Spain's Second-Chance Law: Discharging Debt Through the Ley de Segunda Oportunidad (2026)

Spain has a real mechanism to wipe out debts a person genuinely cannot pay. It is called the exoneración del pasivo insatisfecho (EPI), and it is what people mean by the ley de segunda oportunidad.

It works, and thousands of people use it every year, but it is not the thing the adverts describe. It is not automatic, it is not guaranteed, and it does not clear every debt. This page sets out what it actually does.

Information last verified on 22 July 2026. This page provides general legal information about Spanish law and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case.

What the second-chance law is

The exoneración del pasivo insatisfecho lets an honest but insolvent person be released from debts they cannot pay, so they can start again without a lifetime of pursuit. It lives in the Ley Concursal (the texto refundido approved by RDL 1/2020), in arts. 486 to 502, and it was substantially reformed by Ley 16/2022, which transposed an EU directive and has applied since 26 September 2022. It is available to a private individual and to an autónomo.

One change from the old system is worth flagging because outdated guides still describe it: the previous requirement to attempt an acuerdo extrajudicial de pagos before applying has been removed. A debtor now goes to the concurso and the exoneración directly.

The two routes

The reform built the discharge around two alternatives, and which one fits depends on whether there are assets worth keeping:

• Exoneración with a payment plan (con plan de pagos), without prior liquidation. You keep your assets, including potentially the family home, and commit part of your future income to a plan. The plan runs for 3 años, extended to 5 años in defined cases, such as keeping the vivienda habitual or where repayment depends on future income.
• Exoneración through liquidation (mediante liquidación). Where there are no assets worth protecting, the estate is liquidated and the remaining qualifying debt is discharged.

The good-faith gate

The discharge is only for a debtor of good faith (buena fe) under art. 486, and this is where applications genuinely fail, so it should never be described as a formality. Art. 487 lists the disqualifiers that rebut it, including a conviction within the last ten years for certain crimes against property, socio-economic order, forgery, the Treasury or Social Security or workers' rights; a serious administrative sanction; or a concurso declared culpable. If a disqualifier applies, the court can refuse the exoneración outright. This is why no honest page can promise a guaranteed discharge.

What never discharges

Even a successful EPI does not clear everything. Art. 489 keeps certain debts alive:

• Maintenance (alimentos).
• Criminal liability and civil liability arising from personal injury or death.
• The last 60 días of unpaid employee wages owed by the debtor as an employer, up to a limit of three times the minimum wage (SMI).
• Public debt (créditos de Derecho público), with one narrow exception. Tax debt whose collection is handled by the AEAT can be discharged up to 10.000 euros per debtor (the first 5.000 euros in full, then 50% up to the 10.000 ceiling), and social-security debt up to a SEPARATE 10.000 euros on the same terms. This applies only to the first exoneración; later ones discharge no public debt at all.

The upside for a listed debtor

There is a link back to the rest of this section. When an exoneración is granted, the debts it clears must be reflected in the credit-information systems, so a granted EPI is one of the routes to being removed from a default register. See the ASNEF page for how a listing works and comes off.

The microempresas point for autónomos

Much of the demand for the second-chance law comes from self-employed people, and since 1 January 2023 there is a dedicated procedimiento especial para microempresas for the smallest businesses. An autónomo weighing the EPI should check whether that route fits, because it changes the procedure.

The honest framing

The second-chance law is powerful and real, and it is also conditional. This page describes a statutory insolvency process with genuine requirements and genuine exclusions. It does not promise to "cancel all your debts", because the law does not, and the good-faith test and the non-dischargeable list are exactly where an over-promised expectation breaks. For the wider map, see the debt and credit overview.

This page is general legal information about Spanish insolvency law and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case. The controlling texts are the current versions in the BOE.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the ley de segunda oportunidad?

It is the popular name for the exoneración del pasivo insatisfecho, the debt-discharge mechanism in the Ley Concursal (arts. 486-502, reformed by Ley 16/2022 and in force since 26 September 2022). It lets an individual or autónomo who acts in good faith and cannot pay clear qualifying debts, either through a payment plan while keeping assets or through a liquidation.

Does the second-chance law cancel all my debts?

No. Several debts never discharge under art. 489: maintenance (alimentos), criminal and personal-injury liability, the last 60 days of employee wages (capped at three times the minimum wage), and most public debt. Tax debt with the AEAT can be discharged only up to 10.000 euros, and social-security debt up to a separate 10.000 euros, and only in the first exoneración. It also requires good faith, which can be refused.

Who qualifies for the exoneración del pasivo insatisfecho?

An individual or self-employed person who is insolvent and acts in good faith (buena fe, art. 486). Good faith is presumed but can be defeated by disqualifiers such as a recent conviction for certain economic crimes, a serious administrative sanction, or a concurso declared culpable. It is a real gate that denies relief in practice, so approval is never automatic.

Do I have to try an out-of-court agreement first?

No longer. The old requirement to attempt an acuerdo extrajudicial de pagos before applying was removed by the 2022 reform. A debtor now proceeds to the concurso and the exoneración directly. Autónomos with very small businesses should also check the special microempresas procedure available since 1 January 2023.