In short: what grants exist and who applies
In Barcelona, works on the common parts of a building are subsidised by the Consorci de l'Habitatge de Barcelona. Owners' associations have two main lines. «Ajuts a la rehabilitació de l'edifici», funded by Next Generation EU, covers façades, roofs, windows and installations when the building clearly cuts its energy use. «Ajuts a la rehabilitació per a actuacions d'accessibilitat» pays for lifts, ramps and removing barriers.
The applicant is the owners' association (comunitat de propietaris) or the sole owner of the building, usually through the property manager or the chair. Applications go online through the Oficina Virtual de Tràmits or in person at the Oficina de Rehabilitació Municipal (ORM); urban regeneration areas have their own offices.
Status in autumn 2026. The building line is listed as open, but its page says requests already exceed the budget; applications with works started or finished are put on a reserve list through the ORM. The 2026 accessibility call is closed, so the next one is the target.
Conditions and amounts for each line
Building refurbishment. You need the IITE before applying and the building's energy certificate before works; at least 50% of above-ground floor area, excluding the ground floor, in residential use; an owners' resolution; works started after 1 February 2020; at least a 30% cut in non-renewable primary energy use and a 25% cut in heating and cooling demand; and asbestos, if present, removed by an authorised firm. According to habitatge.barcelona for 2026: 40% for a 30% cut, up to €6,300 per flat; 65% for 45%, up to €11,600; 80% for 60%, up to €18,800. Acoustically stressed zones add €500 per flat; asbestos removal gets up to €1,000 per flat or €12,000 per building; vulnerable owners can get up to 100%. Works may run until 31 December 2027.
Accessibility (terms of the last call). The building predates 1996 and 70% of its area is main homes. Lifts are for buildings of at least ground plus two floors. Lift: 35% of eligible cost, up to €30,000 per flat, or €50,000 for an external lift. Barriers: 25%, up to €30,000. In the Raval, Gòtic, Barceloneta, Poble-sec, Carmel and other listed neighbourhoods, 50% up to €45,000, or €65,000 with an external lift. The extra social cohesion aid of up to 100% is recorded at the Land Registry for 30 years and must be repaid if the flat is sold.
Examples. A 1920s Eixample building insulating its façade and roof and swapping boilers for heat pumps: building line. A ground-plus-four building in Gràcia with no lift: accessibility, next call. If the building is in Castelldefels, the Consorci is not involved: look at the Agència de l'Habitatge de Catalunya and your town hall.
Documents and who prepares them
The technician: the IITE with its certificat d'aptitud or proof of application to the Agència de l'Habitatge; a report under the Building Code with description, budget by work area and drawings; the Llibre de l'edifici existent or a study of improvement potential with an action plan; before and after energy certificates; a controlled asbestos removal plan; colour photos of affected areas; and a document on the building's protection level if it is listed.
The property manager or chair: the call's forms. CARJP, certificate of the meeting minutes (or CAPPU for a sole owner); S1.SP3, the application; responsible declarations on technical requirements, state aid, absence of conflicts of interest and anti-fraud; RCO, cost summary; STB, bank details; and, if needed, SCDCS to assign payment to the contractor.
The owners: anyone in economic hardship applies for the individual top-up with SAAIVE and is listed in annex S3.AV. The contractor: an itemised quote. For accessibility, under the last call, you file a registration application with a technical report, after which the Consorci carries out a compulsory preliminary technical assessment.
Step by step
One: book an appointment at the ORM and ask whether budget remains and how the reserve list works. Get an estimate from the official IMHAB simulator. Two: the owners' meeting approves the works, budget, grant application and financing; for insulation, energy efficiency and lifts the Catalan Civil Code requires a simple majority (more in the lift guide). Three: the technician prepares the file while the association requests the works notice or licence from the City Council.
Four: apply online through the «Subvencions Next Generation per a la rehabilitació» procedure on the Oficina Virtual (idCAT, Cl@ve or certificate) or in person at the ORM. Five: after the Consorci's technical report, file the works start notice (CIO) and, if you wish, request an advance (SPB, 50% or 30%). Six: when finished, file the works completion notice (CFO) with invoices.
For accessibility, the last call had tight deadlines: start within four months of applying, notify the start within 30 days, finish within eight months and notify completion within 30 days. If there is no licence after two months, the Consorci may refuse.
After the works: checks, payment, obligations
After completion, a Consorci technician may inspect the building and compare the works with the initial report; only then is the file assessed and paid by bank transfer. Under Next Generation you have three months from completion to submit the final justification, and the final declaration with the final energy certificate must be filed before 31 December 2027.
For accessibility, under the last call, Consorci technicians may access the building for four years and the conditions in the initial report must be kept throughout. The social top-up is recorded at the Land Registry: if the flat is sold it is repaid with costs and interest; on inheritance it is not, provided the heir meets the same income condition.
Common mistakes
Applying without an IITE. For the building line it is the first requirement, and the application will not be accepted without it.
Vague meeting minutes. The CARJP must record the works, the budget and the decision to apply; a loose «façade repair approved» means voting again later.
Forgetting asbestos. For the grant it must be removed by an authorised firm, and asbestos found mid-job stops the site.
Confusing «open» with «funded». «Oberta» with the budget used up means a reserve list, not approval; do not sign the building contract counting on a guaranteed grant.
Leaving out neighbours in hardship. Their top-up is filed with the association's application; adding it later is harder.
Before you apply
Amounts and terms change from call to call, so check the current programme page on habitatge.barcelona and confirm the budget with the ORM before the owners' meeting. If the association would rather not run it, BCN YARD can handle the paperwork together with the façade or lift works.