DeCA: the digital control document mandatory from 5 October 2026

Published and reviewed: 2 July 2026 · Verified against Spanish Law 9/2025, Order FOM/2861/2012, the Resolution of 5 June 2026 and Order TRM/282/2026 (all linked to the BOE, Spain's Official State Gazette).

What is the DeCA?

The DeCA (electronic administrative control document) is the digital version of the control document that has been legally required to accompany every domestic public road haulage shipment in Spain since 2013. It doesn't change the content or the obligation itself: it changes the medium, which from 5 October 2026 must be electronic.

The underlying document remains the one set out in Order FOM/2861/2012 (Spain's BOE), issued to develop article 222.2 of the Spanish Road Transport Regulation (ROTT): a document drawn up for each shipment, containing the data required by its article 6 (parties, origin, destination, goods, vehicle registration, date), which must be available for inspection at a roadside check. What the Spanish Law 9/2025, of 3 December, on Sustainable Mobility (BOE) does, in its eighth transitional provision, is set a deadline of 10 months from its entry into force, after which that document can no longer be carried on paper. That deadline falls on 5 October 2026, and no extension or transitional regime has been approved.

The same digitalization also reaches passenger transport, whose route sheet (Order FOM/1230/2013) is likewise moving to digital format. This guide focuses on the goods control document, which is the one affecting the vast majority of companies.

Is the industry ready? According to a survey by Fenadismer and Continental of around 750 professionals, only 17% feel ready for the change. If you're in the remaining 83%, this guide and the final checklist are for you.

Who is required to use the DeCA?

It applies to anyone carrying out domestic public road haulage, meaning transport with both origin and destination in Spain. That includes both Spanish companies on their national routes and foreign companies performing cabotage inside Spain (domestic transport within Spain carried out under a Community licence).

Excluded, under the exceptions in article 2.1 of Order FOM/2861/2012 itself, are among others:

• Transport operations exempt from authorization (for example, those carried out in light vehicles below the authorization threshold).
• Removals.
• Parcel delivery and similar delivery services.
• Movements of broken-down vehicles.

What are the technical requirements of the DeCA?

They are set by the Resolution of 5 June 2026, from Spain's Directorate-General for Road and Rail Transport (BOE-A-2026-12784), published in the BOE on 12 June. In essence: a native PDF with a QR code that lets any inspecting officer download the document instantly, with no passwords or logins.

Two practical notes. First, this Resolution repeals the previous one from 22 May 2023 and removes the requirement to notify the download domain in advance, which the earlier rule required: one less formality. Second, the requirement most likely to trip up homegrown systems isn't the PDF itself, but availability: the QR code's URL has to respond the moment the officer scans it at the roadside, which requires a reliable online repository throughout the transport and the following week, and an orderly archive for the following year.

How is the DeCA shown at a roadside check?

The driver shows the PDF on a phone or tablet, and the officer scans the embedded QR code, which downloads the document directly onto their own device. That's the point (and the demanding part) of the system: the check doesn't depend on what's visible on the driver's screen, but on the QR code's URL responding instantly, over HTTPS, without requesting any credentials.

Three practical consequences follow from that mechanism, worth internalizing before October:

• Coverage matters: it's the officer who downloads the document on their own device, so it must be hosted on a service accessible from any network, not on the company's internal network.
• The check doesn't end at the roadside: the 7-calendar-day availability window after the transport exists precisely for later verification; if your URL dies as soon as the goods are delivered, you're in breach even if the trip itself went fine.
• Also carrying a printed copy is optional and can help as a courtesy, but it doesn't replace the DeCA: from 5 October 2026 the required format is the electronic one.

Who is responsible for each piece of data on the DeCA?

Since 29 March 2026, liability has been split by regulation: the contracting shipper is liable for the data in points a) to d) of article 6, and the effective carrier for those in points e) to g). This is set out in Order TRM/282/2026, of 25 March (BOE-A-2026-7128), which amends article 7 of Order FOM/2861/2012.

Beyond the split by data field, both parties are liable for the document being issued. The contracting shipper is only exempted if it can prove the document was actually issued. And an important nuance in subcontracting chains: the parties bound are the two actual ends of the chain — whoever contracts the shipment and whoever physically carries it — not the intermediaries.

The operational consequence is that the DeCA is not a formality the carrier can handle alone, nor one the shipper can wash their hands of by delegating: you need to agree with each customer who enters which data and in which system, and make sure that system leaves a trace that the document was issued. If you work with many different shippers, that operational agreement is the part of the project that takes the most time: start there.

What fine applies for not carrying the DeCA?

No specific penalty "for not carrying the DeCA" has been created: what applies is the general catalog of Spain's LOTT (Land Transport Regulation Act) for control documentation, according to its consolidated text (BOE). Under that regime, the reference figures are these:

Keep in mind that the penalty is assessed per shipment and per check: a moderate individual amount stops being moderate when every truck stopped on the road is a potential citation, every day. And from 5 October 2026, carrying the document on paper amounts, in practice, to not carrying it in the required format.

Honest caveat: applying these categories to the DeCA is the reasonable reading of the current control-documentation regime, not a new, specific catalog. Verify the numbering and the amounts in the linked consolidated text of the LOTT before making decisions based on them.

How do I comply with the DeCA? (Including the free option)

The first thing you should know, because not everyone will tell you: the procedure itself costs nothing. There's no fee, no approval process to pay for, and Spain's own Ministry of Transport offers a free issuance channel — aimed mainly at self-employed drivers and small fleets — that you can check on its official DeCA page. If you issue few documents and don't need to integrate them with anything else, that option may be enough, and we'd rather tell you so plainly.

When does a platform pay off? When the DeCA stops being a standalone PDF and becomes part of your daily operations:

• Volume: if you issue dozens of documents a day, typing them one by one into a form doesn't scale; you need issuance from API or Excel and templates by customer and route.
• Integration with the e-CMR: an e-CMR that contains the data required by article 6 also serves as the control document (article 2.2 of Order FOM/2861/2012), so the efficient approach is to issue a single document that fulfills both purposes. Here's our guide to the e-CMR.
• The rest of the trip's formalities: if your drivers also need posting declarations (IMI), A1 certificates, or CAP expiry tracking, managing it all from a single dashboard avoids the national pastime of chasing paperwork in five different places.
• Verifiable archive: the regulation requires availability (transport + 7 days) and retention (≥ 1 year); a serious platform gives you the repository, an always-working QR code, and an auditable history without you having to build the infrastructure yourself.

That's exactly what MovingCert does: it issues your DeCA compliant with the Resolution of 5 June 2026, merged with the e-CMR in a single issuance, with public QR verification (any officer downloads the document on the first scan) and documents available in 14 languages for checks outside your home province or with drivers of any origin. And since it's a full suite, the same dashboard also handles your IMI declarations, your A1 certificates, and CAP expiry dates.

Checklist: get ready before 5 October

Want it on one page to print and go through with your team? Download the 2026 DeCA checklist as a PDF — free, no sign-up required.

• Take stock of your domestic operations: which routes with both origin and destination in Spain you run, how many control documents you issue per month, and who fills them in today.
• Rule out the exceptions: check whether part of your activity is exempt (vehicles exempt from authorization, removals, parcel delivery) and document why.
• Agree with each shipper on the data split required by Order TRM/282/2026 (shipper: points a–d; carrier: points e–g) and put it in writing.
• Choose your tool — the Ministry's free channel or a platform — and verify it generates a native PDF of ≤ 5 MB with an embedded QR code.
• Test the QR code the way an officer would: scan it with a phone outside your own network; the PDF must download on the first try, over HTTPS, with no username or password.
• Organize your archive: URL availability during transport plus 7 more days, and retention of at least 1 year.
• Train drivers and dispatch staff: how to carry the DeCA on a phone or tablet and how to show it during a check.
• Run a dry run in September: issue the DeCA alongside the paper document on real routes for a week or two, and fix whatever fails before it becomes mandatory.

Frequently asked questions

Will the DeCA deadline be extended?

No. The date results from the eighth transitional provision of Law 9/2025 (10 months from its entry into force), and no extension or transitional regime has been approved. Planning around a possible postponement means betting the outcome of a check on a rumor.

Is the DeCA the same as the CMR, or does it replace it?

No: the CMR documents the transport contract, and the DeCA is a Spanish administrative control document. But an e-CMR that contains the data required by article 6 also serves as the control document (art. 2.2 of Order FOM/2861/2012): a single, well-built electronic document fulfills both purposes.

Does a scanned PDF count?

No. The Resolution requires a native PDF (electronically generated) of no more than 5 MB. A scan or photo of the paper consignment note does not comply.

Do I need an app approved by the Ministry?

There is no approval process or provider registry: free issuance as long as the technical specification is met. If someone sells you their solution as "approved" or "official", be wary.

What if I do international transport?

Under the majority interpretation in the industry (CETM), international transport falls outside and continues with the CMR, although there is some dissenting reading: confirm it for your case in the Ministry's official FAQ. And don't forget international transport's own obligations (CMR, IMI, A1).

Who issues the DeCA, the shipper or the carrier?

Both are liable for it being issued (Order TRM/282/2026): the contracting shipper, additionally, for the data in points a)–d) of article 6, and the effective carrier for points e)–g). The shipper is only exempted by proving the document was issued.

How long do I have to keep the DeCA?

At least 1 year. And the QR code's URL must allow it to be downloaded throughout the transport operation and for the following 7 calendar days.

Does issuing a DeCA cost money?

The procedure itself has no cost: no fees, no approval process, and a free channel from the Ministry. A platform is paid for what it adds (volume, merged e-CMR, verifiable archive, API), not for the right to issue the document.

Official sources

• Spanish Law 9/2025, of 3 December, on Sustainable Mobility (8th transitional provision) — BOE
• Order FOM/2861/2012, goods transport control document — BOE
• Resolution of 5 June 2026, Directorate-General for Road and Rail Transport (DeCA technical specification) — BOE-A-2026-12784
• Order TRM/282/2026, of 25 March (liability for the control document) — BOE-A-2026-7128
• Spanish Law 16/1987 (LOTT), consolidated text — BOE
• Official DeCA page — Spain's Ministry of Transport · Official DeCA FAQ

Notice. This guide is informational content produced by MovingCert and verified against the official sources linked above, which are Spanish regulations. It does not constitute legal advice; for your specific case, consult a professional. Interpretive criteria (especially the scope regarding international transport) and penalty amounts may change: every regulatory statement links its source so you can check it. Last reviewed: 2 July 2026.