Take a look inside the ITV car inspection in Spain

15.11.2022

The Inspección Técnica del Vehículo, or ITV for short, is the car inspection or automobile inspection in Spain. This is of course mandatory for all motor vehicles. In itself, the car inspection in Spain is not very different from that in the UK. This is also because much of the inspection is laid down at European level. Yet there are a number of differences. In this article we look at how the car inspection in Spain works.

In addition to the car inspection, the ITV does a number of other things, including drawing up the technical card if you want to enter the car. We will also briefly touch on this.

ITV testing stations

All inspection stations in Spain use the same house style. This makes them clearly recognizable throughout the country. In most regions, the Spanish system is more similar to that of the inspection stations in UK. Although they are commercial companies, the regional government (in most regions) sets the rates. Moreover, these companies only carry out the inspection, in contrast to for example the Netherlands, where there is a conflict of interest between repair and inspection in one and the same company.

Which vehicles must be inspected at the ITV?

The car inspection in Spain is of course mandatory for all vehicles with a Spanish registration. Vehicles with a foreign license plate cannot be inspected in Spain. You must present all motor vehicles and trailers for inspection. This also applies, for example, to mopeds and caravans with a Spanish license plate.

When should your car be presented to ITV?

How often a car must be inspected in Spain depends on the type of vehicle. Passenger cars in private use must be inspected for the first time four years after having received a license plate (or four years after the (fecha de) matriculación). After that period, they must be presented for inspection at least once every two years, until the car is 10 years old. From that moment on, the inspection takes place annually.

This is twice as often for vans. So you have them inspected for the first time after two years after commissioning, and then annually until they are 10 years old. Even older buses should be inspected once every 6 months.

Mopeds do not have to be inspected in the first three years after the license plate has been issued. After that, the inspection must take place every two years. Motorcycles are exempt for the first four years, after which you must also have them inspected every two years.

Caravans weighing less than 750 kilos do not have to be inspected for the first six years, after which the inspection takes place every two years. There is no exemption in the beginning for heavier caravans and trailers. You have it inspected every other year for the first ten years, and then every six months. The same rules apply to motorhomes as to passenger cars.

If a vehicle has suffered serious damage in an accident, as a result of which its use may be unsafe, you may be required to have an interim inspection carried out. In those cases, the registration certificate will be confiscated until the vehicle has been inspected and any damage repaired

Make an appointment at the ITV inspection station

When the time comes for you to have the car inspected, you first make an appointment. This can be done online. For Aragon, the Canary Islands, Castilla-La Mancha, Madrid, Catalonia, Valencia and the Basque Country, you can do so through this link. It's a fairly simple process.

• In the first screen you enter the license plate number.
• The second screen asks what type of car it is.
• Then you indicate on which fuel the car runs.
• This is followed by a screen where you can choose the region. If you click on the correct region, a list of all inspection stations in that region follows. Select the station where you want to have the car inspected. This does not have to be the closest inspection station.
• In the next screen you can select date and time.
• Finally, you need to enter your contact details.

For Andalusia, use this link. The website is available in Spanish and Dutch and is self-explanatory. In Murcia, the system is fully privatized and it is best to contact an inspection station directly for an inspection.

How is an ITV station from the inside?

In this 360º video, you can move around an ITV station as if you were already there. Please click on the link for a virtual tour of an ITV Station. 

https://www.applusiteuve.com/en/estaciones-itv/

Enjoy it!