Are homelifts legal in Spain? Regulations for lifts up to 0.15 m/s

One of the most common questions when someone considers installing a platform lift or homelift in their house or building is: "if it is not a conventional lift, is it legal? Is it safe?" The short answer is yes: lifting equipment with a rated speed of up to 0.15 m/s is fully regulated in Spain and the European Union. The long answer — the exact regulations that cover it — is what we explain in this article, so that you can make your decision with all the facts.

Not a conventional lift… but a regulated machine

In Spain, permanent lifting equipment for persons with a rated speed of no more than 0.15 m/s is legally considered a machine for marketing purposes. It is not subject to the Lifts Directive 2014/33/EU or its Spanish transposition (Royal Decree 203/2016), which expressly exclude appliances whose speed does not exceed 0.15 m/s.

This does not mean the equipment falls "outside" the law: it means it is marketed under an equally demanding framework — machinery legislation:

• Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC.
• Royal Decree 1644/2008, its transposition into Spanish law.

To place the equipment on the market, the manufacturer must hold a risk assessment, a complete technical file (drawings, diagrams and justifying calculations), an instruction manual in Spanish, the relevant tests and verifications, the EC Declaration of Conformity and the CE marking. In other words, the same documentary rigour as for any machine intended to lift people.

One note on the future: from 20 January 2027, the Machinery Directive will be replaced by Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 on machinery. Equipment placed on the market before that date remains governed by Directive 2006/42/EC, without prejudice to its maintenance and inspection obligations.

The reference technical standard: EN 81-41

For vertical lifting platforms intended for persons with impaired mobility, the current technical reference is UNE-EN 81-41:2025, identical to the European EN 81-41:2024 and harmonised under the Machinery Directive. Its application provides a presumption of conformity with the essential safety requirements it covers.

This standard applies to equipment with a speed of up to 0.15 m/s, an enclosed liftway and a platform or carrier that is not completely enclosed. There is an important nuance that any serious installer should know:

• If the equipment is a platform with a carrier that is not fully enclosed, EN 81-41 is the direct reference.
• If it is a homelift with a fully enclosed cabin, it falls outside the strict scope of the standard. Conformity is then demonstrated through the risk assessment under Royal Decree 1644/2008 and the harmonised standards applicable to each hazard, with the involvement of a notified body.

Travels over 3 metres: a notified body is involved

Appliances intended to lift persons with a vertical fall hazard exceeding 3 metres are listed in Annex IV of Royal Decree 1644/2008, the category of machinery subject to the most demanding conformity assessment. Since most real installations — between two and five storeys — exceed that travel, the usual procedure is:

• EC type-examination by a notified body (or full quality assurance), when the harmonised standard does not fully cover the design — for example, fully enclosed cabin homelifts.
• The certificate must cover exactly the product placed on the market: manufacturer, brand, model, drive system, rated load, speed, maximum travel, doors and number of stops.

This certificate is the objective guarantee that the equipment has been verified by an independent third party, not only by the manufacturer itself.

Once installed: the ITC AEM 1 (Royal Decree 355/2024)

Although marketed as machines, since July 2024 this equipment is also subject, once installed, to Royal Decree 355/2024, which approves the new Complementary Technical Instruction ITC AEM 1 "Lifts". This ITC regulates commissioning, registration, maintenance and periodic inspections.

Commissioning the equipment requires, among other documents:

• Technical data sheet.
• EC Declaration of Conformity.
• Operating manual.
• A maintenance contract with an authorised maintenance company.
• A favourable initial inspection certificate issued by an accredited inspection body.

After this process, the equipment receives its number in the Lifting Equipment Register (RAE), exactly like a conventional lift.

Periodic obligations for the owner:

• Maintenance every four months in single-family homes and for machinery-regulated lifts installed in residential buildings with up to three stops and a maximum of twenty dwellings.
• Periodic inspection every six years for single-family homes and most residential installations; every four years in buildings with more than twenty dwellings or more than four served floors; and every two years for industrial use or public access.

Regulatory inspections of equipment up to 0.15 m/s are carried out using UNE 192008-2 as the reference standard.

Are there exceptions? Yes. The ITC AEM 1 excludes, among others, appliances running along a staircase or ramp (stairlifts and inclined platforms) and equipment with only two stops covering a maximum vertical distance of 3 metres. These devices still require CE marking and compliance with machinery legislation, although they are outside the ITC's registration and inspection regime.

Building regulations

In addition to the equipment itself, each project must comply with the regulations of the building where it is installed:

• CTE DB-SUA, particularly document SUA 9 on accessibility and Supporting Document DA DB-SUA/2 for work on existing buildings.
• CTE DB-SI, when the installation affects compartmentation, evacuation routes or fire resistance.
• REBT (Royal Decree 842/2002) for the electrical supply of the equipment.
• Structural requirements for the shaft, fixings and loads; regional accessibility regulations and municipal planning permission where applicable.

What does all this mean in practice?

For the owner of a home or building, the regulations translate into a chain of guarantees:

• Verified design: risk assessment and, where applicable, EC type-examination by a notified body.
• Regulated marketing: CE marking and a declaration of conformity under machinery legislation.
• Controlled commissioning: initial inspection by an inspection body and RAE registration.
• Supervised service life: mandatory four-monthly maintenance and periodic inspections.

A homelift or platform lift up to 0.15 m/s is not a solution that needs "legalising" or a shortcut: it is equipment with its own regulatory framework, designed precisely for the uses it covers — detached houses, low-rise residential buildings and spaces with accessibility needs. Lower speed does not mean less safety: it means a product conceived, certified and inspected for that type of use.

Why AKROS?

All the equipment we supply at AKROS Movilidad complies with current regulations and carries the CE marking and the conformity documentation required by law: EC declaration of conformity, type examination by a notified body where the design requires it, an instruction manual in Spanish and a complete technical file. This is a non-negotiable requirement when we select which equipment to offer.

At AKROS Movilidad we are not manufacturers: we are prescribers and installers. This allows us to choose, among the manufacturers on the market, the equipment whose certification genuinely complies with this regulatory framework.

And we take care of ensuring the entire process is compliant:

• Assessment and prescription: we choose the equipment that suits your project and the regulations that apply to it.
• Installation and commissioning: we manage the initial inspection and RAE registration.
• Maintenance: our own technical service carries out the four-monthly checks and supports you through periodic inspections.

The fact that a piece of equipment is not a conventional lift does not mean it is less regulated: it means that the law treats it as what it is — a lifting machine that is certified, registered and inspected.

Conclusion

Platform lifts and homelifts of up to 0.15 m/s are fully legal and safe in Spain: they are marketed under the Machinery Directive and Royal Decree 1644/2008, designed to technical standards such as EN 81-41, verified by notified bodies when the travel exceeds 3 metres and, since 2024, registered, maintained and inspected under the ITC AEM 1. All the equipment supplied by AKROS Movilidad complies with this complete framework and carries the corresponding CE marking and conformity documentation. We also manage the entire process — initial inspection, RAE registration and maintenance — so that all you have to worry about is enjoying it.