Can I Leave Spain if I Am Under Investigation in a Criminal Case?

One of the first questions for anyone told they are now a suspect under investigation in a criminal case is very practical: can I still travel? Can I leave Spain? The short answer is that, as a general rule, yes. Being under investigation does not suspend your freedom of movement. The restriction only exists when a judge expressly and reasonably orders it. As criminal defence lawyers in Madrid, we explain when you can travel, when you cannot, and what risks you take on if you choose to leave the country while a case is open.

The General Rule: Under Investigation Does Not Mean Banned

Being under investigation means there is proceedings directed against you, not that you have been stripped of your rights. Until the judge orders a specific precautionary measure, you keep your personal liberty and your freedom of movement intact. You can work, move house, travel within Spain and go abroad.

The key is not whether you travel, but a more basic duty: remaining reachable and appearing whenever the court requires it. The system does not aim to hold you in place physically, but to ensure the proceedings can run their course with you available. So before making any decision about an important trip, it is worth checking with your lawyer what measures — if any — apply to you.

When Departure Can Be Restricted

The restriction is not automatic: it requires a reasoned judicial decision, normally where the judge finds a flight risk. The measures that affect leaving the country are essentially three:

• Passport retention: Art. 530 of the Spanish Criminal Procedure Act (LECrim) allows the judge to order, in a reasoned decision, the retention of your passport to secure your appearance. Without a passport, leaving the area where an ID card suffices becomes considerably harder.
• Ban on leaving the national territory: the judge can expressly prohibit you from leaving Spain and even notify border posts of the measure. It usually goes hand in hand with passport retention.
• Apud acta court appearances (Art. 530 LECrim): the obligation to report periodically to the court on the set days — for example, the 1st and 15th of each month. They do not stop you travelling, but they condition your trips: you must be back for each appearance.

These measures are graded to the case. The judge may impose only fortnightly appearances, or add passport retention and a ban on leaving where the flight risk is greater. All of them can be appealed, and their intensity can be argued: an active defence seeks the least burdensome measure compatible with securing the proceedings.

Apud Acta Appearances in Practice

The apud acta appearance is the most common precautionary measure and the least burdensome of those affecting a suspect's availability. It consists of signing in at the court on the set days, recording that you remain at the court's disposal. Three practical points:

• They do not stop you travelling, but they do require you to return for each date. A long trip clashing with an appearance must be coordinated in advance with the court through your lawyer.
• Repeated breaches of the appearances signal a flight risk: they may lead the judge to tighten the measures (passport retention, ban on leaving) or even to consider pre-trial detention.
• If, for justified reasons — work, health, residence abroad — appearing in person is impossible, alternative arrangements can sometimes be requested. This must be applied for in a reasoned way and in advance, not by missing the date and explaining it afterwards.

What Happens if You Travel and Get Summoned

This is the real risk. If you have left Spain — lawfully, because you had no ban — and during your absence the court summons you to testify or for some step, an unjustified failure to appear has graduated consequences:

1. An order to appear that turns into an arrest order: Art. 487 LECrim provides that, if the summoned person does not appear or justify a legitimate reason, the order to appear can be converted into an arrest order.
2. Search warrant and declaration of default: if you cannot be located, the judge orders your search by warrant (Arts. 834 et seq. LECrim) and, once the deadline passes without appearance, declares you in default (rebeldía). The case may be suspended as to you, and the rules on limitation periods stop running in your favour as the law provides.

That is why we stress the essential point: stay reachable. Most summons are handled without drama when a lawyer receives the notifications, tells the court where you are and, if needed, justifies the absence or requests a new date. The problem is not travelling; the problem is disappearing.

The European Arrest Warrant if You Fail to Appear

If you are declared in default and you are in another EU Member State, the judge can issue a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) for your location and surrender to Spain. It is a mechanism designed to be fast between EU countries, although it is neither automatic nor inevitable: there are grounds for refusal and a procedure with safeguards. Even so, reaching that stage greatly complicates the situation — it can mean arrest abroad and a surrender procedure — when it could all have been avoided by appearing or justifying the absence in time.

The conclusion is clear: leaving Spain while under investigation is not in itself an act of flight or a crime. Becoming unreachable, by contrast, may be read as one by the court. The difference between the two situations usually lies in the legal assistance that keeps the channel with the court open.

The Specific Situation of the Foreign Suspect

For someone who does not live in Spain, the conflict is obvious: their life, work and family may be in another country, and reporting periodically or losing their passport is especially burdensome. In these cases the defence works on two fronts: showing ties to the country of origin and a willingness to cooperate with the Spanish courts, and proposing proportionate alternatives (designating an address for notifications, appointing a lawyer and court representative to receive summons, spaced-out or remote appearances where appropriate). The aim is for the proceedings to continue without having to keep you in Spanish territory or deprive you of your documents.