Can a foreign owner claim renovation grants in Spain?

Potentially, but nationality alone does not decide it. Each direct grant has its own occupancy and property rules, municipal reductions depend on the local ordinance, and tax deductions depend on your Spanish tax position and how the property is used. Check the open programme and your own case before relying on any amount.

I'm a non-resident with a second home I use myself. What can I get?

The CAE scheme may apply where the energy saving can be documented. Direct grants and municipal reductions depend on the current programme or ordinance and may include occupancy conditions. Non-residents are taxed under IRNR rather than IRPF, so confirm any tax route with an adviser before counting on it.

Does letting the property change what I can claim?

It can help. The income-tax deduction for energy-efficiency work applies to a home that's let or genuinely available to let, which a purely own-use second home is not. So if you let your Costa Blanca property, you may open up a route that isn't there otherwise. The specifics depend on your tax status, so check your case.

What paperwork do I need to qualify?

For almost all the energy-efficiency aid, an energy performance certificate before the work and another after it, proving the improvement, plus proper invoices and traceable (bank) payment — never cash. We coordinate the certificates and the technical documentation as part of the job, so the papers line up with what each programme requires.

When do I have to apply — before or after the work?

Almost always before. Most direct grants must be applied for (and sometimes approved) before the work starts, and you need the 'before' energy certificate to prove the improvement. The income-tax deduction is claimed afterwards, in the relevant tax return. Starting the work before applying is the single most common way owners lose a grant.

Renovation grants in Spain for foreign owners: 2026 guide

Q: What's the CAE and can I use it on a renovation I've already done?

The CAE (energy-saving certificate scheme) turns the energy saved by works like insulation, new windows or aerothermal heating into money, usually a discount on the invoice for new work. It can also be claimed on a finished renovation — up to three years after the work, if it started after January 2023 — provided you have the paperwork and an energy certificate before and after. For a single home it's usually a modest sum, but it's money otherwise left on the table.

Spain has real money on the table for renovations that improve a home’s energy efficiency. The awkward part, if you’re a foreign owner, is working out which of it you can actually claim — because some of it depends on whether you’re resident, and whether you live in the property or let it. This guide lays out the four routes and, honestly, where a foreign owner stands with each. For the fine detail of your own tax position, confirm with a tax adviser — this is a map, not personal tax advice.

Status checked on 24 September 2026. Spain’s energy-efficiency tax deductions remain in force, but the Valencian G96727 home and G96365 building grant applications are closed. Treat any direct grant as available only when its official GVA or IVACE page shows an open application window.

The four routes, and who can use them

1. Direct grants (money you don’t pay back). Regional and Next Generation programmes can cover energy-efficiency work such as insulation, windows or efficient heating. Eligibility is set by each call: some require habitual occupation, some apply at building level and some have different conditions. At the date above, the two cited Valencian calls are closed, so no direct grant should be treated as available without checking its official page.

2. The income-tax deduction. A reduction in Spanish income tax for energy-efficiency improvements, worth 20%–60% of the spend depending on the improvement. This is the one that’s tied to your tax situation: it generally applies to a habitual residence or a let property — not a second home only for your own use — and non-residents are taxed under a different regime (IRNR, not IRPF). This is exactly where you check your own case with an adviser.

3. Municipal reductions. Each town hall sets its own ICIO and IBI rules and can change them. Check the current ordinance, application deadline and property conditions before including a reduction in your budget.

4. The CAE (energy-saving certificate). The energy your works save is turned into money — usually a discount on the invoice. Not tied to residence. And, unusually, it can be claimed on a finished renovation: up to three years after the work, if it began after January 2023, provided you have the documentation and an energy certificate before and after.

Already renovated and claimed nothing? Check for free whether you’re owed anything — tell us about your work and we’ll tell you what you can claim.

The honest summary for a foreign owner

Second home for your own use, non-resident: the CAE may apply if the saving is documented. Direct grants and municipal reductions depend on their current rules; IRPF deductions do not automatically apply to an IRNR taxpayer.
You let the property: occupancy and tax treatment change, but that does not guarantee a grant or deduction. Check the programme and your tax position.
You’re resident in Spain: the IRPF efficiency deductions may apply if the property use, dates and certified improvement meet the official conditions.

In every case, confirm the tax specifics with an adviser — residence status and how the property is used change the answer, and they’re personal to you.

The one document that unlocks almost everything

For nearly all the energy-efficiency aid, you need an energy performance certificate before the work and another after it, proving the home improved — a lower consumption, a better energy rating. Without that before-and-after, the energy-efficiency grants and the deduction simply aren’t available. We coordinate both certificates and the technical paperwork as part of the renovation, and we design the work to reach the improvement each programme asks for.

Timing: the mistake that loses the money

Most direct grants must be applied for before the work starts — sometimes approved first — and you need the ‘before’ certificate in hand. Start the work first and you’re out, however good your case. The income-tax deduction, by contrast, is claimed afterwards in the tax return. So the order matters: decide which aid you’re going for, then plan the renovation around it — not the other way round.

How this fits your renovation

The practical point for a foreign owner: plan the aid before you start. A renovation that’s designed from the outset to hit an energy-efficiency target — and documented properly — can access money that the same work, done without planning, simply misses. We handle the technical and documentary side (the certificates, the memoria, keeping the papers in order); for your personal tax position and the application itself, a Spanish tax adviser or gestor is the right person, and we can point you in the right direction.

If you’re weighing up a renovation, it’s worth reading alongside this how much it costs to renovate on the Costa Blanca (grants change the real cost), and, if you’re not in Spain, renovating a Spanish property from abroad.

Tell us about your property and we’ll go and see it — a fixed written quote, and an honest read on what your work might qualify for. No charge, no obligation.