Leaving a Spanish lease early (desistimiento)

Key rules

• Six months: Before the first six months have passed, you have no legal right to leave a main-home lease.
• Notice: After six months, give the landlord 30 days' written notice.
• Penalty: A penalty is due only if your contract expressly agrees it, and it is capped at one month's rent per year of the remaining term, prorated for fractions.
• Other contracts: Room, seasonal and other non-main-home contracts follow their own terms, not this rule.

The short answer

If your lease is for your main home, you can leave once the first six months have passed. You must give the landlord 30 days' notice. The contract can charge a penalty, but only if it says so and only up to a legal limit.

When you can leave

The right to leave starts after six months of the lease. Before that, the law gives you no way out. If you go early, the landlord can claim compensation only if the contract expressly says so. Even then it is capped at one month's rent for each year of the remaining term, with fractions of a year prorated. They can also keep the deposit against unpaid sums. Only an agreement with the landlord releases you.

Notice

You must give 30 days' notice, in writing. The law does not demand a set form, but you need to be able to prove you sent it. The reliable ways are a burofax with certified content and acknowledgment of receipt, or a notice through a notary. A letter you hand over in person works if the landlord signs a receipt on your copy.

Email or WhatsApp can count as evidence if the landlord replies or the contract names that channel. Do not rely on them alone. Check whether your contract names an address or method for notices, and use it.

You keep paying rent until the notice period ends.

The penalty

A penalty applies only if your contract expressly agrees it. If there is no clause, you owe no penalty, only the rent through the notice period.

If there is a clause, it can be at most one month's rent for each year of the lease still to run. Fractions of a year are prorated. Read this clause before you sign and again before you give notice.

Your deposit

The landlord may keep the fianza only for real unpaid rent or damage. Keep your proof of notice until the deposit is back.

Room, temporary and other non-main-home contracts

The six-month right applies only to main-home leases. Seasonal, work, study, holiday and room contracts are usually governed by the contract itself and the general civil code. Leaving early may then mean paying the rest of the term, unless the contract gives you a way out. Courts differ on how to classify room rentals and temporary contracts, so the wording of your contract matters. Ask a tenants' advice service or a lawyer if you are unsure which type you have.

Next steps

Use the template and calculator below to draft your notice and work out your dates and any penalty. The checklist and timeline show the order to follow.

Timeline and deadlines

• Check that the lease is a main-home lease and read any penalty clause: before you decide to leave

• Wait until the first 6 months of the lease have passed. Leaving earlier has no legal right behind it: first 6 months of the lease

• Send your written notice to the landlord in a provable way: at least 30 days before you want to leave

• Keep paying rent until the notice period ends: through the 30 days of notice

• Pay any penalty the contract sets, if it has one: at most one month's rent per year of the term left, prorated for part years: when you leave

Checklist

• Check your contract for a named notification address or method before you send anything.

• Write a letter giving the landlord 30 days' notice that you are leaving.

• Keep proof of sending and receipt, and any reply from the landlord, until the deposit is back.

What to watch out for

• Leaving in the first six months: Before six months you have no right to withdraw. The landlord can claim the rent for the rest of the agreed term, keep the deposit against unpaid sums and claim any penalty clause. Wait until six months have passed, or agree a release with the landlord in writing.

• A penalty clause in the contract: If the contract says so, you may owe compensation of at most one month's rent per year of the term left, prorated for part years. Without such a clause, no penalty is due. Read the clause before you give notice and work out the cost.

• Rent during the notice period: You still owe rent through the 30 days of notice, even with no penalty clause. Count the 30 days from the day the landlord receives your notice, and plan your move-out date around it.

• Deposit kept for the wrong reasons: The landlord may keep the deposit only for real unpaid rent or damage. Ask for an itemised reason in writing if money is withheld.

Template notice to end your lease early

Use this when you have lived in the home for at least 6 months and want to leave. You must give 30 days' notice. The 30 days normally count from the day the landlord receives the notice, not the day you send it. Send it at least 30 days before your leaving date, and add a few days for delivery. Check your contract in case it counts the days differently.

Send it by burofax with certified content and acknowledgment of receipt. A notary notice also works. A hand-delivered copy works if the landlord signs a receipt. Email or WhatsApp is only safe if the contract names that channel. Check whether your contract gives a notification address or method, and use it. Keep your copy and the receipt.

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Subject: Notice of withdrawal from the lease

[Your full name] [Your ID or passport number] [Address of the rented home] [Date of this letter]

To: [Landlord's full name] [Landlord's notification address, from the contract if it names one]

Dear [Landlord's name],

I am the tenant under the lease for the home at [full address], signed on [date of the contract].

More than six months have passed since the lease began. I am therefore exercising my right to withdraw from the lease. This letter is my 30 days' notice.

My last day in the home will be [date, at least 30 days after the landlord receives this letter].

Handing back the keys. I propose to return the keys on [date] at [time] at the home. If that does not suit you, please suggest another time before [date]. We can check the condition of the home and read the meters together at that visit.

Deposit. Please return my fianza of [amount] to this bank account: [IBAN], within the period set by the contract.

[Include this paragraph only if your contract has an early-exit compensation clause:] My contract provides for compensation for leaving early. Please send me your calculation so we can settle it on the handover date.

Please confirm that you have received this notice.

Yours sincerely,

[Signature] [Your full name] [Phone number and email]

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Before you send it

• Fill in every blank and check the leaving date against the 30 days.
• Keep a signed copy and the burofax receipt.
• If the landlord does not answer about the keys, return them on the date you gave and record the handover with a witness or photos.

Calculate your early-exit notice date and penalty

Work it out

What you enter

• Days from today until your planned leaving date (days): Count the days on a calendar from today to the date you want to leave.
• Extra days for the notice to be delivered (days): Your own estimate of delivery time for burofax or hand delivery.
• Your monthly rent (EUR): Your lease contract or latest rent receipt.
• Months of the contract left after your leaving date (months): Your lease contract: the end date minus your leaving date.
• Does your contract include an early-leaving compensation clause? (1 = yes, 0 = no) (1 or 0): Look in your lease contract for a clause on compensation if you leave early.

Figures used

• Notice you must give the landlord: 30 days (as of 2019)
• Months in a year: 12 months

Worked example (with Days from today until your planned leaving date 60 days, Extra days for the notice to be delivered 5 days, Your monthly rent 900 EUR, Months of the contract left after your leaving date 18 months, Does your contract include an early-leaving compensation clause? (1 = yes, 0 = no) 1 1 or 0)

When the sum misleads

• You can only leave this way once at least 6 months of the lease have passed; your leaving date must fall after that point.
• If the result for days left is 0, move your leaving date later or expect to pay rent for the days you are short.
• With no compensation clause in the contract, no penalty is due, but you still pay rent through the notice period.
• This applies to main-home leases, not seasonal, room or commercial lets.

Frequently asked questions

Does my room rental or temporary contract give me the same right to leave?

Usually not: the early-exit right only covers main-home leases. Seasonal, work, study and holiday lets, and most room rentals, follow the contract itself, so leaving early can mean paying the rest of the term unless the contract grants a way out.

Can I send my notice by email or WhatsApp?

Yes, it can count if the landlord replies or the contract names that channel, but it is a risky choice. A burofax with certified content, a notary notice, or a hand-delivered letter with a signed receipt is safer.

What if I leave before the first six months are up?

You have no right to withdraw, so leaving is a breach of the contract.