Regulation and data
Independent Whistleblower Protection Authority
The Independent Whistleblower Protection Authority (A.A.I.) is the Spanish state body created by Ley 2/2023 to run the external reporting channel, protect people who report and penalise breaches. Royal Decree 1101/2024 approved its statute, and it has operated since 1 September 2025.
Also known asA.A.I. · AAI · Spanish whistleblower authority · Autoridad Independiente de Protección del Informante
What it does and when it concerns a centre
It is governed by Title VIII of Ley 2/2023 (arts. 42 to 59): an independent administrative authority, with nationwide scope and its own legal personality (art. 42.1). Its functions, under art. 43:
- running the external channel, which anyone may use directly or after using their organisation's internal channel (art. 16.1), anonymously too (art. 17.1);
- adopting the protection measures for whistleblowers that fall to it;
- handling penalty proceedings for the infringements in Title IX;
- reporting on draft rules within its remit and promoting a culture of reporting.
It is not the only authority. For a private entity, the state authority handles what affects more than one autonomous community; if the breach is confined to one, the authority designated by that community does (art. 24). To penalise the private sector, the state authority is competent throughout Spain unless regional legislation has given that power to the region's own bodies (art. 61.2).
Worth knowing
What people take for granted: that having an internal channel rules out going outside. It does not: a whistleblower may go straight to the external channel. That is why the internal channel has to work and explain clearly what the external ones are (art. 7.2). And this authority does not handle community-life complaints between residents, which go through Ley 3/2022 and the centre itself. The two acts are compared in the guide to the reporting channel.
Sources
Related terms
- Ley 3/2022 (university community life)Ley 3/2022 of 24 February on university community life is the Spanish act that requires universities to approve community-life rules with measures against violence, discrimination and harassment, and sets the disciplinary regime for students. It never names colegios mayores: it reaches them through their university.
- Ley 2/2023 (whistleblower protection)Ley 2/2023 of 20 February is the Spanish whistleblower act: it protects people who report breaches of the law and requires private entities with fifty or more workers to have an internal reporting system (art. 10.1.a). The threshold is counted per entity, adding up all its sites, not per building.