Spain's disability and dependency law reform takes effect on October 23. It cuts the maximum recognition wait from six to three months, allows benefits and services to be combined, and makes telecare a right. The state must fund 50% of the dependency system, with €6.2 billion extra for regions in 2026–2027.
Homes listed for sale fell 9% nationwide in the third quarter compared with a year earlier, Idealista reports. Valencia and Madrid bucked the trend, with stock rising 15% and 14%. Idealista says high prices are pushing buyers out of big-city markets, easing pressure on available homes.
Spanish households paid €0,2509/kWh in the first half of 2026, against an EU average of €0,2832/kWh, helped by renewables. For a household using 3,750 kWh, that is €121 a year less. Iberdrola chairman Ignacio Galán predicted on October 21 that rises will continue and reach free-market customers as they renew annual contracts.
Three citizens naturalized under the Ley de Nietos have appealed a Supreme Court order suspending their vote on November 29. The main case concerns presumed exile status for people who fled Spain in 1936–1955. Those with a consular certificate proving the qualifying family exile are exempt from the suspension.
Employers' group CEOE will not challenge the November 11 general strike before it takes place, sources told EFE on October 22. Its president, Antonio Garamendi, had said days earlier that he would. Unions called the strike over housing and wages. They say mass afternoon demonstrations will be key.
The Supreme Court has ruled that heirs must declare estate income in IRPF (personal income tax) from the date of death. This applies even when a will delays acceptance or use of the assets for years. The court ruled out double taxation with Inheritance Tax.
Spanish operators and distributors must release 4.4 million barrels of diesel and kerosene reserves by December 15. The requirement implements Spain's announced reserve-release plan following a March agreement among International Energy Agency members. It aims to ease shortages linked to the Middle East crisis.
The PSOE has accepted a November 16 private-channel debate between Socialist prime ministerial candidate Pedro Sánchez and opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo. A separate four-way debate remains disputed: the PSOE wants TVE, while the PP rejects it and proposes Atresmedia.
A study published in Nature attributes more than 5,000 deaths in Spain this summer to extreme heat caused by climate change. Across 854 European cities, it estimates 50,000 heat-related deaths. Barcelona had the second-highest death toll in Europe, while Madrid had the highest share of deaths linked to high temperatures.
A draft 2027 farm tax order, open for public consultation, would cut the net yield by 10% under IRPF (personal income tax) modules and offer diesel and fertiliser incentives. Farmers still plan a Madrid tractor protest on October 28 over high costs and low prices. Farm groups call the 20-cent-per-litre diesel discount wholly insufficient.
Spain's 15% minimum tax on multinationals collected €46 million through August, far below initial forecasts. The tax is in force for groups with revenue above €750 million; 2026 payments use 2024 results. Its weak yield follows a scaling back of the international tax project.
Madrid's Assembly approved its Taxpayer Defence Law on October 22 with PP and Vox support; the left-wing bloc opposed it. It would take effect the day after regional gazette publication. For state-ceded taxes, it would set a three-month reply deadline and give a new complaints office 15 working days to respond.
An EU court advocate general's opinion supports Spain's limits on debt cancellation; it is not a final ruling. Spanish law excludes people declared liable for tax debts by a final decision in the previous 10 years unless they paid in full. The case concerns a man liable for over €40,000 in company taxes.
Spain's Audiencia Nacional has temporarily suspended Repsol's energy levy payments while its appeal continues. The Tax Agency assessments total over €272.7 million: €152.4 million for 2023 and €120.3 million for 2024. The levy remains in litigation.
Spain's Agriculture Ministry is monitoring shamonda virus after France reported the death of a severely immunocompromised infected person. French authorities have identified no health risk to the general population and are investigating. Spain has confirmed cattle outbreaks in six provinces since September.
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