Spain

Country-specific identifiers, data sources, and integration details

Data Sources

Spain uses three data sources for company information. Structured profile data comes from a public registry portal, document purchases from an authenticated electronic portal, and supplementary data from the BORME (official commercial gazette).

Structured Profile Data

• OpenData Registradores (opendata.registradores.org). Operated by the Colegio de Registradores de la Propiedad y Mercantiles de Espana. This is the primary source for structured company profile data: company name (denominacion social), legal form (forma social), status (estado), NIF, IRUS, EUID, registered address (domicilio social), share capital, CNAE/NACE activity codes, legal representatives (administradores/cargos), and incorporation date (constitucion). Data is extracted from the registry.

Document Retrieval

• SEDE Electronica del Colegio de Registradores (sede.registradores.org). The official electronic portal of the Colegio de Registradores. Used for search/NIF resolution (to obtain the IRUS identifier) and document retrieval: trade register extracts (Nota Informativa Mercantil) and financial statements (Deposito de Cuentas). Documents are purchased with real-time pricing and delivered as PDFs.

BORME (Supplementary)

• BORME (Boletin Oficial del Registro Mercantil). Spain’s official commercial gazette, published daily. Used as a supplementary enrichment source for company profiles: activity descriptions, director appointment dates, and sole shareholder information.

Search uses SEDE for NIF resolution. Name and NIF searches query SEDE to resolve the company’s IRUS identifier, then OpenData is queried for structured profile data using that IRUS.

Company Identifiers

Query Identifiers

Identifier Type	Format	Example	Notes
NIF/CIF	Letter + 7 digits + control char	A82511361	Primary company identifier for all API operations
DNI (individual entrepreneurs)	8 digits + letter	12345678A	For autonomous workers / sole proprietors
VAT	ES + NIF	ESA82511361	Automatically stripped to NIF for search

Primary Identifier: We use NIF (Numero de Identificacion Fiscal) as the company ID for all Spanish entities.

NIF is the standard Spanish tax identification number. The first letter indicates the entity type:

• A: Sociedad Anonima (SA)
• B: Sociedad Limitada (SL)
• C-H: Other entity types (cooperatives, partnerships, etc.)
• J: Sociedad Civil
• N: Foreign entities
• P: Local government bodies
• Q: Public entities
• R: Religious congregations
• S: Government bodies
• U: Temporary business associations (UTE)
• V: Other unclassified entities
• W: Permanent establishments of non-resident entities

Identifiers in API Response

Once you retrieve company data, the identifiers object contains all available identifiers for that entity:

Identifier Type	Format	Example	Found In
NIF	Letter + 7 digits + control char	A82511361	All companies
VAT	NIF value (without ES prefix)	A82511361	All companies
IRUS	13 digits	1000263762669	All companies (resolved via SEDE)
EUID	ESRM. + IRUS	ESRM.1000263762669	When available from OpenData

VAT value in the API response does NOT include the ES prefix. The identifiers.VAT field contains only the NIF value itself (e.g., A82511361). The country prefix ES is stored separately in taxId.country. This is consistent with how other EU countries handle VAT numbers.

Search Capabilities

Search automatically detects the identifier type and routes to the appropriate handler:

Search Type	Pattern	Example	Match Type	Expected Results
By NIF/CIF	Letter + 7 digits + control char	A82511361	Exact	Single company (1 result)
By DNI	8 digits + letter	12345678A	Exact	Single company (1 result)
By VAT Number	ES + NIF	ESA82511361	Exact	Single company (1 result, ES prefix stripped)
By IRUS	13 digits	1000263762669	Exact	Single company (1 result)
By Name	Text string	"Telefonica"	Fuzzy	Multiple results (deduplicated by NIF)

Search Performance: Use identifier-based searches (NIF, VAT) for best performance and exact matching. Name searches query SEDE which returns paginated results that are deduplicated by NIF using a scoring algorithm that filters out branches and selects the main entity.

Branch filtering: When multiple IRUS entries exist for the same NIF (e.g., branches, offices, agencies), the system uses a scoring algorithm to select the main entity. Branch keywords such as SUCURSAL, URBANA, AGENCIA, OFICINA, and DELEGACION receive a heavy penalty. Current (active) status and shorter names (likely parent entities) receive a bonus.

Quirks & Gotchas

Quirk	Details
NIF is the primary ID	Unlike some countries that use a separate registry number, Spain uses the NIF (tax ID) as the company identifier for all API operations.
IRUS is internal only	The IRUS (Identificador Unico del Registro de Sociedades) is a 13-digit internal registry identifier used for OpenData lookups and document retrieval. It should not be used as a query identifier by API consumers.
VAT = ES + NIF	Spanish VAT numbers are simply the NIF prefixed with “ES”. Having a NIF does not guarantee the company is VAT-registered — companies must be in the ROI (Registro de Operadores Intracomunitarios) for EU cross-border trade. VIES will return invalid for companies not in ROI.
Document prices are dynamic	Trade register extract and financial statement prices are fetched in real-time from SEDE and may vary. Prices appear in the price field before purchase.
No shareholder data	The Spanish public registry does not expose ownership information. Shareholder data is only available through private filings.
No UBO data	Ultimate Beneficial Owner data is not publicly available through the commercial registry.
SEDE document purchases	Document purchases are processed through the official SEDE portal of the Colegio de Registradores.
ISIC is always AI-inferred	CNAE and NACE codes come directly from OpenData Registradores. ISIC is always derived via AI enrichment. Check the isAIInferred flag.
Status is free-text	OpenData provides status as a free-text string (e.g., “Vigente”) rather than a fixed codelist. Status standardization is AI-enriched.
OpenData data extraction	Company data is extracted from the OpenData Registradores portal.
Multiple IRUS per NIF	Large companies (e.g., banks) can have dozens of IRUS entries for the same NIF, representing branches and offices in different provinces. The NIF resolver scoring algorithm selects the main entity.
Document delivery is asynchronous	After purchasing a document from SEDE, there may be a short delay before the PDF is available for download.
BORME as supplementary source	BORME gazette data enriches company profiles with activity descriptions, director appointment dates, and sole shareholder information.

Company Status

Company status is determined from the OpenData Registradores estado field. The mapping is AI-enriched — no static codelist exists. The AI analyzes the local Spanish status string to produce a standardized status.

Status Mapping

Local Status (Spanish)	English Translation	Standardized Status	Notes
Vigente	Active / In force	Active	Company is currently registered and operating
Activa	Active	Active	Alternative active status label
Extinguida	Extinguished	Closed	Company has been dissolved and removed from registry
En liquidacion	In Liquidation	Closed	Company is undergoing liquidation proceedings
Baja provisional	Provisional Deregistration	Closed	Temporarily removed from active registry

The active boolean is true for statuses like “Vigente” and “Activa”, and false for all other status values. The standardized status classification is produced by AI enrichment.

Legal Forms

Legal form standardization is AI-enriched. OpenData Registradores provides a free-text forma social field. The AI produces a standardized company type and an ISO 20275 (ELF) code.

Limited Companies (Sociedades Limitadas)

Spanish Legal Form	Abbreviation	Standardized	Notes
Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada	SL / SRL	Limited Liability Company	Private limited company, min. capital EUR 3,000
Sociedad Limitada Unipersonal	SLU	Limited Liability Company	Single-shareholder SL
Sociedad Limitada Nueva Empresa	SLNE	Limited Liability Company	Simplified SL for new businesses
Sociedad Limitada de Formacion Sucesiva	SLFS	Limited Liability Company	SL with no minimum capital requirement
Sociedad Limitada Profesional	SLP	Limited Liability Company	SL for regulated professional services
Sociedad Limitada Laboral	SLL	Limited Liability Company	Majority employee-owned SL
Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada Laboral	SRLL	Limited Liability Company	Employee-owned SRL variant
Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada Profesional	SRLP	Limited Liability Company	Professional SRL variant
Sociedad Limitada Laboral Profesional	SLLP	Limited Liability Company	Combined laboral + professional SL

Corporations (Sociedades Anonimas)

Spanish Legal Form	Abbreviation	Standardized	Notes
Sociedad Anonima	SA	Corporation	Public limited company, min. capital EUR 60,000
Sociedad Anonima Unipersonal	SAU	Corporation	Single-shareholder SA
Sociedad Anonima Laboral	SAL	Corporation	Majority employee-owned SA
Sociedad Anonima Profesional	SAP	Corporation	SA for regulated professional services
Sociedad Anonima Deportiva	SAD	Corporation	Mandatory form for professional sports clubs
Sociedad por Acciones Simplificada	SAS	Corporation	Simplified joint-stock company

Partnerships (Sociedades Personalistas)

Spanish Legal Form	Abbreviation	Standardized
Sociedad Comanditaria Simple	S.Com.	Partnership
Sociedad Comanditaria por Acciones	S.Com.p.A.	Partnership
Sociedad Colectiva	S.C.	Partnership
Sociedad Regular Colectiva	SRC	Partnership
Sociedad Civil	S.Civ.	Partnership
Sociedad Civil Profesional	SCP	Partnership

Cooperatives & Special Forms

Spanish Legal Form	Abbreviation	Standardized
Sociedad Cooperativa	S.Coop.	Cooperative
Sociedad Cooperativa Europea	SCE	Cooperative
Sociedad Agraria de Transformacion	SAT	Cooperative
Agrupacion de Interes Economico	AIE	Partnership
Agrupacion Europea de Interes Economico	AEIE	Partnership
Sociedad de Garantia Reciproca	SGR	Other
Societas Europaea	SE	Corporation
Sociedad Mercantil Estatal	SME	Government-Owned Entity

Investment & Financial Vehicles

Spanish Legal Form	Abbreviation	Standardized
Sociedad de Inversion de Capital Variable	SICAV	Corporation
Sociedades Cotizadas de Inversion Inmobiliaria	SOCIMI	Corporation
Fondo de Inversion	FI	Other
Fondo de Pensiones	FP	Other

Other Entity Types

Spanish Legal Form	Abbreviation	Standardized
Empresario Individual / Autonomo	EI	Sole Proprietorship
Empresario de Responsabilidad Limitada	ERL	Sole Proprietorship
Union Temporal de Empresas	UTE	Partnership
Sucursal en Espana	—	Branch or Representative Office
Establecimiento Permanente	—	Branch or Representative Office

Foreign Company Forms (registered in Spain)

Legal Form	Abbreviation	Origin
Besloten Vennootschap	BV	Netherlands / Belgium
Naamloze Vennootschap	NV	Netherlands / Belgium
Limited Company	LTD	United Kingdom

The AI enrichment maps any forma social string from OpenData Registradores to a standardized type and ISO 20275 code. The local Spanish legal form name is always preserved verbatim.

Legal Representatives

Legal representatives are extracted from the OpenData Registradores administradores/cargos section. Role classification as legal representative vs. other key person is AI-enriched based on the role string and the company’s legal form context.

Role Types from OpenData

Executive & Management Roles

Spanish Role	English Translation	Typical Classification
Administrador unico	Sole Director	Legal Representative
Administrador solidario	Joint and Several Director	Legal Representative
Administrador mancomunado	Joint Director	Legal Representative
Presidente	Chairman	Legal Representative
Director	Director	Legal Representative
Gerente	General Manager	Legal Representative
Consejero Delegado	Managing Director / CEO	Legal Representative

Board & Governance Roles

Spanish Role	English Translation	Typical Classification
Consejero	Board Member	Other Key Person
Vicepresidente	Vice Chairman	Other Key Person
Secretario	Secretary	Other Key Person
Vocal	Board Member (non-executive)	Other Key Person
Secretario no consejero	Non-Director Secretary	Other Key Person
Vicesecretario	Vice Secretary	Other Key Person

Representative & Special Roles

Spanish Role	English Translation	Typical Classification
Apoderado	Attorney-in-fact / Proxy	Other Key Person
Apoderado general	General Power of Attorney	Other Key Person
Liquidador	Liquidator	Other Key Person
Auditor	Auditor	Other Key Person
Representante	Representative	Other Key Person

The classification of each role as legal representative or other key person is AI-enriched and depends on the company’s legal form context. For example, an “Administrador unico” is always a legal representative, while an “Apoderado” (attorney-in-fact) is typically classified as an other key person despite having signing authority. The AI uses the ISO 20275 (ELF) code of the company’s legal form to determine the appropriate classification.

Other Key Persons

Other key persons are extracted from the same OpenData cargos section as legal representatives. The AI enrichment determines which roles fall into this category based on the legal form context. Typical roles include board members (Consejero), secretaries (Secretario), attorneys-in-fact (Apoderado), and auditors (Auditor).

Shareholders

Shareholder data is not available for Spanish companies. The Spanish Registro Mercantil does not expose shareholder information through its public registry portals (OpenData or SEDE). Ownership data is only accessible through private filings and is not part of the publicly available dataset.

Activity Code Mapping

Spain uses the CNAE (Clasificacion Nacional de Actividades Economicas) classification, which is the Spanish national adaptation of the European NACE standard. The system maps activity codes across three levels:

CNAE (Spanish) -> NACE Rev. 2 (European) -> ISIC Rev. 4 (International)

Classification	Source	Example	AI Inferred?
CNAE	OpenData Registradores	6201	No (official)
NACE	OpenData Registradores	62.01	No (official)
ISIC	Derived from CNAE/NACE via AI	6201	Yes (always)

Both CNAE and NACE codes are provided directly by OpenData Registradores and are never AI-inferred. ISIC codes are always AI-inferred from the CNAE/NACE codes. Each activity item includes an isAIInferred flag to distinguish official vs. AI-derived codes.

Activity Code Fields

Activity codes are provided as two separate fields from OpenData Registradores:

Field	Classification	Example Value
CNAE	CNAE	6201 Actividades de programacion informatica
NACE	NACE	62.01 Computer programming activities

Data Availability Matrix

Data Type	Commercial Companies	Notes
Company Profile	✅ Async	Full structured data from OpenData Registradores
Legal Representatives	✅	Directors and officers from OpenData
Other Key Persons	✅	Board members, secretaries, attorneys from OpenData
Shareholders	❌	Not available in public registry
Ultimate Beneficial Owners	❌	Not publicly available
Establishments	❌	Not available through OpenData
Activity Codes	✅	CNAE + NACE from OpenData, ISIC via AI
Trade Register Extract	✅ (Paid)	PDF from SEDE, real-time pricing
Financial Statements	✅ (Paid)	PDF per fiscal year from SEDE

Legend: ✅ Available | ❌ Not Available | Async = Asynchronous processing

Documents by Company Type

Documents are retrieved from SEDE Electronica del Colegio de Registradores with real-time pricing.

Commercial Companies (NIF)

Document Type	API Category	Format	SKU	Availability	Notes
Nota Informativa Mercantil (Trade Register Extract)	tradeRegisterExtract	PDF	ESP_REGISTER_EXTRACT	✅ All companies	Real-time pricing from SEDE
Deposito de Cuentas (Financial Statements)	financialStatements[]	PDF	ESP_FINANCIAL_STATEMENTS	✅ When filed	Per fiscal year, real-time pricing

Document prices are fetched in real-time from SEDE and displayed in the price field before purchase. For trade register extracts, the following data segments are included: capital, social representation, administrators, and attorneys-in-fact.

Financial statement availability varies. Not all companies file their annual accounts (Deposito de Cuentas) with the Registro Mercantil. Available fiscal years are listed via a dropdown on SEDE. Each year’s price is determined individually.

Example API Responses

All examples use placeholder data. Query: POST /company with { "id": "<NIF>", "countryCode": "ES", "dataPoints": ["companyProfile"] }

Active SA (Sociedad Anonima) -- with VAT verification

{
  "company": {
    "id": "A12345678",
    "countryCode": "ES",
    "identifiers": {
      "NIF": "A12345678",
      "VAT": "A12345678",
      "IRUS": "1000263762669",
      "EUID": "ESRM.1000263762669"
    },
    "taxId": {
      "type": "eu_vat",
      "value": "A12345678",
      "country": "ES",
      "verification": {
        "status": "verified",
        "verifiedName": "EXAMPLE CORP SA",
        "verifiedAddress": "CALLE GRAN VIA 28, MADRID",
        "consultationNumber": "WAPIXXXXXXXXXXXX"
      }
    },
    "legalName": "Example Corp SA",
    "registrationDate": "2010-05-15",
    "status": {
      "localName": "Vigente",
      "active": true,
      "statusDetails": { "status": "ACTIVE" }
    },
    "legalForm": {
      "localName": "Sociedad Anonima",
      "standardized": "Corporation",
      "iso20275Code": "WWQZ"
    },
    "capital": {
      "amount": 60000,
      "currency": "EUR"
    },
    "activities": {
      "CNAE": [{ "code": "6201", "description": "Actividades de programacion informatica", "isAIInferred": false }],
      "NACE": [{ "code": "62.01", "description": "Computer programming activities", "isAIInferred": false }],
      "ISIC": [{ "code": "6201", "description": "Computer programming activities", "isAIInferred": true }]
    },
    "legalAddress": {
      "addressLine1": "Calle Gran Via 28",
      "city": "Madrid",
      "postalCode": "28013",
      "countryCode": "ES"
    }
  },
  "legalRepresentatives": [
    {
      "type": "individual",
      "role": { "localName": "Administrador unico", "standardized": "Director" },
      "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Carlos Garcia Lopez" } }
    }
  ]
}

Active SL (Sociedad Limitada) -- multiple administrators

{
  "company": {
    "id": "B98765432",
    "countryCode": "ES",
    "identifiers": {
      "NIF": "B98765432",
      "VAT": "B98765432",
      "IRUS": "2000198745632"
    },
    "legalName": "Servicios Digitales SL",
    "registrationDate": "2018-11-20",
    "status": {
      "localName": "Vigente",
      "active": true,
      "statusDetails": { "status": "ACTIVE" }
    },
    "legalForm": {
      "localName": "Sociedad Limitada",
      "standardized": "Limited Liability Company",
      "iso20275Code": "N5GY"
    },
    "capital": {
      "amount": 3000,
      "currency": "EUR"
    },
    "activities": {
      "CNAE": [{ "code": "7022", "description": "Otras actividades de consultoria de gestion empresarial", "isAIInferred": false }],
      "NACE": [{ "code": "70.22", "description": "Business and other management consultancy activities", "isAIInferred": false }],
      "ISIC": [{ "code": "7020", "description": "Management consultancy activities", "isAIInferred": true }]
    },
    "legalAddress": {
      "addressLine1": "Passeig de Gracia 100",
      "city": "Barcelona",
      "postalCode": "08008",
      "countryCode": "ES"
    }
  },
  "legalRepresentatives": [
    {
      "type": "individual",
      "role": { "localName": "Administrador solidario", "standardized": "Director" },
      "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Ana Martinez Ruiz" } }
    },
    {
      "type": "individual",
      "role": { "localName": "Administrador solidario", "standardized": "Director" },
      "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Pedro Sanchez Diaz" } }
    }
  ]
}

Closed company (Extinguida)

{
  "company": {
    "id": "B55667788",
    "countryCode": "ES",
    "identifiers": {
      "NIF": "B55667788",
      "VAT": "B55667788",
      "IRUS": "3000112233445"
    },
    "legalName": "Comercio Antiguo SL",
    "registrationDate": "2005-03-10",
    "status": {
      "localName": "Extinguida",
      "active": false,
      "statusDetails": { "status": "CLOSED" }
    },
    "legalForm": {
      "localName": "Sociedad Limitada",
      "standardized": "Limited Liability Company",
      "iso20275Code": "N5GY"
    },
    "capital": {
      "amount": 3000,
      "currency": "EUR"
    },
    "activities": {
      "CNAE": [{ "code": "4771", "description": "Comercio al por menor de prendas de vestir en establecimientos especializados", "isAIInferred": false }],
      "NACE": [{ "code": "47.71", "description": "Retail sale of clothing in specialised stores", "isAIInferred": false }],
      "ISIC": [{ "code": "4771", "description": "Retail sale of clothing, footwear and leather articles in specialised stores", "isAIInferred": true }]
    },
    "legalAddress": {
      "addressLine1": "Calle Serrano 45",
      "city": "Madrid",
      "postalCode": "28001",
      "countryCode": "ES"
    }
  },
  "legalRepresentatives": [
    {
      "type": "individual",
      "role": { "localName": "Liquidador", "standardized": "Liquidator" },
      "individual": { "name": { "fullName": "Maria Lopez Fernandez" } }
    }
  ]
}

Note: Closed companies have active: false and status Extinguida. Documents may still be available from SEDE.

VAT unverified (not in ROI)

{
  "company": {
    "id": "B11223344",
    "countryCode": "ES",
    "identifiers": {
      "NIF": "B11223344",
      "VAT": "B11223344",
      "IRUS": "4000556677889"
    },
    "taxId": {
      "type": "eu_vat",
      "value": "B11223344",
      "country": "ES",
      "verification": {
        "status": "unverified"
      }
    },
    "legalName": "Pequena Empresa SL",
    "registrationDate": "2020-07-01",
    "status": {
      "localName": "Vigente",
      "active": true,
      "statusDetails": { "status": "ACTIVE" }
    },
    "legalForm": {
      "localName": "Sociedad Limitada",
      "standardized": "Limited Liability Company",
      "iso20275Code": "N5GY"
    }
  }
}

Note: VAT status is unverified because the company is not registered in the ROI (Registro de Operadores Intracomunitarios). This is common for small companies that do not engage in EU cross-border trade.

Available Documents

Documents are returned when "dataPoints": ["documents"] is requested.

API Category	Document	Notes
tradeRegisterExtract	Nota Informativa Mercantil (PDF)	Real-time pricing from SEDE
financialStatements[]	Deposito de Cuentas (PDF)	Per fiscal year, real-time pricing

Trade Register Extract segments included:

• Capital social (share capital)
• Representacion social (social representation)
• Administradores (directors)
• Apoderados (attorneys-in-fact)

Data Source Priority & Routing

For a given entity, the system follows this resolution flow:

Company Profile Resolution Flow:

1. SEDE search by NIF — Resolves the NIF to an IRUS identifier and returns search results. The resolver selects the main entity (filtering out branches).
2. OpenData lookup by IRUS — Retrieves structured data from OpenData Registradores (name, legal form, status, address, capital, CNAE/NACE, officers, registration date).
3. AI enrichment — Legal form, status, activities (ISIC), address, and capital formatting are enriched.
4. VIES VAT validation — A qualified VIES check validates the VAT number and obtains a consultation number (legal proof for audits).

Document Resolution Flow:

Documents are purchased through the official SEDE portal of the Colegio de Registradores. Available document types include trade register extracts (Nota Informativa Mercantil) and financial statements (Deposito de Cuentas). Documents are delivered as PDFs after payment processing.

Attribute-Level Source Mapping

Attribute	Source	Notes
Company name (denominacion social)	OpenData	Official registry name
Legal form (forma social)	OpenData	AI-enriched for standardization + ISO 20275
Status (estado)	OpenData	AI-enriched; active flag from string matching
Registered address (domicilio social)	OpenData	AI-enriched for structured address components
Share capital	OpenData	AI-formatted for standardization
CNAE / NACE activity codes	OpenData	Official, never AI-inferred
ISIC activity codes	AI	Always AI-inferred from CNAE/NACE
Legal representatives	OpenData	From cargos/administradores; roles AI-enriched
Registration date (constitucion)	OpenData	Company formation date
NIF	OpenData / SEDE	From search results
IRUS	SEDE	Resolved during NIF search
EUID	OpenData	European Unique Identifier, when available
VAT verification	VIES	Qualified check with consultation number