Criminal Code (Spain)

The Criminal Code is a law that codifies most criminal offences in Spain. The Code is established by an organic law, the Organic Law 10/1995, of 23 November, of the Criminal Code (Ley Orgánica 10/1995, de 23 de noviembre, del Código Penal). Section 149(6) of the Spanish Constitution establishes the sole jurisdiction of the Cortes Generales over criminal law in Spain.

The Criminal Code is structured through two books. The first book regulates general norms about criminal offenses and penalties and the second book regulates crimes and other dangerous situations, to which the code attributes penalties and security measures, respectively. The Criminal Code is a fundamental law of the Spanish criminal law, because it is a limit to the ius puniendi (or «right to punish») of the State.

The Code was enacted by the Spanish Parliament on 8 November 1995 and it was published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) on 23 November. The Code is in force since 25 May 1996. Since its publication, it has been modified on more than thirty occasions, the last time on 2 March 2019.