In Andalusia, minor works that need no technical project are usually notified through a declaración responsable under the regional planning law (LISTA), while larger works need a licence. For the activity itself, national law removed the prior licence for many shops up to 750 m² of sales floor, and since June 2026 Andalusia’s new environmental law has replaced the calificación ambiental with a licencia ambiental. Exact requirements depend on the activity and the town, and the business owner files them, usually through a technician. We do not process licences.
Why are there two kinds of paperwork?
Spanish town halls look at a business opening from two angles. The first is the building work: is what you are building allowed, safe and in line with planning? The second is the activity: is the use of the premises compatible with the area, and does it meet the requirements for noise, safety, hygiene and environmental impact? Sometimes both are handled in a single procedure, sometimes separately, depending on the town and the case.
The business owner is responsible for both. In practice most owners appoint an architect, an engineer or a consultant who knows the local procedures. Our role as contractor is to build exactly what has been declared or approved, so the paperwork and the site match. If you change the scope during the works, the paperwork may need to change too, which is why we flag scope changes in writing.
When is a declaración responsable enough for the works?
A declaración responsable is a sworn statement filed with the town hall in which the owner declares that the works comply with the rules and that the required documents are available. Under Andalusia’s planning law, Ley 7/2021 (known as LISTA), articles 137 and 138 distinguish between works subject to a planning licence and those that can be carried out after a declaración responsable — including minor works that do not need a technical project, as municipal forms based on those articles describe.
In a commercial unit, cosmetic works such as painting, replacing floors or refreshing a ceiling often fall on the simpler side. Works that affect the structure, the façade, the building’s shared elements or the use of the premises usually need more. Each ayuntamiento publishes its own forms and may ask for different documents (municipal requirements: to be verified case by case).
Do shops still need an opening licence?
Not always. Ley 12/2012, on urgent measures to liberalise retail and certain services, removed prior municipal licences for the activities listed in its annex when they are carried out in premises below a surface threshold for sales and public areas. The law originally set that threshold at 300 m²; according to a published chronology of amendments, it was raised to 500 m² and then to 750 m² by Ley 20/2013. In those cases a declaración responsable or prior communication replaces the licence, and the town hall checks compliance afterwards.
Two cautions. First, the exemption depends on the activity being in the annex; not every business is. Second, it concerns the activity and does not automatically cover every kind of building work. Whether your activity and your works fall within the exemption must be confirmed for your case (to be verified).
What changed for bars, restaurants and similar activities in 2026?
Activities with potential environmental effects — noise, smoke, odours, waste — have their own layer of control. Until 2026 Andalusia used the calificación ambiental under Ley 7/2007 (GICA) for many of them. Ley 2/2026 for Environmental Management of Andalusia, published in the BOJA on 20 March 2026, repeals that law and replaces the calificación ambiental with a municipal licencia ambiental. It also provides a declaración responsable de efectos ambientales for certain activities, and allows town halls to extend that route by ordinance. Published summaries give 20 June 2026 as the date of entry into force.
Which category a particular bar, restaurant, workshop or other activity falls into depends on the law’s annex and on the municipal ordinances that develop it. Transitional rules may also apply to files started before the change (to be verified case by case). For anyone opening a hospitality business, this is a question to put to a technician before signing a lease, not after.
What about the owners’ community and the landlord?
Town hall paperwork is only part of the picture. If the unit is in a building with an owners’ community, the horizontal-property law lets an owner modify the installations of their unit provided the building’s safety, structure and external configuration are not affected, and the community’s representative is informed beforehand. Anything touching the façade, the structure or shared installations needs more. The landlord’s consent, under the lease, is a separate matter again.
These approvals do not replace the town hall’s, and the town hall’s approval does not replace theirs. Our guide on shop works and the owners’ community explains the usual friction points.
What should you prepare before talking to a technician?
A technician can give a much clearer answer if you arrive with:
- the exact address and cadastral reference of the unit;
- a clear description of the activity, including opening hours, music, cooking or any equipment that produces noise or fumes;
- the useful floor area, and the area open to the public;
- a sketch of the layout you want, with toilets and any kitchen;
- what the unit was used for before and whether any previous licence or declaration exists;
- the lease or purchase terms on works and frontage.
With that information they can tell you which procedure applies, which documents are needed and whether a technical project is required.
Where do we fit in?
We are the contractor, not the licensing agent. We do not prepare projects, file declarations or apply for licences, and we do not tell clients that paperwork is unnecessary. What we do is read the approved or declared scope, build to it, and tell you and your technician immediately if site conditions or your own changes take the job outside it.
For the building side, see our pages on shop refurbishment, shell unit fit-out and restaurant and bar fit-out.
Official sources
- Ley 7/2021 (LISTA), arts. 137–138, as cited in a municipal declaración responsable form (Ayuntamiento de Vera)
- Ley 12/2012 on urgent measures to liberalise retail and certain services (text, Ministerio de Hacienda)
- Chronology of amendments to Ley 12/2012 – surface threshold raised to 750 m² by Ley 20/2013
- BOJA no. 55 of 20 March 2026 – Ley 2/2026 for Environmental Management of Andalusia
- Ley 2/2026: environmental licence replaces calificación ambiental (summary, derecholocal.es)
- Ley 49/1960 on Horizontal Property, art. 7 (consolidated text published by sede.madrid.es)
Bauman Raymond Attila · Reforma Locales Málaga · Avenida Antonio Belón 3, Marbella. Last reviewed: 05/11/2026.
