register to anyone with a known interest in a property, and a prospective buyer has one. Requests go through the registrars' online office and the extract arrives as a PDF by email. The Colegio states a 24-hour turnaround for online requests, and some Málaga registries list an average of under two hours.
Open the nota simple service for the Registro de la Propiedad and continue as an occasional user if you'd rather not register.
Choose how to identify the property. The most reliable options are the registry property number (número de finca) or the CRU (código registral único, the unique registry code that replaced the older IDUFIR), and both appear on a registered deed.
State your reason for the search, for example that you're buying the home, enter your email address and pay.
Download the PDF from the link that's emailed to you.
The site also accepts the cadastral parcel number, the address or a point on a map, while searching by the owner's name needs a digital certificate. If you don't know which registry holds the property, a nota de localización (location note) will tell you.
The extract is written in Spanish, and when you order you can add an English translation for 30 euros plus VAT. Private websites will also order one for you at a considerably higher price, but the document still comes from the same registry.
Using the cadastral reference
The 20-character cadastral reference appears on the IBI receipt (the annual council property tax), on the deed and in the search tool on the Catastro's online office. On the registrars' site it's called the cadastral parcel number, and it only works when the property is coordinated with the Catastro. If the search returns nothing, ask the seller for the deed, where the registration note at the end gives the registry, the property number and, on recent deeds, the CRU.
Ordering in person
You can also request one in writing at any Registro de la Propiedad. The registrars' official fee schedule (Real Decreto 1427/1989, item 4.1.f) sets 3.005061 euros per property for an informative nota simple, so ask the registry what it charges at the counter once VAT is added.
What does a nota simple cost?
Online, a nota simple costs 9.02 euros per property plus taxes, according to the Colegio de Registradores, or about 10.91 euros with Spain's standard 21% VAT. There's no free official version, and a website asking much more is charging for its own service rather than giving you a fuller document.
| Registrars' service | Price before taxes |
|---|---|
| Nota simple online | 9.02 euros per property |
| Nota simple with English translation | 9.02 euros plus 30 euros |
| Nota de localización (finds the registry) | 9.02 euros per property |
| Información continuada (updates on new entries for a limited period) | 12.03 euros per property |
| Certificación registral (registry certificate) | 9.02 euros for ownership, 24.04 euros for charges |
Prices are from the registrars' page on information fees and their online office, checked in October 2026.
How to read a nota simple
Every nota simple has the same three parts, the property description, the ownership and the charges, and each one deserves a careful read.
Property description
This part gives the municipality, address, floor area, boundaries, the home's share of the community of owners, the CRU and, where recorded, the cadastral reference. Check that the floor area is in line with the listing and that any parking space or storage room is included as an anejo (an annex that belongs to the home). If they're registered as separate properties, each has its own nota simple.
Ownership
Here you'll see the owner, their percentage and how they acquired the property, such as a purchase, an inheritance or a gift. The person selling to you must be the registered owner. If there are several owners, heirs for example, they all have to sign, and if the home is held under Spain's marital community-of-property regime (gananciales), both spouses must consent.
Charges
If the cargas (charges) section says no charges are recorded, the property is free of charges according to the register on that date. Otherwise, these are the entries you're most likely to see.
| Entry | What it means | What to do as a buyer |
|---|---|---|
| Hipoteca (mortgage) | A loan secured on the property, shown until it's formally cancelled, even if paid off. | Make cancellation a condition, before or at the signing. |
| Embargo (seizure order) | A hold ordered by a court or a public body, such as the Tax Agency, over a debt. | Don't buy until it's lifted and cancelled. |
| Anotación preventiva (provisional entry) | A temporary entry warning of a claim in progress. It expires after four years unless extended (article 86 of the Ley Hipotecaria). | Find out what claim is behind it. |
| Usufructo (usufruct) | Someone's right to use and enjoy a property they don't own (article 467 of the Civil Code). | Confirm the usufructuary also transfers or gives up the right. |
| Afección fiscal (tax lien note) | A very common note making the property answerable for extra tax on an earlier transaction, for the period stated. | Check whether the period is still running. |
| Servidumbre (easement) | A right another property holds over this one, such as a right of way. | See how it affects your use of the home. |
A charge doesn't always rule a property out. The one you'll meet most often is the seller's own mortgage, which is cancelled at the notary using part of the purchase money. Ask for the outstanding-debt certificate from the seller's bank and put in writing, in the deposit contract (contrato de arras), that the property will be handed over free of charges, which my guide to the arras deposit contract covers in more detail.
What the nota simple won't tell you
The register only holds what has been registered, so several things a buyer needs to know never appear on the extract:
Debts to the community of owners. Article 9 of the Ley de Propiedad Horizontal (Spain's Horizontal Property Act) makes the home answerable for unpaid fees from the year of the sale and the three years before it.
Unpaid IBI receipts.
Building work done without a licence, which the guide to the first occupation licence in Spain explains.
If anything is unclear, confirm the current position with a Spanish lawyer (abogado) or tax adviser before you sign.
When to order one as a buyer or a seller
As a buyer, order a nota simple before you pay any deposit and a fresh one just before you sign the deed. It has no legal expiry date, but it only shows the register on the day it was issued, and a new mortgage, a seizure or even a sale could be registered afterwards. If the seller hands you one, check its date before you rely on it.
As a seller, it makes sense to order one on your own property before you put it on the market. A mortgage you paid off years ago still shows until it's formally cancelled, and a wrongly registered floor area is easier to sort out before a buyer's lawyer spots it. If your mortgage is still running, the guide to selling property with a mortgage in Spain explains how it's cancelled as part of the sale, and if you'd like to know what your home would realistically sell for, I can value it with real data from your area.
A second pair of eyes on your nota simple
At about 11 euros and usually a day's wait, a nota simple is one of the cheapest checks in the whole purchase. Order one before the deposit and another before the deed, and if it lists charges you don't understand, ask a lawyer what they mean before you sign.
If you're buying in Marbella, Nueva Andalucía, Estepona, Benahavís or Sotogrande, my pre-purchase second opinion looks at the home and its paperwork before you commit any money. And if you already have a nota simple and something doesn't add up, send me a message with the listing and your planned signing date and I'll take a look.