Article 169 Spanish Criminal Code: The Offence of Threats (2026)

Article 169 of the Spanish Criminal Code governs the offence of threats: announcing to another person the causing of future harm that would amount to a crime. As criminal defence lawyers, we explain its content.

What Article 169 Says

This offence is committed by anyone who threatens another with causing them, their family or persons closely linked to them harm amounting to a crime of homicide, bodily harm, abortion, against liberty, torture and moral integrity, sexual freedom, privacy, honour or property.

The Requirements of the Announced Harm

• Future: if the harm is imminent and carried out, another offence applies.
• Unjust: announcing the lawful exercise of a right — such as filing a complaint — is not a threat.
• Specific: concrete and credible.
• Dependent on the offender's will and with an appearance of seriousness.

Words uttered in the heat of an argument, with no real intimidating purpose, usually fall outside the offence.

Conditional and Unconditional Threats

• Conditional threat (Art. 169.1): a sum is demanded or a condition imposed. If the offender achieves the aim, prison of 1 to 5 years; if not, 6 months to 3 years.
• Unconditional threat (Art. 169.2): the harm is announced without demanding anything. Penalty: prison of 6 months to 2 years.

Penalties are imposed in their upper half where the threat is made in writing, by telephone or any means of communication, or on behalf of groups.

Defence Strategies

1. Lack of seriousness: words spoken in an argument, with no real intent to intimidate.
2. Harm not unjust: the offender announced the lawful exercise of a right.
3. Atypicality: the harm is neither future nor specific.
4. Downgrading to a minor threat under Article 171.
5. Evidence: working on reasonable doubt where the case rests solely on the complainant's account.