How to tell whether your company is an obliged entity

If your activity appears in letters a) to z) of article 2.1 of Ley 10/2010 and you carry it out in practice, your company is an obliged entity. Broadly, the list covers:

• The financial sector: banking, life insurance and its brokers, investment, payments, currency exchange, loans and credit.
• Real estate: developers, agencies and intermediaries in sales — and also in lettings where the rent reaches €120,000 a year or €10,000 a month.
• Professionals: auditors, external accountants and tax advisers; notaries and registrars; lawyers and court agents when they take part in real-estate, corporate or fund-management operations.
• Company services: incorporation of companies, registered offices, fiduciary roles.
• Gaming and trade: casinos; jewellery, precious stones and metals; works of art and antiques; the trade in goods where cash of €10,000 or more is collected or paid.
• Crypto-assets: providers exchanging virtual currency for fiat and custodian wallet providers (letter z).
• Plus: transport and custody of funds, lotteries in respect of prize payments, and foundations and associations under a special regime.

Two criteria resolve most doubts: the real activity prevails, not the corporate purpose — having the trade in goods in your articles of association without exercising it does not make you an obliged entity —; and being obliged does not always mean the full package of obligations: there are size exemptions and specific regimes such as the one for the trade in goods.

If you finish the list still in doubt, that is normal: the border lives in the details. Tell us your activity, headcount and turnover and we will confirm it — in two minutes, no strings attached.

Legal basis:

• Art. 2.1, letters a) to z), of Ley 10/2010 (consolidated text, last updated March 2026)
• Art. 2.1.l (letting thresholds)
• Arts. 38 and 39 of Ley 10/2010 (specific regimes)

Reviewed: August 2026 · PBK Asesores — external experts in AML/CTF before SEPBLAC since 2010, more than 900 exams performed.

Does this affect you? We will confirm it in a two-minute call → Contact · +34 91 110 28 29

Related:

• Size exemptions
• The car dealers case
• The external expert exam
• All frequently asked questions