Due diligence and KYC
An agent may, on the conditions in Art. 8 Ley 10/2010, rely on another obliged entity for certain CDD measures. What is required in particular is a written agreement and immediate availability of the CDD information and, on request, copies of the documents. Responsibility towards the client stays with the agent; ongoing monitoring cannot be outsourced.
An obliged entity's duties are, under Spanish law, non-transferable — ultimate responsibility always rests with the agent. Anyone who says "the lawyer did the KYC, so I am covered" is mistaken.
Four conditions govern formal reliance under Art. 8: (1) a prior written agreement between the obliged entities, (2) immediate availability of the information obtained through CDD, (3) transmission of the relevant document copies on request, and (4) no reliance on impermissible third parties from high-risk countries with strategic deficiencies. A bare notarial confirmation, a copy of an ID document, a "checked by the notary" tick box or a plain file upload do not automatically satisfy Art. 8.
In practice two modes need distinguishing:
Whichever mode applies: risk classification, the plausibility assessment of the documents and the reporting decision remain the agent's own task. Even where reliance under Art. 8 is effective, ongoing monitoring of the business relationship cannot be outsourced.
For documenting formal reliance, record at least: the third-party obliged entity involved, the agreement and its version, the scope of the measures taken over, when the information was made available, the document source, the retrieval log, and the agent's express sign-off.
One further point: where the buyer acts through a law firm, the lawyer may be carrying out their own KYC checks (provided they are themselves an obliged entity). That does not release the agent from their own due diligence, but it can serve within Art. 8 as an additional usable source.
Legal basis: Ley 10/2010, Arts. 3, 8; Real Decreto 304/2014, Art. 3
Practical tip: Many German buyers instruct a Spanish lawyer alongside the agent. Do not let the lawyer confirm a "KYC exemption" for you — keep your own file and use the lawyer at most as a source for registry extracts.
AI-assisted tools were used in preparing these FAQs; the content was subsequently reviewed and approved by the Doxario editorial team. They reflect the general state of the law as at the review date shown and do not constitute individual legal or tax advice. To assess your own case — particularly where complex structures are involved (offshore companies, trusts, foundations, communities of heirs) or where the new EU rules leave room for doubt — we recommend consulting a lawyer specialising in Spanish anti-money-laundering law and, on tax questions, a tax adviser. Doxario is a deal management and compliance platform for estate agents in Spain, operated by Blue Pepper S.L.; we therefore have an economic interest in the solutions described in these FAQs. Doxario accepts no liability for decisions taken solely on the basis of these FAQs.
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