cross
  • About us
  • Blog
  • NEWSLETTER
    • Request a demo

    Spain · National · Royal Decree

    Royal Decree 39/1997 · Prevention services regulations

    In force, with amendments and one annulled provision

    Current official Spanish title: Real Decreto 39/1997, de 17 de enero, por el que se aprueba el Reglamento de los Servicios de Prevención.

    Original publication and analysisConsolidated textELI identifier
    On this page
    1. What it regulates
    2. Who it applies to
    3. Key provisions
    4. History and versions
    5. Transitional provisions and application notes
    6. Official BOE legal relationships
    7. Official sources
    8. Explore the concepts in Sabentis Explore

    What it regulates

    Sets out how employers organise occupational risk prevention: the prevention plan, risk assessment, planning, preventive arrangements, audits and professional capabilities.

    Who it applies to

    Employers covered by Law 31/1995, subject to the regulations’ public-administration adaptations and specific rules. The appropriate preventive arrangement depends on the employer’s circumstances.

    Key provisions

    Integrate prevention into management, activities and every organisational level through the prevention plan.

    Article 1

    Assess risks that could not be avoided to determine the preventive measures needed.

    Article 3

    Plan preventive action where the assessment identifies risks, prioritising their severity and the people exposed.

    Article 8

    Organise resources through the employer personally, designated workers, an internal service or an external service, meeting each arrangement’s conditions.

    Article 10

    Check whether an audit of the prevention system is required and whether an exception applies; mixed internal and external resources have specific rules.

    Article 29

    History and versions

    Initial publication: 31/01/1997 · Initial entry into force: 31/03/1997

    BOE-A-1997-1853

    Royal Decree 337/2010 repealed transitional provision 3 and amended Articles 2.4, 11.1, 15.5, 17–21, 23–30, 33 and 37.2 and final provision 1.

    Publication: 23/03/2010 · Effective date: 24/03/2010

    BOE-A-2010-4765

    Royal Decree 899/2015 amended Articles 11, 18, 23 and 25–28.

    Publication: 10/10/2015 · Effective date: 11/10/2015

    BOE-A-2015-10926

    Royal Decree 598/2015 amended Annexes I, VII and VIII.

    Publication: 04/07/2015 · Effective date: 05/07/2015

    BOE-A-2015-7458

    Royal Decree 298/2009 amended Article 4.1 and added Annexes VII and VIII.

    Publication: 07/03/2009 · Effective date: 08/03/2009

    BOE-A-2009-3905

    Royal Decree 604/2006 amended Articles 1, 2, 7, 16, 19–21, 29–32, 35 and 36 and added Articles 22 bis, 31 bis and 33 bis and additional provisions 10–12. The consolidated text records different effective dates for affected provisions: 29 June and 29 August 2006.

    Publication: 29/05/2006 · Effective date: 29/06/2006; Publication: 29/05/2006 · Effective date: 29/08/2006

    BOE-A-2006-9379

    Royal Decree 688/2005 amended Article 22.

    Publication: 11/06/2005 · Effective date: 12/06/2005

    BOE-A-2005-9877

    Royal Decree 780/1998 amended final provision 2 and additional provision 5.

    Publication: 01/05/1998 · Effective date: 02/05/1998

    BOE-A-1998-10209

    Royal Decree 893/2024 added additional provision 13, which was subsequently annulled by the judgment listed below.

    Publication: 11/09/2024 · Effective date: 12/09/2024

    BOE-A-2024-18182

    Order TIN/2504/2010 developed the regulations. This relationship does not by itself identify an amendment of their wording.

    BOE-A-2010-14843

    The Order of 27 June 1997 was issued under the regulations on accreditation of specialist external prevention services.

    BOE-A-1997-14855

    The Order of 22 April 1997 was issued under the regulations on mutual insurance associations’ occupational prevention activities.

    BOE-A-1997-8771

    The Supreme Court judgment of 29 September 2025, published on 17 October, annulled the first final provision of Royal Decree 893/2024 that had inserted additional provision 13. The whole prevention services regulation was not annulled.

    Publication: 17/10/2025 · Effective date: 17/10/2025

    BOE-A-2025-20797
    All text versions recorded by the BOE

    Publication and effective dates are different. The table retains the dates and provisions of each recorded text version; it does not treat future transitional deadlines as requirements already applicable.

    PublicationEffective dateOfficial referenceAffected provisions
    31/01/199731/03/1997BOE-A-1997-1853preambulo, CAPITULO I, Article 1, Article 2, CAPITULO II, SECCION 1, Article 3, Article 4, Article 5, Article 6, Article 7, SECCION 2, Article 8, Article 9, CAPITULO III, Article 10, Article 11, Article 12, Article 13, Article 14, Article 15, Article 16, Article 17, Article 18, Article 19, Article 20, Article 21, Article 22, CAPITULO IV, Article 23, Article 24, Article 25, Article 26, Article 27, Article 28, CAPITULO V, Article 29, Article 30, Article 31, Article 32, Article 33, CAPITULO VI, Article 34, Article 35, Article 36, Article 37, CAPITULO VII, Article 38, Article 39, Additional provision first, Additional provision second, Additional provision third, Additional provision fourth, Additional provision fifth, Additional provision sixth, Additional provision seventh, Additional provision eighth, Additional provision ninth, Transitional provision first, Transitional provision second, Transitional provision third, Transitional provision fourth, Repealing provision sole, Final provision first, Final provision second, firma, Annex I, Annex II, Annex III, Annex IV, Annex V, Annex VI
    01/05/199802/05/1998BOE-A-1998-10209Additional provision fifth, Final provision second
    11/06/200512/06/2005BOE-A-2005-9877Article 22
    29/05/200629/06/2006BOE-A-2006-9379Article 1, Article 7, Article 16, Article 19, Article 20, Article 21, Article 22 bis, Article 29, Article 30, Article 31, Article 31 bis, Article 32, Article 33 bis, Article 35, Article 36, Additional provision first, Additional provision tenth, Additional provision eleventh, Additional provision twelfth
    29/05/200629/08/2006BOE-A-2006-9379Article 2
    07/03/200908/03/2009BOE-A-2009-3905Article 4, Annex VII, Annex VIII
    23/03/201024/03/2010BOE-A-2010-4765Article 2, Article 11, Article 15, Article 17, Article 18, Article 19, Article 20, Article 21, Article 23, Article 24, Article 25, Article 26, Article 27, Article 28, Article 29, Article 30, Article 33, Article 37, Transitional provision third, Final provision first
    04/07/201505/07/2015BOE-A-2015-7458Annex I, Annex VII, Annex VIII
    10/10/201511/10/2015BOE-A-2015-10926Article 11, Article 18, Article 23, Article 25, Article 26, Article 27, Article 28
    11/09/202412/09/2024BOE-A-2024-18182Additional provision thirteenth
    17/10/202517/10/2025BOE-A-2025-20797Additional provision thirteenth

    Transitional provisions and application notes

    • The first transitional provision set historical deadlines for certain internal services: 1 January 1998 or 1999. These are not new adjustment periods.

      Transitional provision first

    • The second transitional provision refers mutual insurance associations in its stated situation to the accreditation rules; it must be read alongside subsequent sector reforms.

      Transitional provision second

    • The third transitional provision on training accreditation was repealed with effect from 24 March 2010.

      Transitional provision third

    • The fourth transitional provision contains a conditional reference concerning public hospitals and healthcare centres; it does not create a general exemption from prevention duties.

      Transitional provision fourth

    • The thirteenth additional provision on home-help services is marked annulled. The Supreme Court judgment of 29 September 2025 annulled the first final provision of Royal Decree 893/2024, which had inserted it; the ruling was published in the BOE on 17 October 2025.

      Additional provision thirteenth

    Official BOE legal relationships

    Earlier references (19)
    Subsequent references (12)

    Official sources

    Official sources checked on 14/11/2026. Updating a database record does not by itself mean that the legislation has been amended.

    1. Original publication and analysis
    2. Consolidated text
    3. ELI identifier
    4. BOE-A-2025-20797

    Based on data from Spain’s Official State Gazette (BOE). Consolidated text is informational: consult the official publication for legal purposes. The history includes every subsequent relationship in the retrieved BOE record, but does not guarantee coverage of all judgments or implied changes.

    The official title is retained in Spanish. English and Catalan texts are editorial summaries, not official translations of the legislation.

    Editorial information

    Publication date: 14 November 2026.

    Editorial responsibility: Sabentis editorial team.

    Editorial review by Pablo RodríguezLinkedIn

    Executive Vice President of the International ORP Foundation and Chief Financial Officer of Sabentis.

    Request a Demo

    Discover all that Sabentis can do for your organization.

    Try Sabentis

    request a demo
    stars 5
    GetApp Software Advice Capterra