After a sexual assault: crisis centres and the first 72 hours

Key rules

• No report needed: You do not need to file a report to receive medical care or support services after a sexual assault.
• Where to go: Go to a hospital emergency department or call a 24-hour crisis centre, even if you have already washed.
• Emergency: Call 112 if you are in danger or need an ambulance.
• Injury report: The hospital notifies the duty court of injuries that may be a crime, which can start a court procedure.

What to do first

Go to a hospital emergency department, or call a 24-hour crisis centre, as soon as you can. If you are in danger or need an ambulance, call 112. You can get care and have evidence collected without reporting anything. Whether to report is a separate choice you can make later.

Even if you have already washed or changed clothes, still go. Tell staff at triage what happened. Victims of sexual assault are given priority.

What happens at the hospital

Expect a medical and a psychological assessment. The hospital treats injuries and offers emergency contraception and preventive treatment for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections. It may also check for tetanus or hepatitis.

Where a forensic doctor (médico forense) is available, or where the hospital's own doctors take samples under the regional protocol, evidence is collected with a chain of custody. This keeps the samples usable later.

The hospital also sends a parte de lesiones (injury report) to the duty court. This is a legal duty for injuries that may be a crime. In practice it often starts a court procedure, and the court usually brings in the forensic doctor and police. Ask the staff what will happen before the exam, so nothing surprises you. Follow-up includes referral to support services.

The checklist below lists what to do and keep before the exam.

Crisis centres

Crisis centres are public, specialised services that run 24 hours a day for victims of sexual violence. They offer:

• information and psychological support
• legal advice and social support
• someone to go with you to the hospital, police or court

The law requires at least one centre in each province, plus Ceuta and Melilla. You can use them whether or not you report.

Coverage is uneven between regions. Some have several centres and others have few or none yet. Regions use their own names, such as Madrid's Centro de Crisis 24 horas. The 016 helpline is a national starting point, and it can tell you what exists near you. The helplines box below has other numbers.

Reporting is your choice

You do not need to file a report (denuncia) to receive medical care or support services. Sexual offences can generally be prosecuted without the victim pressing charges, though your testimony usually matters a great deal. If you are under 18, mandatory reporting duties apply.

Some regions let evidence be collected and stored without a report, but this is not the same everywhere. Ask the hospital or crisis centre whether this is possible where you are.

Take your time deciding. A crisis centre can explain your options and go with you if you choose to report. Do not delay the medical exam while you decide, because evidence is lost quickly.

Related pages in this guide

The warning below covers common evidence mistakes. The quick answers cover drugging, intimate images and minors.

What to do and keep after a sexual assault

• Go to a hospital emergency department as soon as you can, even if you have already washed. Tell staff at triage what happened: you are seen as a priority.

• Ask for a medical and psychological assessment, including treatment for injuries, emergency contraception, and HIV and STI prevention.

• Before the exam, if you can, avoid showering, washing, brushing your teeth, eating, drinking, changing clothes and combing your hair.

• Collect your urine in a clean container if you cannot avoid going to the toilet before the exam, and hand it to the staff.

• Put the clothes you wore during the assault in a paper bag, not a plastic one, and leave the bedding untouched.

• Keep your phone, messages and photos as they are, and do not delete anything.

• Ask the staff to collect samples with chain of custody, and ask whether a forensic doctor (médico forense) will see you.

• Keep the discharge report (informe de alta), prescriptions, treatment notes and lab results.

• If you file a report, keep your copy of the denuncia with its number, plus any court or forensic report and the case number.

• Ask the hospital about follow-up and referral to support services, and call 016 for free, confidential support.

Evidence mistakes that can weaken a later case

• Washing or changing before the exam: Showering, brushing your teeth, eating, drinking, changing clothes or combing your hair can remove traces that help a later case. If you can, wait until after the exam. If you have already washed, still go to hospital: the exam is still useful.

• Waiting too long for the exam: Samples are best collected within 72 hours, though some protocols go to 5 to 7 days for genital and anal swabs. Waiting longer weakens biological evidence, and drugs leave your body quickly. Go as soon as you can. An exam after that time still helps to document injuries. Give your first urine if you think you were drugged.

• Deleting messages, chats or accounts: Deleting messages, photos or accounts can destroy proof of what happened or of online abuse. Keep everything and the original device. Take full screenshots showing the username, date and time, copy the exact links, and store copies on an external drive. Do not edit the files or forward images of minors.

• Thinking you must choose now: Preserving evidence does not commit you to reporting. You can get care and support without a report. Keep evidence and the medical papers safe so that all your options stay open.

Helplines and channels for sexual violence and exploitation

Helplines and channels

• 016 helpline: Call 016 for free, confidential information, legal advice and psychological first aid on any sexual violence against women, in about 50 languages, 24 hours. It does not appear on the phone bill, but delete it from your call log. WhatsApp 600 000 016 or email 016-online@igualdad.gob.es.

• 112 emergency number: Call 112 if you are in immediate danger, are injured, or need police or an ambulance. It is free, open 24 hours, with operators in several languages.

• Policía Nacional (091) and Guardia Civil (062): Report an assault or online abuse, 24 hours by phone or through their online reporting channels.

• AEPD priority channel: Ask the data protection agency for urgent removal of sexual or violent images shared without your consent.

• INCIBE 017 helpline: Call 017 for free, confidential advice on online safety, also by WhatsApp and Telegram.

• ANAR Foundation 900 20 20 10: Call if the person affected is a minor.

• Trafficking helpline 900 105 090: Call for free, confidential help if you are a victim of trafficking, also by WhatsApp, in several languages. Open to anyone in Spain whatever their immigration status.

• Regional rape crisis centres: Ask 016 or the hospital for your region's 24-hour crisis centre, such as the one in Madrid.

Quick answers about sexual violence support in Spain

Does the hospital make me file a report if I have been sexually assaulted?

No, you do not have to file a report to get medical care or support, but the hospital must notify the court of injuries that may be a crime. That usually starts a court procedure and a forensic exam.

How long after being drugged can a test still find the substance?

Urine can show a drug for up to about 72 hours to 5 days, and blood for about 8 to 24 hours. Hair can show it weeks or months later. GHB clears faster, in about 8 hours in blood and 12 in urine. Give the first urine you pass as a sample.

Can I get intimate images of me removed from the internet?

Yes, you have several routes besides a complaint to the AEPD, the data protection agency, whose priority channel handles urgent removal. You can report the content to the platform itself and ask Google or Bing to remove it from search results. Adults can also use StopNCII.org, which blocks matching images on taking part platforms without uploading them.

What if the images show someone under 18?

For a minor, the Take It Down tool works in a similar way to StopNCII. Do not forward the images to anyone, as that may be an offence. A police report or a court complaint can lead to a judicial order to remove the content.