The Barcelona City Council has initiated the processing of a new ordinance to regulate street vending and the provision of services in the city for the first time. The Governing Commission opened this Monday the mandatory public consultation period prior to the approval of a regulation that aims to come into effect in the first quarter of 2027.
The novelty comes after years of existing activity in the city and affects more than 70 non-sedentary sales markets. The future ordinance will establish for the first time in a single regulation aspects such as location, frequency, number of stalls, schedules, and operating and sanitary conditions for each market.
Raquel Gil places the new regulation over more than 70 markets
Raquel Gil, Deputy Mayor for Economic Promotion, Commerce, Markets, Catering, and Employment, framed the initiative within the need to provide stable coverage for a commercial network already established in Barcelona. The regulation stems from the 2017 Commerce Law and will regulate both non-sedentary sales and the provision of services linked to this activity.
"Barcelona will have, for the first time, a regulation on the city's non-sedentary sales markets, which are more than 70" - Raquel Gil, Deputy Mayor for Economic Promotion, Commerce, Markets, Catering, and Employment, Barcelona City Council
Gil also argued that these markets complement local commerce and maintain economic activity in different parts of the city. In her assessment, they are spaces with historical significance and the capacity to generate employment within Barcelona's commercial offerings.
The administrative process must still go through initial approval, public exhibition, and final approval in the Municipal Plenary. Before this process, the council has activated the consultation to gather opinions from individuals and organizations that may be affected by the new framework.
The ordinance will replace collective licenses with individual permits for 15 years
One of the central changes will be the disappearance of collective licenses. The new regulation will replace them with individual licenses valid for 15 years with the option of renewal, with the aim of ensuring the profitability of the activity and limiting intermediation.
During 2025, the City Council already carried out a regularization of all existing licenses in accordance with the 2017 Commerce Law. That previous update will now serve as the basis for the ordinance to establish and regulate current authorizations within the new system.
The regulation also provides for a one-year adaptation period for current licenses. In addition, the council will study cases where the same holder concentrates more than one license to check how to apply the rule without compromising the continuity of the activity.
Raquel Gil maintained that the new text will allow all non-sedentary sales markets that already have a license to be maintained and, at the same time, reinforce their legal coverage. The municipal forecast is that the ordinance will be approved and can come into force in the first quarter of 2027.
Among the elements that the norm will have to specify are the definitive location of each market, its periodicity, the number of authorized stalls, the schedules, and the operating and sanitary conditions.