Can squatters actually be quickly evicted under Spain's new law?

Spain’s so-called ‘anti-squatter law’, intended to speed up the legal process and allow for 'express evictions', recently came into force.

Until now, evicting squatters (known as okupas in Spanish) has been a notoriously slow process bogged down by bureaucratic procedure. In some cases, it has taken months or even years for homeowners to recover their property.

The new law, however, promises to be able to throw out squatters within 15 days of the complaint being filed.

In theory, the new regulations will allow crimes of breaking and entering and squatting to be dealt with via these fast-track or eviction trials.

READ ALSO: Spain to pass law allowing for express eviction of squatters

If the squatters fail to prove any legitimate right to the property, the judge may order their immediate eviction after the trial.

This is because with the new law, squatting will be included within offences that can be processed via these fast-track trials. To this end, the government has essentially made small amendments to pre-existing clauses on breaking and entering and ‘usurpation’ in the criminal code.

The penalties for those who occupy a home using violence or intimidation have also been increased. In these cases, squatters could face prison sentences, replacing the current financial penalties that are usually handed out.

But how effective will the new law be — can you really kick out squatters from your Spanish home now that the new law is in force?

Can you kick out squatters from your Spanish home now that the new law is in force?

In theory, yes, you can (or it should be easier to do now), but experts aren't entirely convinced.

As this is a new law, we have no test case to go on yet and, as always, legal interpretation will surely come into play.

And as if so often the case in Spain, regional variation or individual judicial interpretation could also play a role in future judgements.

Firstly, note that if the squat is detected in its first 48 hours, the police can now in theory intervene directly without the need for a court order. In the past, this was crucial in making a legal claim, but now police should - in theory, remember - be able to resolve the problem before it ever needs to go to court.

However, keep in mind that the rule change only covers okupas and not so-called Inquiokupas. In recent years this new type of squatting emerged in Spain, and it is when a legal tenant stops paying the rent then refuses to leave the property. Under the new rules, landlords won't be able to evict this type of squatter.

READ ALSO: Inquiokupas - The type of squatter homeowners in Spain fear most

This is because under the new regulation, in order to result in eviction from the property, the crime must be committed 'flagrantly', and the law itself defines a flagrant offence as: “It shall be considered a flagrant offence that is being committed or has just been committed when the offender is caught in the act.”

Obviously, this is far less likely to be legally binding for a former tenant as opposed to a traditional squatter, who may be caught red handed leaving or entering the premises.

However, more generally, property law experts questioned remain dubious about how effective the new law will be on any type of okupa, for now at least.

José Ramón Zurdo, general director of the Agencia Negociadora del Alquiler (ANA), told Idealista that “it is a limited step forward because the modification of article 795-1 of the criminal procedure act to be able to hold shortened trials - which in periods of no more than a month would put an end to squatting - is for the moment a theoretical solution, because we have yet to see the real duration that these procedures will have, when there are vulnerable people in the squatted houses who have to be evicted and the social services have to get involved."

Zurdo adds that the best solution to squatting would be administrative, not judicial. "It should be compulsory for all housing leases to be signed in writing and registered in a public register of contracts," added.

Referring to the host of fake contracts and utility bills more professional okupas in Spain can get their hands on, Zurdo also said that "this way, when the state security forces go to the squatted houses and demand from the squatters the contracts that justify their occupation with the stamp of being registered in these records, which the police can easily verify electronically.

"If the squatters do not present them, the police can assume that the contracts they show are false and evict the squatters immediately without the need for judicial authorisation."

Some experts also doubt how applicable these new rules will be at a national level and question the legal strength of the changes.

Writing for Idealista, property expert and founder of G&G Abogados Carmen Giménez says of the reform: “This is a case of poor legislative technique that is forcing judges and lawyers in the justice system in each judicial district to reach agreements to standardise criteria.

“This will be a headache for professionals like us who work throughout the country and collaborate with the justice system, as we will have to find out in advance what criteria have been adopted in each judicial district, since they are not the same everywhere.”