The Equal Treatment Authority now has its Statute: functions and bodies under RD 606/2026

Law 15/2022 of 12 July, comprehensive for equal treatment and non-discrimination, published in BOE no. 167 of 13 July 2022, provided for the creation of an independent authority to protect against discrimination. Four years later, that authority has its operating rule.

Royal Decree 606/2026 of 22 July, published in BOE no. 180 of 25 July 2026, approves the Statute of the Independent Authority for Equal Treatment and Non-Discrimination. Under its tenth final provision, it came into force the day after its publication, on 26 July 2026.

What it is

Under Article 1 of the Statute, it is an independent administrative authority at state level, with its own legal personality and seat in Madrid. It can create territorial delegations and service offices.

Article 3 links it to the General State Administration through the Ministry of Equality, with organic and functional autonomy. Neither its Presidency, nor its staff, nor its bodies may request or accept instructions from any entity.

Its functions

Article 4.1 lists the functions. Those of most interest to the legal profession include:

• Assistance to victims: free, specialised assistance and guidance services.
• Complaints and claims: receiving and processing them.
• Investigations: on its own initiative or at the request of third parties.
• Mediation and conciliation: with the parties' consent, except in criminal or employment matters. Its decisions are binding on the parties.
• Court actions: it can bring them in defence of equal treatment.
• Penalties: the Authority does not penalise directly, but can request action by the State Administration to penalise.
• Opinions: it issues a mandatory opinion on draft general provisions and plans in the field.

Its bodies

Start-up

The single transitional provision provides that, until the Authority has its own budget, its activity is financed with credits from the Ministry of Equality, which will support it until the date set by a ministerial order. The first posts can be filled on secondment.

Why it matters to lawyers

Law 15/2022 contains procedural rules a lawyer must know in any discrimination case:

• Burden of proof (Article 30): when the person alleging discrimination provides well-founded indications, it is for the other party to justify objectively and reasonably the measures adopted and their proportionality.
• Redress (Article 27): whoever discriminates must repair the damage and, once discrimination is proven, non-pecuniary damage is presumed to exist.

The new Authority adds two practical routes: mediation, outside criminal and employment matters, and the possibility for the Authority itself to bring court actions. For firms advising companies, it is also a new body that can investigate, on its own initiative or at the request of third parties, and that is worth considering when reviewing internal anti-discrimination protocols.

For firms, the first practical step is to know the new Authority's functions and procedures as set by its Statute, and to review with clients whether their internal protocols and complaint channels are ready.

Law 15/2022 also deals with algorithms and artificial intelligence, as we explain in the analysis of its Article 23 on algorithms and non-discrimination. For companies, equality has another mandatory piece: equality plans. More news in Industry news.