{"id":34119,"date":"2026-08-16T12:12:43","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T12:12:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/?page_id=34119"},"modified":"2026-08-18T00:27:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T00:27:33","slug":"icio-building-permit-tax","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/guides\/icio-building-permit-tax\/","title":{"rendered":"ICIO and the building permit fee in Madrid"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-group fcg\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n\n\n<style>\n.fcg{\n  --surface:#fcfcfb; --ink:#0b0b0b; --ink2:#52514e; --muted:#898781;\n  --grid:#e1e0d9; --axis:#c3c2b7; --ring:rgba(11,11,11,0.10); --band:#f0efec;\n  --c1:#2a78d6; --c2:#eb6834; --c3:#1baf7a;\n  color-scheme:light;\n}\n.fcg .fcg-caja{background:var(--surface); border:1px solid var(--ring);\n  border-left:3px solid var(--c1); border-radius:8px; padding:16px 18px; margin:24px 0}\n.fcg .fcg-caja p{margin:0; 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line-height:1.6; color:var(--ink2); margin:0}\n\n\/* cierre *\/\n.fcg .fcg-cta{background:var(--ink); color:#fff; border-radius:11px;\n  padding:26px 28px; margin:32px 0 8px}\n.fcg .fcg-cta h2{color:#fff; font-size:20px; margin:0 0 11px; font-weight:650;\n  letter-spacing:-.018em; line-height:1.28}\n.fcg .fcg-cta p{color:rgba(255,255,255,.80); font-size:14.5px; line-height:1.62; margin:0 0 10px}\n.fcg .fcg-cta .btns{display:flex; gap:10px; flex-wrap:wrap; margin-top:18px}\n.fcg .fcg-cta a{display:inline-block; padding:11px 20px; border-radius:6px; font-size:14.5px;\n  font-weight:600; text-decoration:none; border:1px solid transparent}\n.fcg .fcg-cta a.p{background:#fff; color:var(--ink)}\n.fcg .fcg-cta a.s{border-color:rgba(255,255,255,.34); color:#fff}\n.fcg .fcg-cta a:hover{opacity:.86}\n\n\/* fuentes *\/\n.fcg .fcg-fuentes{font-size:12.5px; color:var(--muted); line-height:1.6;\n  border-top:1px solid var(--grid); padding-top:14px; margin-top:30px}\n.fcg .fcg-fuentes strong{color:var(--ink2)}\n\n@media(max-width:781px){\n  .fcg .fcg-cards, .fcg .fcg-cards.dos, .fcg .fcg-faq,\n  .fcg .fcg-check, .fcg .fcg-datos, .fcg .fcg-datos.dos{grid-template-columns:1fr}\n  .fcg .fcg-cta{padding:21px}\n}\n<\/style>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-caja\"><p><strong>In short.<\/strong> The ICIO is the tax your <em>ayuntamiento<\/em> (town hall) charges you for building, and it runs from 3 % to 4 % of the material execution budget. It is a municipal tax, not a national one: the State only sets the ceiling, and each of the municipalities of the Comunidad de Madrid decides its own rate below it. And it does not come alone: on top of it you pay a <strong>building permit fee<\/strong>, a separate charge with its own by-law, which in some municipalities weighs almost as much as the tax.<\/p><p>On a house of 300 m\u00b2 with a material execution budget of 300,000 \u20ac, the gap between the cheapest and the most expensive municipality in this table is <strong>9,750 \u20ac<\/strong>. For the same house. By moving across a municipal boundary.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What the ICIO is and how it differs from the fee<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They are two separate payments and you have to make both. It is the most expensive confusion on a self-build, because anyone who budgets only for the tax leaves out between 0.5 % and 3 % of the building budget.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-cards dos\"><div class=\"fcg-card\" style=\"--tono:#2a78d6\"><div class=\"cab\">The tax<\/div><h3>ICIO<\/h3><p>It is charged on the <strong>value of what you build<\/strong>. It is governed by article 102 of the consolidated Local Finances Act (<em>texto refundido de la Ley Reguladora de las Haciendas Locales<\/em>), which sets a ceiling of 4 %; each town hall decides whether to go up to that maximum or stay below it.<\/p><p>It is worked out on the material execution budget (<em>presupuesto de ejecuci\u00f3n material<\/em>, PEM, the cost of the building work itself): no general overheads, no contractor\u2019s profit and no VAT.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"fcg-card\" style=\"--tono:#eb6834\"><div class=\"cab\">The fee<\/div><h3>Planning permit<\/h3><p>It pays for the <strong>work of processing your file<\/strong>: reviewing the design, reporting on it and deciding. It has no percentage ceiling in law, because its limit is the cost of the service.<\/p><p>Some councils charge it as a percentage of the budget and others as a flat fee by band. Madrid, Getafe, Alcal\u00e1, Alcobendas and Sevilla la Nueva use a flat fee.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What you pay in each municipality<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thirty municipalities of the Comunidad de Madrid, checked one by one against the fiscal by-law (<em>ordenanza fiscal<\/em>, the tax rules each council approves for itself) published by the council or against its notice in the BOCM, the region\u2019s official gazette. The last column is tax plus fee on one specific case: <strong>a detached house of 300 m\u00b2 with a material execution budget of 300,000 \u20ac<\/strong>. We use a case rather than a percentage because otherwise flat fees cannot be compared with percentage ones.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-nota\"><p><strong>It does not include the first occupancy licence<\/strong>, which is a third charge and goes separately. In Torrelodones that is another 1.65 % of the final budget; in Las Rozas, 0.53 %; in Boadilla, 0.5 %; in Pozuelo, 32 \u20ac and that is that. There is a guide on it: <a href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/guides\/first-occupancy-licence\/\">the first occupancy licence<\/a>.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Municipality<\/th><th>ICIO<\/th><th>Building permit fee<\/th><th>ICIO + fee on 300,000 \u20ac<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Alcal\u00e1 de Henares<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">Minimum base taken from the region\u2019s unit cost values.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>Flat fee by band: 3,600 \u20ac<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>15,600 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Alcobendas<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">\u26a0 The bands jump sharply: at 350,000 \u20ac of PEM the fee rises to 8,054.80 \u20ac.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>Flat fee by band: 4,698.55 \u20ac<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>16,698 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Alcorc\u00f3n<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">A high percentage fee, though not the highest: M\u00f3stoles charges 2.68 % and Majadahonda 3.00 %.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>2.50 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>19,500 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Boadilla del Monte<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">First occupancy adds another 0.5 % of the PEM.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.50 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>16,500 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Brunete<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>2.00 % (minimum 150 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>18,000 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Collado Villalba<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">From 120,200 \u20ac of PEM upwards the 1.20 % applies.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.00 % \/ 1.10 % \/ 1.20 % by band<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>15,600 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Colmenar Viejo<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">Minimum unit value of 602.60 \u20ac\/m\u00b2 for a detached house.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">3.5 %<\/td><td>0.47 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>11,910 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Galapagar<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">3.5 %<\/td><td>1.80 % (minimum 150 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>15,900 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Getafe<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">The cheapest fee in the set on a single house.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>Flat fee: 411 \u20ac for up to 2 dwellings<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>12,411 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Guadarrama<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">One of the lowest rates in the table, behind Valdemorillo. Note: minor works pay a 3.4 % fee.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">3.4 %<\/td><td>0.71 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>12,330 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Las Rozas de Madrid<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">The 0.84 % only applies above 240,000 \u20ac of PEM.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>Sliding scale 1.05 % \u2192 0.84 % by budget<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>14,520 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Legan\u00e9s<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.00 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>15,000 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Madrid capital<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">The lowest rate in the metropolitan area. Cut from 4 % in 2024.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">3.75 %<\/td><td>Flat fee: 1,011.70 \u20ac up to 500 m\u00b2<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>12,261 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Majadahonda<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">\u26a0 The heaviest municipal charge in the region: 7 % of the PEM.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>3.00 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>21,000 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>M\u00f3stoles<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">3.7 %<\/td><td>2.68 % (minimum 51.04 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>19,140 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Navalcarnero<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">Minimum unit value of 677.31 \u20ac\/m\u00b2 for a detached house.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.70 % (minimum 29.77 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>17,100 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Pozuelo de Alarc\u00f3n<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">First occupancy is only 32 \u20ac per dwelling.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>2.00 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>18,000 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Rivas-Vaciamadrid<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">Regional unit values weighted by 1.15.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.40 % (minimum 30 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>16,200 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>San Lorenzo de El Escorial<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>60.49 \u20ac + 2 % on the excess<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>18,048 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>San Sebasti\u00e1n de los Reyes<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">The fee changed in 2026: it used to be a flat fee by band.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.85 % (minimum 250 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>17,550 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Sevilla la Nueva<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">The bands in the text overlap; worth confirming.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>Flat fee by band: 1,593.88 \u20ac<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>13,593 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Torrelodones<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">\u26a0 Unit value of 1,100 \u20ac\/m\u00b2. At 300 m\u00b2 the ICIO is assessed on 330,000 \u20ac.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.90 % (minimum 300 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>18,900 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Tres Cantos<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>0.60 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>13,800 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Valdemorillo<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">\u26a0 The PDF still posted on their website says 4 % and 1 %: it has been repealed since 2020.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">3 %<\/td><td>0.75 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>11,250 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Villanueva de la Ca\u00f1ada<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>0.60 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>13,800 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Villanueva del Pardillo<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">First occupancy charged separately, at 0.75 %.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.50 % (minimum 60 \u20ac)<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>16,500 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Villaviciosa de Od\u00f3n<\/strong><br><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">The fee is worked out on unit values, not on the PEM in the project.<\/span><\/td><td class=\"num\">4 %<\/td><td>1.75 %<\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>17,250 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-nota\"><p><strong>The cheapest is Valdemorillo at 11,250 \u20ac and the dearest Majadahonda at 21,000 \u20ac.<\/strong> That is 9,750 \u20ac of difference on the same works, and it is money that appears in no builder\u2019s quotation, because it is not the builder who charges it.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Three municipalities we have not been able to confirm<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We would rather have a blank cell we declare than a number we cannot stand behind. In these three the figure exists in a by-law of the council itself, but we have not been able to check that it is still in force in 2026, almost always because the council\u2019s electronic office does not respond. <strong>Before budgeting in any of them, ring the town hall.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Municipality<\/th><th>ICIO<\/th><th>Permit fee<\/th><th>Why we do not treat it as sound<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Arganda del Rey<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">4.00 %<\/td><td>1.337 %<\/td><td><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">The figures are in by-laws of the council itself (ICIO from 2017, fee from 2009) and its open data register still lists them as in force, but its electronic office refused every connection and a later amendment could not be ruled out.<\/span><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Hoyo de Manzanares<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">4.00 %<\/td><td>1.30 % (+0.50 % if a <em>proyecto b\u00e1sico<\/em>, the outline design filed with the permit application, is submitted)<\/td><td><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">Texts from 2001-2008 hosted on the municipal server. Its electronic office declares 40 fiscal by-laws but the list never loaded.<\/span><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Moralzarzal<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\">not verified<\/td><td>1.50 % (last published wording, from 2012)<\/td><td><span style=\"font-size:13px;color:#6b6a66\">Its transparency portal has the fiscal by-laws section empty and the electronic office returns a server error. The sheet for the procedure in force still points to the same article, but that does not evidence the amount.<\/span><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What is NOT in the taxable base: the list that saves money<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Article 102.1 says the base is the \u00abreal and actual cost\u00bb of the works and that <strong>it does not include<\/strong> VAT, fees and charges, professional fees, the contractor\u2019s business profit \u00abor any other item which does not strictly form part of the cost of the material execution\u00bb.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Translated into the items of the quotation your builder is going to hand you, with the case law that backs it:<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Item<\/th><th>In the base?<\/th><th>Authority<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>General overheads<\/td><td><strong>No<\/strong><\/td><td>Supreme Court judgment of 5 March 2004, appeal 9549\/1998<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Contractor\u2019s industrial profit<\/td><td><strong>No<\/strong><\/td><td>The same one, and the Supreme Court\u2019s of 1 December 2011, appeal 95\/2010<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Fees of the architect and of the <em>arquitecto t\u00e9cnico<\/em><\/td><td><strong>No<\/strong><\/td><td>Article 102.1 and the judgment of 5 March 2004<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Health and safety study<\/td><td><strong>No<\/strong><\/td><td>Supreme Court judgments of 5 March 2004 and of 17 November 2005, appeal 685\/1999<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Quality control and testing<\/td><td><strong>No<\/strong><\/td><td>Settled position of the <em>Tribunal Superior de Justicia<\/em> of Madrid, the region\u2019s highest court, judgment 198\/2006 and later ones. <strong>There is no Supreme Court judgment<\/strong> on this<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>VAT<\/td><td><strong>No<\/strong><\/td><td>Article 102.1, express wording<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Machinery and equipment manufactured off site<\/td><td>No, but <strong>yes to its installation<\/strong><\/td><td>Supreme Court judgment of 2 June 2001, appeal 1778\/1996<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Waste management<\/td><td><strong>Yes, in Madrid<\/strong><\/td><td>See the warning below: here the position runs the opposite way to what is usually said<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Lifts and lifting equipment<\/td><td><strong>Yes<\/strong><\/td><td>Supreme Court judgment of 5 October 2004, appeal 6112\/1999<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Built-in electrics, plumbing and heating<\/td><td><strong>Yes<\/strong><\/td><td>Supreme Court judgment of 16 December 2003, appeal 4558\/1998<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-nota\"><p><strong>Careful with waste management, which almost everybody gets the wrong way round.<\/strong> The story going about is that it is excluded. In the Comunidad de Madrid it is <strong>not<\/strong>: the Tribunal Superior de Justicia of Madrid has included it three times \u2014 judgments 95\/2019, 600\/2020 and 603\/2022, all from the same chamber \u2014 on account of the \u00abinseparable and necessary nature, in any building process, of the activity aimed at removing and properly disposing of the waste it produces\u00bb.<\/p><p>The distinction that does work: they separate the waste management <strong>study<\/strong>, which is a technical document and therefore professional fees, from the <strong>management<\/strong> itself \u2014 haulage, removal and landfill levy \u2014 which is material execution. If you want to deduct the study, it has to be <strong>itemised and priced separately<\/strong> in the certification: judgment 600\/2020 refused the exclusion precisely because the amount was not separated out.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-nota ok\"><p><strong>And this is what decides an appeal:<\/strong> the final certification of the works with the <em>visado<\/em> \u2014 the stamp the professional architects\u2019 body puts on a set of documents, certifying that whoever signed them is registered, insured and entitled to sign \u2014 broken down chapter by chapter. It is not a formality. Without the breakdown you cannot evidence which part should be deducted, and the council assesses on the whole. On a Spanish site there are always two technicians signing it, an <em>arquitecto<\/em> for the design and an <em>arquitecto t\u00e9cnico<\/em>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/quantity-surveyor-in-madrid\/\"><em>aparejador<\/em><\/a>, for the execution: articles 12 and 13 of Law 38\/1999 on Building Regulation require both. Fran Cort\u00e9s holds the two qualifications.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Provisional and final: what hardly anyone knows<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When you apply for the permit, the council issues a <strong>provisional assessment<\/strong>. It may calculate it from your stamped budget or from its own unit cost values, and the Supreme Court confirmed in its judgment 261\/2021 that <strong>there is no order of preference<\/strong>: it may use the unit value even though you have filed a budget.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When the works finish the <strong>final assessment<\/strong> arrives, and there everything changes. Supreme Court judgment 273\/2021, of 25 February, puts it plainly: the base is \u00abthe real and actual cost, <strong>not the budgeted cost nor the estimated cost<\/strong>\u00bb. Making a final assessment on a unit value higher than the real cost would be \u00abtaxing an economic capacity other than the one provided for by law\u00bb.<\/p>\n\n\n<ul class=\"fcg-check\"><li><strong>The unit value is a payment on account, not the base.<\/strong> On the final assessment it has to give way to the cost evidenced.<\/li><li><strong>If the works cost less than budgeted, you get money back.<\/strong> And the discount on the award is deducted: Supreme Court judgment 736\/2020.<\/li><li><strong>The council cannot use the final assessment to bring in new items<\/strong> that it did not value in the provisional one.<\/li><li><strong>The final assessment requires a procedure with a hearing.<\/strong> Supreme Court judgment 168\/2021: an adjustment made without giving you one can be set aside on that ground alone.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The trap of the minimum unit values<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is the part almost nobody explains and the one that causes the most upset. Many councils <strong>do not assess on the budget in your design<\/strong>: they assess on the higher of two figures, your stamped budget or a minimum base worked out from unit cost values per square metre.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Which means: trimming the budget does not push the tax below that floor.<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Torrelodones<\/strong> \u2014 1,100 \u20ac\/m\u00b2 built above ground level on a single house. On a house of 300 m\u00b2 the base is 330,000 \u20ac even if your design says 300,000: the ICIO goes from 12,000 to 13,200 \u20ac. The fee, on the other hand, does use the budget in the design.<\/li><li><strong>Colmenar Viejo<\/strong> \u2014 602.60 \u20ac\/m\u00b2 on a detached house and 569.25 \u20ac on a terraced or semi-detached one.<\/li><li><strong>Navalcarnero<\/strong> \u2014 677.31 \u20ac\/m\u00b2 detached, 625.02 \u20ac semi-detached.<\/li><li><strong>Rivas-Vaciamadrid<\/strong> \u2014 the region\u2019s unit values weighted by a coefficient of 1.15.<\/li><li><strong>Villaviciosa de Od\u00f3n, Villanueva de la Ca\u00f1ada, Alcal\u00e1 de Henares and Valdemorillo<\/strong> \u2014 they use the Comunidad de Madrid reference costs as the minimum base.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The reliefs hardly anyone claims<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The ICIO allows discretionary reliefs and most self-builders do not apply for them, simply because they do not know they exist.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-datos\"><div class=\"fcg-dato\" style=\"--tono:#1baf7a\"><div class=\"v\">95 %<\/div><div class=\"k\">Of the ICIO for solar energy for self-consumption, in the city of Madrid, Getafe, San Sebasti\u00e1n de los Reyes and Sevilla la Nueva<\/div><\/div><div class=\"fcg-dato\" style=\"--tono:#2a78d6\"><div class=\"v\">90 %<\/div><div class=\"k\">For accessibility works for people with disabilities, in almost every municipality<\/div><\/div><div class=\"fcg-dato\" style=\"--tono:#eb6834\"><div class=\"v\">50 %<\/div><div class=\"k\">For publicly protected housing, with percentages running from 20 % to 50 % depending on the municipality<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-nota\"><p><strong>They are granted only on application, and there is a deadline.<\/strong> You have to ask for them expressly, and in several municipalities they are lost if you ask after the permit has been granted. That is money that falls away because a piece of paper was not signed in time.<\/p><p>They are also almost never cumulative: the most favourable one applies and the rest fall away. And watch the solar one: in Guadarrama and in several other municipalities <strong>the part the Spanish Building Code already obliges you to install is not relieved<\/strong>, only whatever you put in above that minimum.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An example with numbers<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A detached house of 300 m\u00b2 of built floor area, material execution budget of 300,000 \u20ac. Same design, same builder, two municipalities twenty minutes apart by car:<\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Item<\/th><th>Valdemorillo<\/th><th>Majadahonda<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>ICIO<\/td><td class=\"num\">3 % \u2192 9,000 \u20ac<\/td><td class=\"num\">4 % \u2192 12,000 \u20ac<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Building permit fee<\/td><td class=\"num\">0.75 % \u2192 2,250 \u20ac<\/td><td class=\"num\">3 % \u2192 9,000 \u20ac<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Total to the town hall<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>11,250 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"num\"><strong>21,000 \u20ac<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>As a share of the building budget<\/td><td class=\"num\">3.75 %<\/td><td class=\"num\">7.00 %<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>9,750 \u20ac of difference<\/strong> for the same house. It is not an item you can negotiate with anybody: the full council sets it and you pay it.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to find out your own figure without doing the sums<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/tools\/construction-cost\/\">construction cost calculator<\/a> has these rates loaded and adds your municipality\u2019s ICIO and fee to the rest of the items: the building work, the technical team, the site works and the contingency reserve. No sign-up.<\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And if what you have on your hands is a full self-build, <a href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/guides\/\">the guides<\/a> cover the rest of the paperwork: the <a href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/guides\/libro-del-edificio\/\"><em>libro del edificio<\/em><\/a> or building manual, the first occupancy licence, the <a href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/guides\/self-build-mortgage\/\">self-build mortgage<\/a> and registration at the <a href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/guides\/declaracion-de-obra-nueva\/\">Land Registry<\/a>, which is a different body from the <em>Catastro<\/em>, the land register kept for tax purposes.<\/p>\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-faq\"><div class=\"q\"><h3>What exactly is the ICIO?<\/h3><p>The tax on constructions, installations and works (<em>Impuesto sobre Construcciones, Instalaciones y Obras<\/em>). Your town hall charges it on any works that need a permit or a <em>declaraci\u00f3n responsable<\/em>, the self-certified declaration that replaces a permit for lighter cases, and it is worked out as a percentage of the material execution budget. The legal ceiling is 4 %, under article 102 of the consolidated Local Finances Act, and each council decides whether to apply that maximum or come in below it.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"q\"><h3>Are the ICIO and the permit fee the same thing?<\/h3><p>No, and this is the most expensive confusion of the lot. They are two separate payments, under two separate by-laws, and you pay both. The ICIO is a tax on the value of what you build; the fee pays for the work of processing your file. In Majadahonda the fee is 3 %, almost as much as the tax itself.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"q\"><h3>Which budget is it worked out on?<\/h3><p>On the material execution budget: no contractor\u2019s profit, no general overheads and no VAT. But be careful: many councils set a minimum from unit cost values per square metre and assess on the higher of the two. If your design comes in below the unit value, you pay on the unit value.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"q\"><h3>When is it paid?<\/h3><p>When you apply for the permit the council issues a provisional assessment. When the works finish, it checks the real and actual cost and issues a final assessment, which may be payable or refundable. The finished house nearly always costs more than the design did, so it is worth allowing for that adjustment.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"q\"><h3>Who pays the ICIO, the owner or the builder?<\/h3><p>The taxable person is whoever owns the construction, that is, the developer: on a self-build, you. If the builder applies for the permit, he is a substitute taxpayer and may pass it on to you. In practice you pay it either way.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"q\"><h3>Are there any reliefs?<\/h3><p>Yes, and hardly anyone claims them. The strongest one for a new house is solar energy for self-consumption: 95 % of the ICIO in the city of Madrid, Getafe, San Sebasti\u00e1n de los Reyes, Sevilla la Nueva and, for residential use, Alcorc\u00f3n. They are <strong>granted only on application<\/strong>: you have to ask for them, and in several municipalities they are lost if you ask after the permit has been granted.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"q\"><h3>Does the 4 % everyone quotes apply across the whole of Madrid?<\/h3><p>No. It is the legal maximum, not the standard rate. Of the twenty-seven municipalities verified here, six are below it: Valdemorillo at 3 %, Guadarrama at 3.4 %, Colmenar Viejo and Galapagar at 3.5 %, M\u00f3stoles at 3.7 % and the capital itself at 3.75 %.<\/p><\/div><div class=\"q\"><h3>How often do these figures change?<\/h3><p>Fiscal by-laws are normally approved by the full council in the last quarter of the year and take effect on 1 January. We review this table every January. Even so, before you sign anything, confirm the figure with the town hall: here we tell you which article it comes from so that you can check it.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-cta\"><h2>Building, and no idea what your town hall is going to charge you?<\/h2><p>Tell us where the plot is and what you have in mind. We will tell you the ICIO, the fee, the minimum unit values if there are any, and the reliefs you can claim, which tends to be the part that gets forgotten.<\/p><div class=\"btns\"><a class=\"p\" href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/contact\/\">Talk to the studio<\/a><a class=\"s\" href=\"https:\/\/francortesarquitectos.com\/en\/tools\/construction-cost\/\">Work out what my house will cost<\/a><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"fcg-fuentes\"><strong>Sources.<\/strong> Every figure on this page comes from the fiscal by-law published by the council itself or from its notice of final approval in the Bolet\u00edn Oficial de la Comunidad de Madrid, the region\u2019s official gazette, checked article by article in August 2026. No aggregators, agents or secondary sources have been used. The 4 % ceiling is in article 102.3 of Royal Legislative Decree 2\/2004, the consolidated text of the Local Finances Act (<em>Ley Reguladora de las Haciendas Locales<\/em>); the taxable base, in 102.1. Fiscal by-laws are normally amended in the last quarter of the year and take effect on 1 January: this table is reviewed every January. Even so it is indicative, not an assessment: confirm the figure with your town hall before signing.<\/div>\n\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What exactly is the ICIO?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The tax on constructions, installations and works (Impuesto sobre Construcciones, Instalaciones y Obras). 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