Renovation & construction
Villa pool or extension without a licence: time limit and cost
Demolition of an unlicensed pool or extension can be demanded for six years after completion, and on protected non-developable land the period never expires. Here is the check and the discount.
The Catalan administration can demand that the original state be restored for six years after unlawful works are completed. The exceptions are land that the plan must classify as no urbanizable (non-developable) under art. 32.a (a special protection regime under sector legislation or a territorial plan, master-plan provisions, public-domain protection easements), and land set aside for public green areas and streets. There the limitation period never expires (art. 207 TRLU, the Catalan urban planning law, consolidated BOE text, updated 17.08.2026). Legalisation is the procedure in which the ayuntamiento (town hall) checks that what has already been built complies with the plan and issues a retroactive permit. If it does not comply, the works are demolished at the owner's expense. Below: how to spot such works before buying, what changes once the period has run, and how to price the discount. This describes the rules and is not advice on a specific property: the conclusion belongs to an abogado urbanista (planning lawyer).
How do you find an unlicensed pool or extension before buying?
Cross-check four sources and look for mismatches. Each one shows part of the picture and is silent on the rest.
| Source | What it shows | What it does not show |
|---|---|---|
| Nota simple from the Registro de la Propiedad (an extract from the Property Registry) | Description of the house and area per the escritura de obra nueva (deed of new construction), signs of a disciplinary file | A pool or extension that was never declared, or whether the works are lawful |
| Catastro (the land and property cadastre) | Physical characteristics: area, use, buildings, mapping (art. 3 TRLCI) | Whether a licence exists. Catastro data is presumed correct until proven otherwise |
| Ayuntamiento archive | Licences issued, comunicaciones previas (prior notices), open expedientes | Works the archive says nothing about |
| Architect's inspection | What is actually built and whether it matches the project | Legal status and the limitation period |
Which regime a pool falls under depends on the project and the municipality: a licence if the works need a technical project (art. 187), or a comunicación previa if they do not (art. 187 bis). The law does not name pools. I covered the general logic of checking unregularised works, using a flat as the example, in the article on the risk of illegal works when buying, and how to read the extract in the piece on the nota simple.
After how many years can unlicensed works no longer be ordered demolished?
The rule depends on what has lapsed and on what land the villa stands.
| What | Limitation period | Provision |
|---|---|---|
| Action to restore the original state (demolition) | 6 years from completion of the works | art. 207.1 |
| Restoration order already issued | 6 years | art. 207.2 |
| Infringement: very serious, serious, minor | 6, 4 and 2 years | art. 227.1 |
| No urbanizable land under art. 32.a, green areas and public streets | does not expire | art. 207.3, 227.4 |
The period runs from completion of the works or, if the infringement continues, from the date it stops (art. 227.2). That is why disputes usually turn on the date: it is proved with photographs, official records and cadastral data, and who carries the burden of proof in your case is for the abogado to say. Fines under art. 219 reach 3 000 € for a minor infringement, 150 000 € for a serious one and 1.5 M€ for a very serious one, and if the offender's gain is larger, the fine is raised to that amount. The land's status appears in the certificado de régimen urbanístico (planning status certificate), which the ayuntamiento must issue within one month of the request (art. 103.4).
What is left of the house once the limitation period has expired?
Limitation is not legalisation. A building to which restoration measures can no longer be applied, but which does not comply with the plan, stays in the position of fuera de ordenación (outside the plan) or disconformidad, and unlawful buildings on no urbanizable land are always fuera de ordenación (art. 108.7). Consolidation works and increases in volume cannot be authorised for such a property (art. 108.2).
Such a property is entered in the Registro by a simplified route: an escritura with a certificate from the ayuntamiento or a technician, a notarial inspection deed, or a cadastral certificate showing the date the works were completed. The registrar checks that the plot carries no note of a disciplinary file and that the land is not public domain or burdened with easements for general use (art. 28.4 TRLSRU).
How do you price the discount on a villa with unregularised works?
I found no open statistics on discounts, so the price is worked out by scenario. For each scenario the direct costs are added up, and the gap between scenarios is the negotiating argument.
Worked example, not a forecast. A villa at 2 M€, with a pool and extension built without a licence. All the figures below are assumptions, not price lists: real figures come from the architect's estimate, the ICIO (construction tax) rate and municipal fees, and the decision on the fine.
| Scenario | Calculation lines | Total, € | Share of price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Period expired, property entered in the Registro | Technician's certificate, deed, notary, Registro: 15 000 | 15 000 | 0,75% |
| Works can be legalised | Project and visado (professional endorsement) 20 000, fees and ICIO 30 000, fine 10 000, reserve 10 000 | 70 000 | 3,5% |
| Cannot be legalised | Demolition 25 000, loss of value of the extension 150 000 | 175 000 | 8,75% |
The likelihood of each scenario is set by the abogado urbanista and the architect from the plan and the facts of the property, not by the seller. The outcome is written into the contract: a condition precedent in the arras (deposit contract) or a retention of part of the price until the ayuntamiento decides. A lawyer chooses the wording.
Who should not make this purchase?
Anyone who needs fully clean documents by a fixed date: the ayuntamiento's timing cannot be set. Anyone whose plot is classified as no urbanizable: on protected land under art. 32.a the limitation period does not work and the risk of demolition stays, and on any other no urbanizable land an unlawful building still remains fuera de ordenación (art. 108.7). And a project where the main part of the house was built without a licence, rather than a pool, garage or extension: that needs a separate legal analysis, not a discount calculation.
If you are looking at a villa with these signs, you can put your own figures together in the investor calculator, and the due diligence checklist covers the document review. DNPI's approach to residential projects is set out on the residential property page.
Questions and answers
Can you buy a villa with an unlicensed pool if more than six years have passed?
You can buy it, but limitation only closes the demolition demand, and only on land where it applies. The property may remain fuera de ordenación, and on protected no urbanizable land (art. 32.a), green areas and streets the period does not expire. The abogado determines the legal status from the plan and the dates.
From what date are the six years counted?
From completion of the unlawful works or, if the infringement continues, from when it stops (art. 207.1 and 227.2 TRLU). The date is proved with documents and photographs, and the abogado assesses how the burden of proof falls in a specific case.
Does the pool appear in the Catastro if there is no licence?
The Catastro records physical buildings and does not check licences. A pool may be shown there with no permit, and may be missing despite having one. That is why the cadastral certificate is checked against the facts on site and the ayuntamiento's archive.
How much does it cost to legalise an extension?
I found no single figure in open sources. The cost is made up of the project, the visado, municipal fees, the ICIO and a possible fine, and the amounts depend on the municipality and the property. The estimate is needed before the arras are signed.
What should you do if you want a villa without these questions?
Require the land-regime certificate before the deposit, a cross-check of the Registro, the Catastro and the ayuntamiento archive, and an architect's inspection, and write the result into the terms of the deal.
