Town halls (ayuntamientos) and provinces: what each does

Terms used

• Ayuntamiento — The ayuntamiento is the town hall, the local government of a town or city.
• Padrón — The padrón is the town's register of everyone who lives there.
• IBI — The IBI is the yearly local property tax.
• IAE — The IAE is a local business activities tax paid only by larger businesses.
• IVTM — The IVTM is the yearly local vehicle tax.
• ICIO — The ICIO is a local tax on construction and building works.
• Plusvalía — The plusvalía is a local tax on the rise in urban land value when a property is transferred.
• TIE — The TIE is the foreigner identity card issued to non-EU residents.

Key rules

• Padrón: Registering with your town hall is compulsory for residents, including foreigners.
• Local tax rates: Each town sets its own rates and discounts within legal ranges, so figures differ between towns.
• Police: Policía local belongs to your town hall, while national and some regional forces are run by the state or the region.
• Provinces: Spain has 50 provinces, and their governments mainly support small municipalities.

What your town hall does

Your town hall is the office you will deal with most. It registers you as a resident, charges local taxes, controls building and planning, runs waste collection and employs the local police. The provincial government mainly supports small towns.

Spain has 50 provinces, and each contains many municipalities. Ceuta and Melilla are autonomous cities and belong to no province.

Registration: the padrón

The padrón is the list of everyone living in a town. Registering (empadronamiento) is compulsory for residents, including foreigners. Your town hall runs it and sends the data to the national statistics institute.

You will often need to be registered to use healthcare, get a school place, reach social services and complete some procedures. It also proves where you live. Bring your passport or residence document and proof of your address, as the documents list below shows. If you are not an EU national and do not have permanent residence, you must renew the registration periodically. Ask your town hall how often.

Local taxes

Your town hall charges these taxes:

• IBI: the yearly property tax.
• IAE: a business activities tax. Only larger businesses pay it.
• IVTM: the yearly vehicle tax.
• ICIO: a tax on building and works. Town halls may choose to charge it.
• Plusvalía: a tax on the rise in urban land value when a property is transferred.

It also charges tasas, which are fees for services such as waste collection. Rates stay within legal ranges, but each town sets its own rate and discounts. Check your town hall's figures. The Basque Country and Navarre have their own equivalents of these taxes.

What a town must provide

Own responsibilities include planning, local roads, street lighting, waste, water supply and sewage, cemeteries, local police, traffic, social services and consumer protection.

The minimum services grow with population:

• Every town: street lighting, cemetery, waste collection, street cleaning, water supply, sewage, road access and food control.
• Over 5,000 residents: also a public park, a public library and waste treatment.
• Over 20,000: also civil protection, social services, fire prevention and sports facilities.
• Over 50,000: also public transport and environmental protection.

Who decides: mayor and council

The alcalde (mayor) leads the town hall, represents it and chairs the pleno. The pleno is the full council of elected councillors. It approves budgets, ordinances, planning and other key decisions. Towns with more than 5,000 residents must also have a junta de gobierno local, a smaller group of councillors chosen by the mayor to help run things. Some very small towns hold open meetings of all residents instead.

Police: who does what

Policía local belongs to your town hall. It handles traffic, local rules, minor incidents and support for the other forces. The Policía Nacional covers cities, immigration, and ID documents such as the TIE. The Guardia Civil covers rural areas, roads, ports and airports. The Basque Country, Catalonia and Navarra have their own regional forces that take on most ordinary policing there.

What provinces do

A diputación provincial is the provincial government. It gives technical, legal and money help to small municipalities, usually those under about 20,000 people. It funds and coordinates works and services such as water, roads and waste. It often runs provincial archives and cultural programmes too.

Some regions work differently:

• Madrid, Asturias, Cantabria, La Rioja, Murcia, Navarra and the Balearics have no separate diputación. The regional government does its job.
• The Canary and Balearic Islands have island councils: cabildos insulares and consells insulars.
• The Basque Country has diputaciones forales with strong powers, including tax.

If you live in a small town, your first contact is still the town hall. It may rely on the diputación behind the scenes.

Documents you need

For registering at your town hall (padrón)

• Your passport or residence document, such as the TIE (foreigner identity card). Your town hall uses it to register you in the padrón, the local register of residents.

• Proof of your address, such as a rental contract or property deed. The town hall asks for it when you register (empadronamiento).

Frequently asked questions

Which police force deals with local problems in a town?

The policía local, run by your town hall, deals with local problems such as traffic, local ordinances and minor incidents. It also supports the other forces. The Policía Nacional and Guardia Civil handle wider matters, and the Basque Country, Catalonia and Navarra have their own regional forces.

Which taxes does my town hall charge?

Your town hall charges IBI (property tax), IVTM (vehicle tax) and, for larger businesses, IAE (business activities tax). It can also charge ICIO (a tax on construction and works) and plusvalía (a tax on the rise in land value when property is sold). Rates and bonuses vary by town, and it also charges fees such as waste collection.

What does a town hall have to provide if the town is small?

Every town hall must provide street lighting, cemetery, waste collection, street cleaning, water supply, sewage, road access and food control. Towns over 5,000 residents add a public park, a library and waste treatment. Bigger towns add more, such as public transport above 50,000 residents.

Who decides things in a town hall: the mayor or the council?

The pleno, the council of all elected councillors, approves budgets, ordinances and planning. The mayor leads the administration, chairs the pleno and appoints the junta de gobierno local. That smaller team is mandatory in towns over 5,000 residents.