Rules by sector
Industrial unit: fire inspection every five years, followed by chemicals, pressure equipment and machinery
If the main use of the unit is industrial, the fire regulation that applies is the 2025 RSCIEI (Real Decreto 164/2025, the Spanish fire safety regulation for industrial establishments), and since 10 November 2025 its inspection by an inspection body is due at least every five years for every unit, whatever its risk level. On top of that come the rules for what you store and use inside: the chemical store, the compressor receivers, the machinery, the electrical installation and, if you have one, the cooling tower.
Does it apply to you? The inspections of an industrial unit, one by one
| Obligation | Does it apply? | How often and who | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fire inspection of the establishment (RSCIEI) | Yes, if the main use is industrial. Units with a fire load of up to 42 MJ/m² and up to 120 m² in their own enclosure are left out | At least every 5 years; an inspection body requested by the owner | RD 164/2025, Art. 13 and TP 1 |
| Extinguishers, hose reels, detection and sprinklers | Yes: the industrial regulation refers to the RIPCI for equipment maintenance | Every 3 and 6 months, your staff; every year and every 5 years, an authorised maintenance company | RD 513/2017, Art. 21 and Annex II; RD 164/2025, Art. 12 |
| Chemical store (APQ) | If you exceed the quantity in column 5 of table I: for example, 50 litres of category 1 or 2 flammable liquids | Inspection-body certificate every 5 years; annual review by an in-house inspector or an inspection body | RD 656/2017, Arts. 2 and 5; ITC APQ-1, Art. 51; ITC APQ-10, Art. 16 |
| Insurance for the chemical store | Yes, if the store falls under the APQ Regulation | From commissioning, with the minimum cover per claim set in Art. 7(2); the owner | RD 656/2017, APQ Regulation, Art. 7(2) |
| Compressed-air receivers and tanks | If they work above 0.5 bar and fall into category I to IV: for air, more than 1 litre and more than 50 bar×litre | Category I or II: level A every 4 years (installer) and level B every 8 (inspection body) | RD 809/2021, Art. 6 and Annex III; RD 709/2015, Art. 4 |
| Annual check of pressure equipment | Yes, for everything above 0.5 bar, including equipment below category I | At least once a year; the user, with a register for category I and above | RD 809/2021, Art. 9(5), 9(7) and 9(10) |
| Machinery and work equipment | Yes, if you have workers who use it | Maintenance as the manufacturer says; documented periodic checks for equipment that deteriorates | RD 1215/1997, Arts. 3(5) and 4 |
| Low-voltage inspection | Industry with a design project and more than 100 kW; also class I areas (flammables) and wet premises above 25 kW | Initial, then every 5 years; inspection body | RD 842/2002, ITC-BT-05, sections 4.1 and 4.2 |
| Cooling tower and domestic water | Yes, if there is a tower, an evaporative condenser, a humidifier or showers | Tower: notify it within a month, disinfect twice a year, test for Legionella every month | RD 487/2022, Art. 5(3) and Annexes IV and V |
| Heating and cooling of offices and changing rooms | Only the part serving people, not the process; contract above 70 kW | As table 3.1 says; efficiency inspection every 4 years above 70 kW | RD 1027/2007, Arts. 2(6), 26 and 31 |
| Self-protection plan | With a fire load from 13,600 MJ/m², a Seveso site, an APQ store above its thresholds or more than 3 t of certain refrigerants | Drill at least once a year; plan reviewed at most every 5 years; the owner | Order INT/1068/2026, Directive, Annex I and sections 2.5 and 2.6 |
Read in the BOE on 19 October 2026. These are the conditions of the national rule; the procedures, forms and registers are set by the industry department of each region.
The short answer
An industrial unit has its own fire regulation, the RSCIEI approved by Real Decreto 164/2025, which replaced the 2004 one on 10 May 2025. It requires an inspection by an inspection body at least every five years and leaves the maintenance of extinguishers and hose reels to the RIPCI (the Spanish fire protection installations regulation). Everything else depends on what is inside: drums of solvent, a compressor with its receiver, a line of machines, a paint booth or a cooling tower each bring their own rule and their own calendar.
Fire: the 2025 industrial regulation
The RSCIEI applies to establishments "cuyo uso principal es industrial" (whose main use is industrial): industrial activities, industrial warehouses and vehicle repair workshops (Arts. 2 and 3). Inside the unit, offices, retail areas or public-assembly areas of more than 250 m² follow the Spanish Building Code, the CTE (Art. 4(2)).
Dichas inspecciones se deberán realizar, al menos, cada 5 años. ("Those inspections must be carried out at least every 5 years.")
Under the 2004 regulation the period depended on the intrinsic risk: five years if low, three if medium and two if high. That ladder has gone. The owner requests the inspection from an inspection body, which checks that neither the activity nor the risk has changed, that the passive and active protection are still those of the design project and that maintenance is up to date; significant defects have a maximum of six months to be put right.
Units legalised earlier do not have to rebuild their structure or their installations, but since 10 November 2025 the chapter on maintenance and inspections applies to them (first transitional provision); the next inspection falls on the date set in the report of the last one. An extension or a change of activity does require compliance with the new regulation. And if there is a fire with injured people who need medical care outside the unit, or a total stoppage, the owner reports it to the regional industry department within fifteen working days (Art. 16).
Extinguishers, hose reels and detectors are maintained under the RIPCI: three-monthly and six-monthly checks by your staff; annual and five-yearly ones by an authorised maintenance company. Its ten-year inspection (Art. 22) is not added on top of yours, because it only applies where there is no specific regulation.
The chemical store (APQ)
The chemical storage regulation (Real Decreto 656/2017) applies from the quantity in column 5 of its table I, in litres for liquids and in kilos for solids. Some thresholds: 50 litres of category 1 or 2 flammable liquids and 250 of category 3; 50 of flammable aerosols; 200 of category 1A skin corrosives; 1,000 for most health and environmental hazards. Flammable and oxidising gases are covered from zero. Column 6 shows when a full design project is needed; below it, a report signed by the owner is enough.
Before the store goes into service, the owner files with the regional government the project or report, the site manager's certificate and proof of insurance (Art. 3). From then on there are two rhythms:
- Every five years, a certificate from an inspection body confirming that the store meets its technical instruction and that the reviews have been done, filed by the owner with the region (Art. 5(1)). In the same period, a leak test of buried tanks and pipes, except double-walled ones with leak detection (Art. 5(2)).
- Every year, the review set by each technical instruction: for flammable liquids (ITC MIE APQ-1, Art. 51) and for mobile containers (ITC MIE APQ-10, Art. 16) it is done by an in-house inspector, a technician appointed in writing by the owner, or by an inspection body, and a certificate is issued.
- Every fifteen years, under APQ-1, an internal inspection of single-walled metal tanks that are not pressure equipment (Art. 51(2)).
Independientemente de lo establecido en el artículo 5 del Reglamento de almacenamiento de productos químicos, se procederá anualmente a la revisión de las instalaciones, de acuerdo a un plan de revisiones periódicas ("Regardless of Article 5 of the chemical storage regulation, the installations shall be reviewed every year, following a plan of periodic reviews")
The compressor and its receiver: pressure equipment
The pressure equipment regulation (Real Decreto 809/2021) covers anything working above 0.5 bar, but the periodic inspections are only for equipment in categories I to IV. Compressed air is not on the list of hazardous group 1 fluids, so it falls into group 2, and a gas vessel in that group only has a category if it exceeds 1 litre and 50 bar×litre (Real Decreto 709/2015, Art. 4(1)). The regulation does not mention the compressor: what is inspected is the receiver or tank.
| Equipment | Level A (in service) | Level B (shut down) | Level C (pressure test) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air vessel, category I or II | Every 4 years, installer | Every 8 years, inspection body | Not required |
| Air vessel, category III or IV | Every 3 years, installer | Every 6 years, inspection body | Every 12 years, inspection body |
| Steam or superheated-water boiler | Every year, installer | Every 3 years, inspection body | Every 6 years, inspection body |
Source: RD 809/2021, Annex III, tables 1 and 2. For compressed air or nitrogen below 5,000 bar×litre, note 3 lets the installer carry them out.
The periods are maximums and run from manufacture or from the previous inspection; level B and C inspections are recorded on the equipment plate and whoever carries them out files them with the region (Annex III and Art. 6). In addition, the user checks each item at least once a year: corrosion, anchoring, leaks, pressure gauges, safety valves, condensate drains and plates (Art. 9(5)), and keeps a register of category I equipment and above (Art. 9(7)).
Machinery and work equipment
Presses, saws, overhead cranes or conveyors: Real Decreto 1215/1997 requires them to be maintained as the manufacturer says (Art. 3(5)) and requires periodic checks on equipment that deteriorates and can become dangerous, and also after an accident, a modification or a long stoppage (Art. 4). Competent staff do it and it is kept in writing for the whole working life of the equipment; the rule does not set the frequency.
Electricity, cooling tower and heating and cooling
The low-voltage installation of an industry with a design project and more than 100 kW has an initial inspection and another every five years by an inspection body, and so do areas with flammable liquids or gases (class I), with no power threshold: paint booths using solvents, fuel transfer or vehicle workshops. The details are on the page about the low-voltage inspection.
A cooling tower or an evaporative condenser is notified to the health authority within a month of starting up, cleaned and disinfected at least twice a year, tested for Legionella every month and, at 10,000 CFU/L or more, shut down. Changing-room showers are covered too: the page on Legionella covers them.
The RITE (the Spanish regulation on thermal installations in buildings) only looks at heating, air and hot water for people, not process heat (Art. 2(6)): the offices and changing rooms. Above 70 kW there is a maintenance contract and an efficiency inspection every four years; see thermal installations (RITE).
Self-protection plan from 11 October 2026
Since that date the Basic Directive on self-protection published by Order INT/1068/2026 applies. For an industrial unit it requires a plan if the fire-load density reaches 13,600 MJ/m² (high intrinsic risk 8), if the site falls under the major-accident rules, if the APQ store exceeds its thresholds or if there are refrigeration installations with more than 3 tonnes of second- and third-group refrigerants. With a plan: a drill at least once a year and a review at most every five; existing plans have four years to adapt. More in self-protection plan.
What each region adds
The rules are national, but the paperwork goes to the industry department of your region: the chemical store certificates, the level B and C certificates for pressure equipment and the registration of the self-protection plan. The Directive is a minimum standard: a region or a town council can require a plan from more activities. The online office, the form and the deadline vary from one region to another.
What the rule does not say
Worth knowing
A "unit" is not the same as an "industrial establishment": a unit used as a gym or a shop does not fall under the RSCIEI, and the store of a business whose main activity is in-person retail does not count as a logistics warehouse (Art. 3(b)). The pressure equipment regulation does not mention the compressor, and a receiver below category I has no periodic inspections, although the user's annual check still applies.
Nor are there fine amounts of their own: the APQ Regulation refers to Title V of Ley 21/1992 (the Spanish Industry Act) (Art. 9). And Article 12(3) of the RSCIEI still cites Real Decreto 393/2007 for the self-protection plan, which stopped applying on 10 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How often does an industrial unit need its fire inspection?
At least every five years, whatever its intrinsic risk. That is what Article 13(1) of the fire safety regulation for industrial establishments (Real Decreto 164/2025) says. The owner requests it from an inspection body. Under the 2004 regulation the period was two, three or five years depending on the risk; since 10 November 2025 the new frequency applies to every unit.
Do I have to adapt my older unit to the 2025 fire regulation?
Not its structure or installations: the unit keeps the rule under which it was legalised. But the maintenance, inspections, fire response and penalties of Real Decreto 164/2025 apply to it from 10 November 2025, and an extension or a change of activity requires compliance with the new regulation (first transitional provision).
From how many litres of chemicals does the APQ regulation apply?
It depends on the hazard: column 5 of table I of Real Decreto 656/2017 sets the minimum. It is 50 litres for category 1 or 2 flammable liquids, 250 for category 3, 200 for category 1A skin corrosives and 1,000 for most health hazards. Flammable gases are covered from zero. Below those figures, the store falls outside the regulation.
How often is the compressor receiver inspected?
If it is category I or II, level A every four years by an installer and level B every eight by an inspection body, with no compulsory hydrostatic test (Real Decreto 809/2021, Annex III). Below 5,000 bar×litre, the installer can also carry out level B. A receiver that does not reach category I has no periodic inspections, but the user checks it every year.
Does an industrial unit need a self-protection plan?
Only if it falls under Annex I of the Basic Directive in force since 11 October 2026: a fire load of 13,600 MJ/m² or more, a site under the major-accident rules, a chemical store above its thresholds or refrigeration with more than three tonnes of certain refrigerants. The region or the town council can extend the list.
Who commissions the inspections of the unit?
The owner. The fire inspection is requested by the owner from an inspection body (Real Decreto 164/2025, Art. 13), the five-yearly certificate for the chemical store is filed by the owner with the region (Real Decreto 656/2017, Art. 5) and the inspections of pressure equipment are ordered by the user (Real Decreto 809/2021, Art. 9(6)). The maintenance company or installer does its part, but the obligation does not move to them.
The inspections for this sector, one by one
- Fire protection (RIPCI)RIPCI checks: quarterly by the owner, yearly and five-yearly by the maintenance company, records kept for five years and an inspection every ten years, with its exemptions.
- Low-voltage inspectionInspection by an accredited body every 5 years for the premises in ITC-BT-05 (bars, restaurants and hotels always) and every 10 years for residential common areas over 100 kW.
- LegionellaWhat Royal Decree 487/2022 requires of the holder of business premises: a control plan, hot water temperatures, yearly disinfection, Legionella sampling and records kept for five years.
- Thermal installations (RITE)Maintenance company from 5 kW; contract, annual certificate and efficiency inspection every 4 years above 70 kW, with the minimum intervals of table 3.1.
- Self-protection planWho needs a self-protection plan under the Basic Directive in force since 11 October 2026, what it contains, how often it is reviewed and what the regions add.
Rules for other sectors
- Restaurants and barsThe obligations of a restaurant or a bar in Spain: what is specific to the kitchen and the checks on the premises, each with the condition that triggers it, how often it applies and its article.
- GymsA gym: no national law; qualifications, insurance and notices under each region's sports professions act, plus low voltage, Legionella, pool, RIPCI and defibrillator as premises.
- HotelsA hotel: guest register and reporting within 24 hours, regional classification, low voltage and lift as a public-assembly venue, RIPCI, Legionella, pool, kitchen and defibrillator.
- Residents' associationsThe obligations of a Spanish residents' association: upkeep, reserve fund, owners' meeting and administrator under the Horizontal Property Act, building logbook, building inspection and the checks on each communal installation.
- Shops and franchisesA shop: responsible declaration up to 750 m², opening hours, prices, franchises with no register since 2018, complaint forms, accessibility adjustments and the inspections of premises open to the public.
- OfficesThe obligations of an office in Spain: temperature and upkeep of the premises, screen work, health and safety, coordination with contractors, internal reporting channel, right to disconnect and building checks.
- SchoolsA school: minimum facilities, protocols against violence and a wellbeing coordinator, canteen and menus from April 2026, self-protection and the building inspections.