The following concepts distinguish public ownership of land, restrictions affecting private property and the administrative titles that may permit particular uses. Keeping those questions separate makes a property review much more useful.
01Public ownership
Maritime-terrestrial public domain (DPMT)
The Spanish abbreviation DPMT refers to coastal assets that the Coastal Law places in the State’s public domain. These include the legally defined shore of the sea and estuaries and other assets specified by the legislation. The boundary need not coincide with the sand visible in a photograph or with a cadastral parcel outline.
If land falls within the DPMT, this affects the nature of the right that can be acquired and whether occupation or use is permitted. A purchase deed, an IBI property-tax receipt or a cadastral description does not turn public-domain land into private ownership. The approved boundary and any administrative title authorising occupation must be examined.
Coastal Law: articles 3–9 and 13
02Administrative delimitation
Deslinde: the official coastal boundary procedure
A deslinde determines the boundary of the DPMT through an administrative procedure. For a property review, the relevant documents include the approval decision, its plan, its position on the ground and any subsequent amendments, appeals or decisions. A line downloaded from an online viewer is useful evidence, but it does not replace those documents.
A boundary still being processed should not simply be dismissed. Opening the procedure can have effects on concessions and authorisations within the scope set out in the law. Before assuming that a pending line has no practical importance, establish the file concerned, its current stage and the measures that apply.
Coastal Law: articles 11–13, particularly 12.5
03Reference for statutory strips
Ribera del mar: the legally defined shore
The ribera is a legal concept based on the characteristics of the land and the action of the sea. It encompasses the maritime-terrestrial zone and beaches as defined by the law. Its inland limit matters when measuring statutory easements. It should not be replaced by the waterline visible in an aerial photograph taken under particular sea conditions.
The ribera and the DPMT are connected concepts, but they are not interchangeable. It is therefore unsafe to measure every restricted strip from whichever red line happens to appear on a map. Identify what each line represents and which reference the official file establishes for the restriction being examined.
Coastal Law: articles 3, 23 and 27
04Restrictions on neighbouring land
Protection easement — servidumbre de protección
The general rule is a strip extending 100 metres inland from the inland limit of the legally defined shore. The law provides for extensions in specified circumstances and for special regimes. Uses and works are restricted within the strip; the general prohibitions include buildings intended for residence or habitation, subject to the scope and exceptions that require individual assessment.
The frequently quoted 20-metre rule needs particular care. Its application depends, among other situations, on the transitional regime and legally evidenced historical planning status. A present-day “urban” classification in Catastro, neighbouring houses or payment of urban IBI does not prove that the narrower strip applies. Specific provisions also exist for the banks of tidal rivers.
Being within the protection strip does not automatically mean losing ownership. It means that use and works may be subject to additional rules. Before renovating, examine the building’s title and legal regime, any regional authorisation required and the municipal process. A planning permission does not, by itself, replace other necessary approvals.
Coastal Law: articles 23–25 and third transitional provision
Authorisations: articles 49–50 of the General Coastal Regulation
05Passage alongside the coast
Passage easement — servidumbre de tránsito
The general width is 6 metres inland from the inland limit of the legally defined shore. It can be extended to 20 metres where passage is difficult or dangerous. The purpose is public pedestrian passage and access for surveillance and rescue vehicles, subject to the terms and exceptions in the law.
This may matter for walls, gates, terraces, gardens or installations even where the main house stands farther away. A longstanding enclosure does not establish that passage can lawfully be blocked. This tool does not automatically check the passage easement: its route and compatibility with existing or proposed works require a separate review.
Coastal Law: article 27
06Public access
Public access to the sea — servidumbre de acceso al mar
This protects public, free access to the sea within the terms of the law and must be considered in coastal planning. It is different from the longitudinal passage strip. It may be relevant to paths, routes or access arrangements affecting a particular property.
If the land has a path, locked gate or apparently exclusive beach access, check the administrative and planning documents before relying on that arrangement. The absence of an access route from this mapping result does not prove that it is private or that it may be closed. This easement is not automatically verified by the tool.
Coastal Law: article 28
07Territorial and town planning
Zone of influence — zona de influencia
The law provides for a zone of influence whose width is determined through the relevant planning instruments and must be at least 500 metres from the inland limit of the shore. It affects planning criteria, including landscape protection and avoiding architectural barriers or excessive concentrations of building volume.
This is not a uniform ban on all building throughout that area, nor is it a 500-metre protection easement. Its practical effect requires examination of the applicable planning rules. Buying beyond the first 100 metres does not, by itself, remove the need for coastal and planning due diligence.
Coastal Law: article 30
08Administrative titles
Concessions and authorisations
Certain uses or occupation of the public domain require an administrative title. A concession or authorisation defines what is permitted and on which conditions; it should not be confused with private ownership of the land. A transaction requires attention to its scope, duration, holder, obligations, possible charges and transfer rules.
Request the complete document and its amendments, rather than a receipt or a reference in a sales advertisement. Transferring a concession requires prior administrative recognition that the buyer meets the conditions; authorisations are generally personal and not transferable between living persons. The tool does not automatically establish the existence or continuing validity of these titles, and their existence cannot be inferred from the age of a building.
Coastal Law: title III, use of the public domain
09Property history matters
Existing buildings and transitional provisions
An old building does not become lawful simply through the passage of time. Its assessment requires separating the date and legality of works, historical planning status, the coastal boundary and existing administrative titles. Transitional provisions may permit some interventions while preventing others.
Where the fourth transitional provision applies, repair, improvement, structural consolidation and modernisation may be permitted without increasing volume, height or floor area, subject to the applicable conditions and technical exceptions. There is no general right to extend. In the remainder of the protection zone, new construction after total or partial demolition must comply fully with the Coastal Law; rebuilding the same structure cannot be assumed.
If you are buying to renovate, obtain an assessment of the specific works before committing. Technical documents should connect what exists, its permissions and the proposed project. An extension appearing in Catastro is not, for that reason alone, authorised.
Coastal Law: third and fourth transitional provisions
10Complementary sources
Catastro, Land Registry and aerial photography
Catastro provides identification and geometries; the Land Registry records rights and registered circumstances; aerial imagery helps show the visible configuration of the land. None of these sources on its own proves that every structure is lawful or replaces the coastal authority’s documentation.
Compare the house, annexes, swimming pool, terraces and enclosures with what actually exists. Cadastral footprints can omit elements, while an aerial photograph may predate a renovation. The date an image is retrieved is not its capture date. Record discrepancies and request plans or a technical inspection where the position cannot be established reliably.
Cadastral Law: article 3
Coastal Law: article 13, effects of the boundary determination
