Licence C1, C2 and C3 in Barcelona: what each class allows and how listings mention them

Where C1, C2 and C3 come from

Barcelona listings and traspaso adverts often mention a 'licencia C1', 'C2' or 'C3'. A traspaso is the transfer of a running business and its lease. The letters are older Barcelona nomenclature that engineering firms and agents still use. No current ordinance defines them.

The rule that classifies food-service premises is the Ordenança municipal de les activitats i dels establiments de concurrència pública, definitively approved in BOPB no. 169 of 16 July 2003; later modifications are listed on CIDO. Its Annex I uses numbered classes under heading 2.3 (epígrafe 2.3), not letters.

Every letter-to-class mapping on this page is the usual professional reading, not an official table. The licence document shows the class, and that is what counts. For licences in general, see what a food-service licence is and how to check it.

• C1: usually read as class 2.3.1, bar.
• C2: usually read as class 2.3.2.1, bar amb restauració mixta menor (bar with minor mixed food service).
• C3: usually read as class 2.3.2.2 (bar amb menjar ràpid, fast-food bar), 2.3.3 (restaurant) or 2.3.4 (restaurant-bar).

The classes in the ordinance (Annex I, class 2.3)

Annex I splits class 2.3 into the subclasses below, as reproduced in the Rambla pla d'usos regulations. A pla d'usos is a district plan that regulates where each activity may open.

Article 39 of the same ordinance adds physical requirements. A chimney (xemeneia, the extraction flue) is mandatory for classes 2.3.2.2, 2.3.3.1 and 2.3.4.1. Class 2.3.2.1 (3 kW griddle) and classes 2.3.3.2 and 2.3.4.2 (5 kW heating, no cooking) are exempt. The article also sets a kitchen of at least 10 m² in a separate room and a dining room (sala-menjador) of at least 20 m².

• 2.3.1 Bar: bar counter serving drinks, cold or hot tapas and sandwiches; no lunches or dinners. Only coffee machines and microwaves, to reheat; cooked tapas must come from a registered caterer.
• 2.3.2.1 Bar amb restauració mixta menor: the bar limits plus a single electric griddle (plancha) of up to 3 kW.
• 2.3.2.2 Bar amb menjar ràpid: any cooking equipment, with no limit on type, fuel or power, but still no lunches or dinners.
• 2.3.3 Restaurant: dining room serving lunches and dinners. 2.3.3.1 has its own kitchen; 2.3.3.2 works with catering only, up to 5 kW of heating and no cooking.
• 2.3.4 Restaurant-bar: both bar and restaurant service; 2.3.4.3 covers ice-cream and horchata parlours with tasting.
• 2.3.5 Banquet hall.

What each class means for an expansion brief

Start from the equipment your format needs, then find the class that allows it. The letter in a listing is only a first filter, not proof of what the premises can do.

• Coffee and bakery concepts: C1 (2.3.1) or C2 (2.3.2.1) may be enough if appliances stay within reheating or a single 3 kW electric griddle.
• QSR (quick-service restaurant) with fryers or grills: needs 2.3.2.2 or 2.3.3.1, both with a chimney; C3 in trade language. See how to find premises with a smoke outlet.
• Full-service restaurant: 2.3.3 or 2.3.4, with the 10 m² kitchen and 20 m² dining-room minimums.
• Any 'C3' in a listing: it does not tell you the kW installed, the chimney route or the aforo (maximum permitted occupancy). Ask for the licence document.

Procedures and district plans

Activity procedures in Barcelona run under the annexes of the OMAIIAA, the municipal ordinance on activities and environmental intervention. A modification of those annexes was definitively approved on 25 April 2024 and published in the Gaseta Municipal of 9 May 2024. Restaurant activities are commonly processed by communication with technical certification, but the regime for each class has changed over time: confirm the current one with the Ajuntament.

District plans d'usos restrict new class 2.3 establishments by zone, including in Ciutat Vella, the Rambla, Gràcia, Eixample/Sant Antoni and Poblenou. The Ciutat Vella special plan of uses (2018) is one example. In these areas a licence already in place is why traspasos are sought after.

Do not confuse the Ciutat Vella zone codes C1a, C1b, C3a, C3b and C4 with licence classes: they are zoning codes of the plan, not what a premises may cook.

When the activity and the premises stay the same, a change of holder is handled as a communication. Barcelona offers the canvi de titular d'un permís d'activitats as an online tràmit. For the wider deal, see the traspaso guide.

How listings mention it and how Claro reads it

Barcelona listings describe licences in Spanish or Catalan, often in a single phrase. Typical wording is listed below.

Claro reads the listing text literally. If your brief asks for 'licencia C3', the criterion is met when the listing states it, not met when its words rule it out, and not stated when the listing is silent. Claro does not infer the class from photos or equipment, and it quotes the sentence behind each verdict.

A sentence such as 'se traspasa restaurante con licencia C3 en vigor' tells you what the agency claims, not what the licence says. Ask the agency for the licence document, the class on it, the current holder and the installed kW. Read how Claro verifies listings or browse commercial premises in Barcelona.

• 'licencia C3' or 'licencia de restaurante'
• 'llicència de bar amb cuina' (bar-with-kitchen licence, in Catalan)
• 'licencia en vigor' (licence in force)
• 'traspaso con licencia C2'

Check with the Ajuntament or a qualified engineer

Before signing a lease or traspaso, request a consulta prèvia d'activitat (prior activity enquiry) from the Ajuntament for the premises and the class you need. A licence named in a listing can be void, expired or tied to a different holder.

Ask for the licence or comunicació document and the class it shows, who holds it and whether it is in force, whether the chimney is still installed and compliant, and the aforo and kitchen and dining-room areas.

Rules vary by municipality and change; this page covers Barcelona's ordinances only. Check with the city council or a qualified professional before committing. This is not legal advice.