Notary fees in Spain: what the buyer pays and how the arancel works

Who pays the notary when buying a flat in Catalonia?

The buyer, unless the parties have agreed otherwise. Libro VI of the Código civil de Cataluña refers to Article 531-6 of Libro V: the costs of executing the escritura, the first copy and the other costs after the transfer, including registration, fall on the acquirers unless there is a specific rule or agreement [1][2]. The Generalitat lists the “notary’s fee” among the buyer’s costs [4].

In the rest of Spain, under Article 1455 of the Código Civil, the costs of executing the escritura are borne by the seller by default, while the first copy and everything after the sale are borne by the buyer [3]. In practice, the contract may allocate these costs differently, so check the terms before paying the deposit.

How are notary fees calculated?

The fee is set by the arancel, the state tariff in Real Decreto 1426/1989, which is why it is the same at every notary [6][4]. For documents with a price, the scale is applied to the value stated in the escritura and then a 5% discount is applied [6].

The rates are applied to each portion separately. For the registry, the total cannot be less than €24.040484 or more than €2,181.673939, and the 5% discount also applies [6][7].

How much does it come to in worked examples?

We ran the scales for four sample prices. The prices are arbitrary, not market data, and the calculation covers only the basic tariff. The real bill is higher: copies are added (€3.005061 per folio), as are the pages of the original deed from the fifth onwards, and the Generalitat notes that the total also depends on the length of the escritura, the number of copies and any parallel transactions [6][4].

This is an editorial calculation based on the official scales, not a notary’s or registrar’s invoice. The gestoría, taxes and other items are not included in the table [6][7][4].

What does the bank pay when there is a mortgage?

If you take out a mortgage, Ley 5/2019 allocates the costs as follows: the bank pays the notarial arancel for the mortgage escritura, the costs of registering the charge and the gestoría’s services, copies are paid by whoever requested them, and the valuation (tasación) is paid by the borrower [8]. For loans and mortgage credits, the notary’s arancel is reduced by 25% [6]. According to the Generalitat’s page, AJD tax on the mortgage has been paid by the bank since 10 November 2018 [4]. Mortgages for non-residents are covered in a separate article: mortgage for a non-resident.

What else is included in the buyer's costs?

Besides the notary and the registry, the buyer pays tax: ITP for a resale home or IVA with AJD for a new build, plus the costs of the gestoría and connecting utilities. The plusvalía is paid by the seller unless the parties have agreed otherwise [4]. Taxes are covered in the article on taxes when buying, help with the transaction documents in documents and support, and the notary’s role in the transaction in the piece on the escritura and the notary.

What depends on the case?

What depends on the case: the number of pages and copies, additional transactions (for example, signing the mortgage on the same day) and the agreement with the seller on costs. We found no official statistics on final bills, and the scale only gives the base. Ask the notary for a calculation before signing, and before that have the contract checked by a lawyer: consultation.

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ReloVictory · Sources reviewed 02.10.2026 · Not a substitute for individual legal advice.