Does the deposit have to be lodged with INCASÒL? What happens if the landlord does not do so?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

Yes. In Catalonia, the landlord must lodge the statutory deposit (the “fianza”) with the “Institut Català del Sòl” (INCASÒL), the Catalan public body that holds tenancy deposits, within two months of signing the agreement, whether letting a flat or commercial premises. The landlord must also enter the agreement in the register of tenancy deposits and give the tenant a copy of the receipt. A landlord who does not lodge the deposit commits a serious infringement, punishable by a fine of between 35 % and 75 % of its amount. For the tenant, this neither removes the right to get the deposit back at the end nor allows him or her to stop paying the rent. What must be lodged and when The statutory deposit, which is one month's rent for a home and two months' rent for commercial premises. The additional guarantee is not lodged. Within two months of signing. If the deposit is updated on an extension, the difference must also be lodged within two months. When the deposit is lodged, the agreement is registered with details such as the rent, the term and the guarantees. Since March 2026 the official document showing the reference rent has also had to be registered. When the agreement ends, cancellation of the registration must be requested within the following two months. If the landlord does not lodge it or does so late If the landlord lodges it late on his or her own initiative, before being required to do so by the authorities, the situation can be regularised by paying a surcharge on the amount of the deposit, at a rate that depends on the delay: Up to three months, 5 %. Up to six months, 10 %. Up to twelve months, 15 %. More than twelve months, 20 % plus late-payment interest. If the authorities have already required the landlord to do so, the surcharge is 25 %. Surcharges cannot exceed 1.500 euros. For example, with a deposit of 1.000 euros lodged five months late and without any prior demand from the authorities, the surcharge is 100 euros. If the landlord does not regularise the situation, the law treats it as an infringement. Failing to lodge the deposit is a serious infringement, with a fine of between 35 % and 75 % of its amount. Lodging it late is a minor infringement, with a fine of up to 35 % of the deposit and no more than 3.000 euros. INCASÒL can also collect the unlodged deposit through enforcement measures (the “vía de apremio”), the procedure the authorities use to collect the debts owed to them. The authorities can also use the register's data, together with other data, to detect agreements whose deposits have not been lodged. What the tenant can do If you are the tenant, you can: Ask the landlord for the copy of the deposit receipt. Apply for the agreement to be entered in the register of tenancy deposits yourself. The law allows you to do so. Report it to INCASÒL or to the “Agència de l'Habitatge de Catalunya”, the Catalan housing agency. At the end of the agreement, claim the deposit back from the landlord, who is the one obliged to return it, whether or not he or she lodged it.