Prison visits in Spain: types, requirements and how to appeal a refusal

When a relative goes to prison, the first question is almost never a legal one. It is far simpler and far more urgent: when will I be able to see him? Around that question gather all the others — visiting hours, paperwork, who is allowed in, how long each visit lasts, and what happens when the prison says no.

This article deals with Spanish prison law and applies to people held in prisons in Spain. Visits and communications are not a favour granted by the prison: they are a right set out in Article 51 of the Spanish Prison Act (Ley Orgánica General Penitenciaria) and developed in Articles 41 to 49 of the Prison Regulations. Understanding that changes how you complain when something goes wrong.

Has a visit been refused or restricted? Write to us and we will assess your case at no cost. We are available 24 hours a day in Barcelona and throughout Spain.

Why prison visits matter

Spanish prison law starts from one principle: a sentence takes away liberty, not family ties. Contact with relatives is one of the few things that sustains a person through a sentence, and it also weighs directly on how that person progresses through the system. A prisoner with solid family links is in a different position when prison leave, a move to open conditions or parole is assessed.

That is why visits deserve to be taken seriously from day one. They are not only a comfort: they become part of the file and part of the account the Treatment Board builds about that person.

Ordinary visits through the glass

These are the standard visits, held in the visiting room with a physical separation and usually a glass screen. Article 42 of the Prison Regulations sets the framework:

• Each prison’s Governing Board sets the days, prioritising weekends and aiming for two visits a week.
• Each visit lasts at least twenty minutes; prisons may combine them into a single forty-minute weekly visit.
• Up to four people at a time may visit a prisoner.
• You do not have to be an immediate relative: friends and close acquaintances may also visit, subject to prior authorisation.

In practice, most visiting-room problems are not legal but organisational: appointments that cannot be booked, lists that are not updated, visitors turned away over an expired document. Call the prison in advance, confirm how the booking system works, and always bring your original identity document.

Private visits: intimate, family and extended

What is commonly called a vis a vis in Spain is in fact three distinct arrangements, governed by Article 45 of the Prison Regulations. They take place in dedicated rooms, with no screen and no direct supervision inside.

Intimate visits

These are for the prisoner and their spouse or a partner in a comparable relationship. They are granted at least once a month to prisoners who are not receiving prison leave, and last between one and three hours.

Family visits

These allow a meeting with relatives and close acquaintances in a shared room, also at least monthly and lasting between one and three hours. This is the usual route for parents, siblings or adult children to spend time with the prisoner without a screen.

Extended visits with children

This arrangement is designed specifically for the parent–child relationship: it allows the prisoner to spend time with their spouse or partner and with their children under the age of ten, over a longer period that can run to several hours. It is one of the most valuable tools for maintaining a bond with children and, even so, one of the least requested, simply because few people know it exists.

If the prison has turned down a visit request, do not assume the decision is final. Talk to us before the deadline to complain runs out.

Proving a relationship: what the Supreme Court held

This is where most applications fail. For years, many prisons demanded one specific form of proof: six months of prior visits or letters before they would accept that a stable relationship existed, even where a formal registered-partnership deed had been produced.

The Criminal Chamber of the Spanish Supreme Court, in a judgment of 8 September 2020, put a stop to that practice. The Court held that a partner relationship may be proved by any evidence that is valid in law, and that the prison authorities cannot impose a single mandatory form of proof where other sufficient documentation exists. A public deed of registered partnership is, on its own, sufficient evidence.

It is a ruling worth knowing and citing: many refusals still rest on internal criteria that this case law has left without foundation.

Telephone calls

Article 47 of the Prison Regulations governs calls. They are authorised where relatives live far away or cannot travel, or where the prisoner needs to communicate something important. The Regulations guarantee a minimum of five calls a week, of around five minutes each, with the precise duration set by each prison’s internal rules.

Two points come up constantly: the prisoner pays for the calls, except those to their lawyer, and incoming calls from outside are not accepted. Each call requires prior authorisation from the prison governor.

Contact with your lawyer is different

This is worth stressing because it is often confused. A prisoner’s communication with their defence lawyer does not count towards the ordinary visiting regime. Article 51.2 of the Prison Act and Article 48 of the Regulations give it reinforced protection: it takes place in dedicated rooms, it is not subject to the limits that apply to family visits, and it cannot be monitored or suspended except by court order and in narrowly defined cases.

In practical terms: if the prison restricts ordinary communications, the channel to the lawyer stays open. That is very often what makes it possible to react in time.

Restricting, suspending and monitoring communications

Articles 43 and 44 of the Regulations allow communications to be restricted, suspended or monitored on grounds of security, treatment or good order in the prison. These are exceptional measures, and they are subject to clear limits:

• They require a reasoned decision by the governor, not a verbal or generic one.
• They must be notified to the prisoner and reported to the Prison Supervision Judge.
• They must be proportionate and limited in time: an open-ended restriction with no review is, in itself, open to challenge.

One important point: ordinary visits are not among the disciplinary penalties that can be imposed in a prison disciplinary file. If visits are withdrawn following a disciplinary report, there are grounds to complain. There is more on this in our page on prison disciplinary proceedings.

Your visit has been refused: what you can do

A refusal or restriction can be challenged. The usual route is as follows:

• A written request to the prison. Always keep a stamped copy. Without a written record, there is nothing to rely on later.
• A complaint to the Prison Supervision Judge under Article 76.2(g) of the Prison Act, which gives that judge responsibility for safeguarding prisoners’ rights against abuses or irregularities during the sentence.
• An application for review against the judge’s order and, where appropriate, an appeal to the Provincial Court.

Deadlines are short and practice varies between Prison Supervision Courts. A well-built complaint — citing the applicable rules, the Supreme Court’s case law and the supporting documents — stands a far better chance than a generic submission drafted at the last minute.

Frequently asked questions

Can someone who is not a relative attend a private visit?

Yes. Intimate visits are for a spouse or a partner in a comparable relationship, and family visits also admit close acquaintances. What matters is proving the relationship, not formal kinship.

How long does authorisation take?

It depends on the prison and on the documents submitted. Providing complete proof of the relationship from the outset avoids most delays and follow-up requests.

Are visits lost when a prisoner is transferred?

They are not lost, but authorisations have to be set up again at the receiving prison, and distance can make them unworkable in practice. If a transfer has moved your relative far away, look at the options for a prison transfer closer to the family.

Do visits affect prison leave or classification?

Yes, significantly. Family ties are one of the factors weighed when assessing prison leave, progression to open conditions or parole. Keeping documented contact is also a way of building the file.

How we can help

At Bataller Bardají we have spent more than twenty-five years working exclusively in Spanish prison law, from Barcelona and across Spain. We guide families through what almost nobody explains: which document to file, with whom, within what deadline and on what argument.

If it would help, we can send you our checklist of the documents needed to apply for a private visit, free of charge — what proves the relationship, what format the authorities accept, and the mistakes behind most refusals. Request it through the contact form, telling us which prison is involved and what kind of visit you need.

Speaking to a prison lawyer before filing usually saves months. Get in touch.

This article is for general information and sets out the general regime for communications in Spanish prisons. Each prison applies its own internal rules and every situation has particular features that may change the outcome, so each case requires an individual assessment by a professional.