SOBE Knowledge
What Is the Arras Contract?
The Spanish deposit contract that turns intention into obligation — 10% down, a deadline fixed, and an exit that exists only if the right word is on the page.
What the arras contract is
The arras is the Spanish deposit contract — the moment a purchase stops being an intention and becomes an obligation, sealed with typically 10% of the price.
Between the informal reservation and the notarised escritura stands this private document with full binding force. It fixes everything that matters: the exact price, the completion deadline, what stays in the house, which charges the seller must cancel, who pays what. From signature onward, both sides are committed — on terms the contract itself defines.
Three types — and why the label matters more than the number
Arras penitenciales (Art. 1454 of the Civil Code) — the classic: either side may still walk away, at a price. A buyer who withdraws loses the deposit; a seller who withdraws must return it doubled. The exit is expensive but exists.
Arras confirmatorias — the deposit is simply a first payment. No walk-away right: the other party can sue to force completion plus damages.
Arras penales — a penalty regime: the deposit is forfeited as damages and performance can still be demanded.
Spanish courts read an ambiguous contract as confirmatorias — the strictest kind. If you want the right to walk away, the word penitenciales and the reference to Art. 1454 must be on the page. This is not a formality; it is the whole architecture of your exit.
Where it sits in the sequence
The disciplined order: reservation takes the property off the market for a modest sum — then due diligence — then the arras. The 10% moves only after the nota simple is clean, the planning status is verified, the valor de referencia is checked, and the community’s minutes hold no surprises. Signing the arras before the checks inverts the leverage: you are then negotiating problems with your deposit already on the other side of the table.
The completion window is typically 30–90 days — long enough for the mortgage and the NIE if both are already in motion, dangerous if either is not.
Before your 10% moves
The Costa del Sol Buying Guide
The full sequence from reservation to keys — every check that belongs before the arras, in order.
What a well-drafted arras contains
Beyond price and deadline: a financing clause returning the deposit if the mortgage is refused on stated terms; an inventory of furniture and fittings signed as an annex; the seller’s obligation to deliver the property free of charges, tenants and arrears, with cancellation costs assigned; the allocation of IBI and community fees for the year; and the deposit held in a lawyer’s client account rather than handed to the seller or the agent. Every clause is ordinary; its absence is what becomes extraordinary later.
Four ways deposits get lost
1. Signing the seller’s template unread. It was drafted for the other side of the table. Have your lawyer draft or rewrite — never merely translate.
2. The wrong label. “Arras” without penitenciales can mean no exit at all. Courts default to the strict reading.
3. Deposit before diligence. Problems discovered after signature cost negotiating power at best, the deposit at worst.
4. A deadline the money cannot meet. Sixty days is generous only if the NIE exists and the bank has the file. Match the calendar to reality, and put the mortgage condition in writing.
Frequently asked questions
How much is the arras deposit?
Customarily 10% of the price, though it is negotiable. It is paid on signature of the arras contract and counts toward the price at completion.
Can I get my deposit back if I change my mind?
Only under arras penitenciales - the Article 1454 form - and at the cost of the deposit itself. The seller who withdraws returns it doubled. Under confirmatorias or penales there is no walk-away right at all, which is why the label on the contract matters more than the number in it.
When should the arras be signed?
After due diligence, not before: clean nota simple, verified planning status, checked valor de referencia, reviewed community minutes. The deposit moves once the checks are done.
Who should hold the deposit?
A lawyer's client account is the disciplined answer. Handing 10% directly to a seller or an agent removes every safeguard the contract was meant to create.
What happens if my mortgage is refused?
Whatever the contract says - which is why a financing clause returning the deposit on documented refusal belongs in every arras where a mortgage is planned. Without it, refusal can simply mean a lost deposit.