What exactly is a nota simple
The nota simple (full name: nota simple informativa) is a document issued by the Registro de la Propiedad, the Spanish Land Registry, containing the essential entries registered against a property. The Land Registry is the public register where ownership and charges on real estate are recorded, and the nota simple is the most common and fastest way to consult that information.
Spanish mortgage law defines it as a purely informative document: it describes what is registered but does not certify it with public faith. That is the fundamental difference from the certificación registral (registry certificate), which is issued and signed by the registrar and does carry evidentiary weight.
What information it contains
A nota simple usually includes these blocks:
- Property identification: the finca registral number, the specific Land Registry office it belongs to, the municipality and, normally, the CRU/IDUFIR (the property's unique registry code).
- Property description: type of property (flat, commercial unit, garage, rural land), address, surface area, boundaries and, if it is part of a community of owners, its share of the common elements.
- Ownership: the name of the registered owner or owners and how the property was acquired (purchase, inheritance, exchange), with the date of registration.
- Charges and encumbrances: outstanding mortgages, embargoes, preventive annotations (lawsuits, precautionary measures), usufructs, easements, resolutory conditions and any other limitation on ownership.
- Pending entries: transactions already filed at the Registry but not yet registered.
What it is used for in practice
The nota simple is requested in almost every property transaction in Spain:
- Buying a home: it confirms that the seller is the registered owner and reveals mortgages, embargoes or other charges the buyer should know about before signing.
- Inheriting: it helps locate the deceased's properties and their status.
- Applying for finance: banks and lenders use it to assess the property and its charges.
- Boundary or neighbour disputes: the registered description is the legal reference for the property.
- Checking a rental or sale listing: verifying that the advertiser is the actual owner.
What a nota simple is not
- It is not a certificate: it carries no public faith. If you need to prove ownership before a court, in an inheritance or for a bank with formal requirements, you will be asked for a certificación.
- It is not a Catastro document: the referencia catastral and Catastro data belong to a different, tax-oriented register and do not necessarily match the registered legal reality.
- It is not a title deed: it reports what is registered but is not the escritura (the notarial deed).
Cost and how to request it
The official fee through the online channel of the College of Registrars (sede.registradores.org) is €9.02 plus VAT, with a published average turnaround of under two hours. It can also be requested in person at any Land Registry office. Private managers and portals also process it on the client's behalf, applying a markup over the official fee.
A practical example: the nota simple for a flat for sale
Imagine you are interested in a flat in Barcelona and you request the nota simple before signing anything. The document usually has a structure like this:
- Property details: registry property number (finca registral), municipality, address and description (surface area, boundaries, share in the community of owners).
- Ownership: name of the registered owner and how they acquired the property (for example, a purchase on a given date).
- Charges: live mortgages, seizures, usufructs, easements or preventive entries (such as a seizure notice or a pending lawsuit).
If the seller turns out not to be the registered owner, or a preventive seizure entry appears, you will see it in the nota simple before handing over any deposit. That is its practical value: it is the fastest, cheapest way to check that whoever is selling can actually sell, and that the property holds no surprises.
What a nota simple is not
It is easy to confuse it with similar-sounding documents:
- It is not a registry certificate (certificación registral): a certificate is signed by the registrar and carries public faith; a nota simple is purely informative.
- It is not the Catastro record: the Catastro is a tax inventory of properties (surfaces, values, cadastral reference); it does not prove who owns the property.
- It is not the title deed (escritura): the deed is the notarised purchase document; the nota simple reflects what is registered, which is what counts against third parties.
When you will need one
The most common situations: before buying or reserving a home, to check that a landlord is the real owner, to find out whether a property has a mortgage or seizures, before accepting an inheritance, or simply to confirm that your own property is correctly registered. A bank studying a mortgage application or a public body processing certain grants may also ask you for one.
How to request it, in short
You can request it online through the Spanish Registrars' e-office (sede electrónica del Colegio de Registradores), which requires identifying yourself with an electronic certificate or Cl@ve, or in person at any Land Registry office. The official online fee is 9,02 euros plus VAT and the average turnaround is under two hours, according to the Registrars' association itself. To request it you only need some of these details: the property's address and municipality, the registry property number, the IDUFIR/CRU identifier or the owner's details.