Where your company's registered office (domicilio social) can be

Terms used

• Domicilio social — The domicilio social is your company's registered office, the official address in its statutes and the commercial registry.
• Registro Mercantil — The Registro Mercantil is the commercial registry where companies and changes to their statutes are recorded.
• Domicilio fiscal — The domicilio fiscal is the address the tax authority uses for your company's taxes and notifications.
• AEAT — The AEAT is Spain's tax authority, also called Hacienda.
• Modelo 036 — Modelo 036 is the tax form used to update a company's registration details, including its tax address.

Key rules

• Real centre: The registered office must be in Spain if your company is effectively managed from Spain.
• Virtual office: A virtual office is allowed only if it is where management or main activity really is.
• Home address: Check your lease and building rules before using a rented home as the registered office.
• Tax address change: After moving the registered office, file modelo 036 within one month.

The rule: put it where the company really runs

Your registered office (domicilio social) must be in Spain if your company's effective management is in Spain. It must be the place where management and administration are centred, or where your main business or operations happen. Pick the address that matches how you really work.

Can you use your home?

Yes, if you run the company from there. A home address can legally be the registered office when it is where management or the main activity is.

Check two things before you sign:

• Your lease. A rented home needs the landlord's permission if the lease bars business use.
• Your building. The community of owners' statutes may restrict business use. Rules differ by lease, building and municipality, so ask your administrator or town hall.

The Registro Mercantil generally accepts the address in the deed without checking how it is used. That does not make a weak address safe. Hacienda can question it later.

Can you use a virtual office?

Yes, but with limits. A virtual office is common and can work if it is where the company's management or main activity is located. If you manage the company from elsewhere, the address does not meet the rule.

An address with no real activity brings risks:

• Hacienda may challenge your tax address if the company is not managed there.
• Official letters may not reach you, so you may miss notifications and deadlines.

If you use a provider, make sure real management, such as meetings, records and decisions, can be tied to that address. Otherwise choose a place where you actually work.

How this affects your tax address

For a company, the tax address (domicilio fiscal) is normally the registered office, as long as effective management is there. If not, it is where management and control are exercised, or where the main assets or activity are.

If the registered office is not the real centre of the company, the tax authority (AEAT) can change your tax address on its own.

If you change the registered office later

Three steps, shown in the timeline below. The statutes are amended before a notary and the change is registered in the Registro Mercantil. Then you file modelo 036 to change your tax address, within one month of the change.

Timeline and deadlines

• Amend the statutes before a notary to set the new registered office: First step, before anything is filed

• Register the amendment in the Registro Mercantil: After the notary signs the amendment

• File modelo 036 to change your tax address: Within 1 month of the change

Frequently asked questions

Can I use my home as my company's registered office?

Yes, you can use your home as the registered office if that is where you manage the company or run its main activity. A rented home needs your landlord's permission if the lease bars business use. The community of owners' rules may also restrict it.

Is a virtual office address enough for a registered office?

Yes, a virtual office can be your registered office, but only if the company is really managed or mainly operates from there. An address with no real activity can cause tax and mail-delivery problems. The tax agency may also question it.

What happens to my tax address if I move the registered office?

You must change your tax address with modelo 036 within one month of the move. The move itself needs a statute amendment before a notary and registration in the Registro Mercantil. If you skip the change, the tax agency can change your tax address itself.