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Yes, in almost all cases, a warehouse needs an activity license, it requires an authorization to be able to function as a warehouse. This authorization will be processed in the corresponding City Council and, usually, an activity license will not be necessary, a prior communication will suffice to be able to function as a warehouse.
The confusion is due to the use of the warehouse, since in all cases it is used to store things. Its connection, or not, with an economic activity is the decisive factor to understand if an authorization will be required to operate.
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What is an activity license?
The activity license is the legal document that certifies that an establishment is suitable for the development of a certain commercial activity. This license must be renewed when the commercial activity of the business is changed, or the previous structure of the property is considerably altered.
Since Law 12/2012, of December 26, on urgent measures for the liberalization of commerce and certain services, since 2013, it is enough to present a prior communication, or a responsible declaration, to the City Council to open a business. From the day we present the documentation we can already open the business, and that is why it is also known as "express license".
Activity license. Types of activities
All the autonomous communities of Spain share similar regulations, which develop the application of the state law of superior rank. Usually the type of business activity, to request an activity license, is categorized between:
- Harmless activities. If we do not have to carry out any type of work, we can start the business activity by presenting the corresponding documentation to the City Council. But, even if the activity is considered harmless, it will be necessary to prepare an activity project that is made by a competent technician.
- Activities of environmental impact. Activities subject to environmental impact are usually industrial activities, and are considered to be able to harm the environment. For this reason, in addition to a prior communication to the City Council, they also require a declaration of environmental impact, which is presented to the autonomous body that has the competences.
- Public shows and recreational activities. The regulation of this type of activity is the one that differs the most between autonomous communities and even between municipalities. It includes tourist use dwellings, bar terraces or hospitality businesses.
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Is a warehouse an activity?
There are many types of warehouses and, to save time and money in procedures and fees, the popular Spanish picaresque is very present. The fundamental thing is to warn that almost all warehouses are linked to some activity of commercial or industrial type.
It is possible that we confuse the use of the warehouse that appears in the General Directorate of Cadastre, with the use that we give to the same warehouse in the Building Technical Code (CTE). They are different categories and do not necessarily have to coincide.
Types of warehouse according to activity license
Storage room of a dwelling
It is the only type of warehouse that does not need an activity license or prior communication. A dwelling also does not need any activity license, only a first occupation license.
To be exempt from the activity license, this type of storage room must always be linked to a dwelling, or a block of dwellings. And it must be used to store the objects of a dwelling, not to store flammable or toxic products that are dangerous, and not as a space to generate noise and vibrations above normal.
Storage room for rent
The storage rooms for rent, even if they are to store the same belongings that we would keep in the storage room of a dwelling if we had it, is a business activity. For this reason, it must comply with all the legal requirements on protection against possible fires, safety and health at work.
Although a storage room for rent is located in the basement of a dwelling, it is still a business, and therefore requires an activity license. Even if it is located in a dwelling building, if it is available for rent it is a business activity.
Rural warehouses
This type of warehouse is usually located in plots in the rural environment, not in industrial land or for residential use. Rural warehouses are used to store farm implements, sheds, barns... and the question is whether they are, or are not linked to a dwelling.
If the rural warehouse is linked to a dwelling, it can be considered that it is the storage room of the house. Therefore, it is part of the dwelling, it does not constitute an activity and it is not necessary to process the activity license.
On the other hand, if the rural warehouse is a warehouse or an exempt shed, without any dwelling nearby, it could be considered that it is part of an agricultural activity. In particular, if dangerous substances are stored, not related to the rural environment, or it is part of an economic activity, it requires communicating the activity.
Warehouses of commercial premises
Almost all commercial premises have some type of warehouse: to store a physical stock of the products for sale, to offer more models and sizes of the same product even if all the variants are not exposed, etcetera.
At the urban level the warehouse of the commercial premises is part of the premises itself, and therefore the activity license must be processed jointly. If, for example, the commercial premises is expanded by adding a warehouse, whether or not it is exempt, it is part of the business itself and the activity license must be processed jointly.
Exempt warehouses
Exempt warehouses are usually considered, in most cases, as warehouses for industrial use. Industrial use does not only consist of the transformation of raw materials, also the storage of raw materials or the result of manufacturing is part of the industrial process itself.
Storage room in a commercial premises or in an empty dwelling
If you have a commercial premises, or a work office, and you use it as a storage room, nobody will have any inconvenience. But, if you use the commercial premises to store merchandise linked to a commercial activity, it is necessary to declare the use of the warehouse.
On the other hand, if you have an empty dwelling, a second dwelling, and you want to use it as a storage room, no regulations require you to request an activity license.
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