Orden de Alejamiento in Spain: How a Protection Order Actually Works (2026)

An orden de alejamiento in Spain runs through the criminal process, not a family court filing. It can arrive early, as a cautelar measure while a case is still being investigated, or later, as part of a sentence, and breaching one against a protected victim carries a mandatory prison term rather than a fine. This page covers who can request one, how fast it moves, and what it actually restricts.

Information last verified on 23 July 2026. This page provides general legal information about Spanish law and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case.

Two different tools, both called alejamiento

Spanish law uses «alejamiento» loosely for two different measures. The first is a medida cautelar, imposed while a case is still under investigation, that can prohibit the accused from residing in or entering certain places, or from approaching or communicating with specific people, when a judge finds it strictly necessary to protect the victim or prevent the offense continuing (art. 544 bis LECrim). The judge weighs the accused's economic situation, health, family situation and work when setting it.

The second is the orden de proteccion itself, a broader status that combines criminal and civil measures for victims of domestic violence, available whenever there are well-founded indications of an offense against life, physical or moral integrity, sexual freedom, or liberty or security of a person listed in art. 173.2 CP, and an objective risk situation for the victim (art. 544 ter.1 LECrim).

Who can request it, and how fast it moves

The victim, a person with certain family or similarly affective relationships to them, or the Ministerio Fiscal can request an orden de proteccion, and a judge can order it on their own initiative too. The request can be filed directly with a judge or the Ministerio Fiscal, or through the Fuerzas y Cuerpos de Seguridad, victim assistance offices, or social services and assistance institutions (art. 544 ter.2 y .3 LECrim).

Once the request is received, the duty judge convenes an urgent hearing with the victim or their legal representative, the requester, and the accused, who may be assisted by a lawyer. That hearing has to happen within a maximum of 72 hours from when the request was filed (art. 544 ter.4 LECrim).

What the order can contain

An orden de proteccion's criminal measures can include any of those available under criminal procedural law generally (art. 544 ter.6 LECrim). Its civil measures, which must be specifically requested by the victim, their legal representative, or the Ministerio Fiscal when there are minor children, can cover how parental authority is exercised, use and enjoyment of the family home, the custody regime, suspension or maintenance of visitation, and the alimentos regime. The civil measures inside the order last thirty days, but if the victim or her legal representative files a family case within that window, they remain in force for thirty more days after the demanda, during which the civil judge must ratify, modify or lift them (art. 544 ter.7 LECrim).

Separately, when a court imposes alejamiento as a pena after a conviction, the prohibition suspends any existing civil-court visitation, communication or stay arrangement with the children until the sentence is fully served (art. 48.2 CP).

The penalty for breaching one

When an alejamiento or an equivalent cautelar or security measure is imposed and the offended party is one of the people listed in art. 173.2 CP, spouses and ex-spouses, similarly affective partners even without cohabitation, descendants, ascendants or siblings, among others, breaching it is punished with prison of six months to one year in every case, with no fine alternative available for this category (art. 468.2 CP). As a pena imposed after conviction, alejamiento itself can last up to ten years for a grave offense or five for a menos grave one, longer when combined with a prison sentence, and imposition of the no-approach prohibition is mandatory when the victim is a spouse, ex-spouse or another art. 173.2 person (art. 57 CP).

What it means in practice

An orden de proteccion moves fast by design, with a hearing inside 72 hours and civil measures that can put custody and the family home in place quickly, but its civil component is a bridge: thirty days, kept alive by filing the family case within that window until the civil judge takes over (art. 544 ter.7 LECrim). Custody and visitation questions that arise inside a protection order interact directly with the rules on the shared custody page and the visitation rights page, and the wider criminal process these measures sit inside is covered in the criminal law section.

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

Frequently Asked Questions

How fast does a Spanish court act on a protection order request?

The duty judge has to convene an urgent hearing with the victim, the person requesting the order and the accused within a maximum of 72 hours from when the request was filed (art. 544 ter.4 LECrim).

Who can ask for an orden de proteccion in Spain?

The victim, a person with certain family or similarly affective ties to them, or the Ministerio Fiscal can request it, and a judge can order it directly. Requests can go through a judge, the Ministerio Fiscal, police, victim assistance offices or social services (art. 544 ter.2 y .3 LECrim).

What is the difference between a cautelar alejamiento and an orden de proteccion?

A cautelar alejamiento under art. 544 bis LECrim is a narrower protective measure a judge can impose during an investigation. An orden de proteccion under art. 544 ter LECrim is broader, combining criminal restrictions with civil measures on custody, the family home and support for domestic violence victims.

What happens if someone breaks a protection order in Spain?

When the protected person is one of those listed in art. 173.2 CP, spouses, ex-spouses and similar relations, breaching the order carries a mandatory prison sentence of six months to one year, with no option for a fine instead (art. 468.2 CP).

How long do the civil measures in a protection order last?

Thirty days as the base rule, but not a cliff: if the victim or her legal representative files a family case within that window, the measures remain in force for thirty more days after the demanda, and the civil judge must then ratify, modify or lift them (art. 544 ter.7 LECrim). Filing the family case in time is what keeps the protection alive.