Permitsfor your enclosure.

Two parties usually decide: the town hall and, in a block of flats, the owners' community. The town hall sets the procedure under its own bylaws, often a prior notice or a minor works licence. The community has to approve the enclosure when it changes the facade. Rules differ between municipalities, so check them before ordering a system.

Who decides

Town hall and community

Depends on

Municipality, building and system

What LUNEKS handles

procedures LUNEKS handles

Each town hall classifies building work in its local bylaw (ordenanza). A light enclosure that does not touch the structure is usually treated as minor works (obra menor). Many municipalities handle it with a prior notice (comunicación previa) or a responsible declaration (declaración responsable) instead of a licence. Others ask for a minor works licence (licencia de obra menor), especially when the enclosure changes the outside of the building.

In some municipalities enclosing a terrace can count as adding built floor area, and the conditions are then stricter. That is why the same glass curtain can be a simple formality in one town and need more paperwork in the next.

• Comunicación previa or declaración responsable: you notify the town hall and file the documents it asks for, without waiting for a formal decision.
• Licencia de obra menor: the town hall reviews the application and authorises it before work starts.
• What each town hall in the area requires: requirements in Alicante, Valencia, Murcia and other municipalities
• Usual processing times: timing

In an apartment building the facade is a common element. The Spanish Horizontal Property Act (Ley de Propiedad Horizontal) requires a decision of the owners meeting for works that change the outside of the building, and enclosing a terrace or penthouse usually falls into that category. The majority needed depends on the type of works and the community rules.

Many communities have already approved a standard enclosure so that all terraces look the same. If there is one, you have to follow it. If not, the usual route is to take the proposal to the owners meeting with photos and a description of the system.

• Check the community rules and minutes for an existing agreement or approved model.
• Ask the property administrator (administrador de fincas) which majority your community needs.
• A detached house with no community only needs the town hall procedure.

What LUNEKS takes on: technical documents, drawings, filing with the town hall, support at the owners meeting