Starting this Friday, you can apply for a new €400 subsidy to help pay your rent in Barcelona. Barcelona City Council has given the green light to a new package of economic measures aimed at easing the burden of rent for certain groups.
This initiative, with a budget of €6 million, comes after a budget agreement between the municipal government and the Junts per Barcelona group. The aid is intended for two specific groups: single-parent families and people over 55 who live alone.
To access these funds, applicants must meet a series of economic conditions. The main one is financial effort: tenants must demonstrate that they spend more than 30% of their net income on their regular rent.
In addition, there are caps on both the price of the home and the applicant’s income: the monthly cost of the apartment, which must be located in the city of Barcelona, cannot exceed €1,100.
Income cannot exceed twice the Catalan Income Sufficiency Indicator (IRSC) for single persons, i.e., less than €1,603.70 gross per month. This threshold rises to 2.5 times the IRSC for households and up to 3.5 times if there are members with disabilities (the IRSC stands at €801.85 in 2026).
It is not a flat rate of €400
The subsidy is not a flat rate, but is calculated to cover the portion of the rent that exceeds 30% of family income, with the aforementioned maximum limit of €400 per month. The calculation does not include additional expenses such as community fees, parking, storage rooms, or overdue bills.
This new line of aid seeks to complement existing benefits aimed at other population groups, such as the Youth Rental Voucher or subsidies for people over 65.
The deadline for submitting applications begins the day after the official publication of the call for applications, i.e., this Friday, February 20.