Once you make your decision on which bar, restaurant or any other type of business, Mallorca Bar Sales shall be happy to prepare an 'option' contract in straightforward easy to understand English. Once you sign and submit it to our office along with a small deposit, your business will be secured. That is to say we will instruct the vendor to remove it from sale and we will not arrange further viewings on the business.

Details like business name and business address, the details of both the parties to the transaction, terms of payment and date of completion shall be mentioned on the contract.


The deposit amount which is usually 10% of the sale value and based on the completion period of 30 days shall be held in a special ‘client account’ with a Spanish Bank until the completion.

The contract is planned to offer complete protection to you as a buyer. According to the contract, the seller shall agree to unlist his business from any public sale listing and also agrees not to sell his property to any other party during the option period. If Mallorca Bar Sales discover any issues during the transaction, we will discuss them with you and if the issues are not manageable you will be eligible for full refund of your deposit.

We can recommend and introduce you to a Gestoria, this is similar to an Accountant and an Abogado, the equivalent of a Lawyer. You can seek their help and advice for the purpose of negotiating the lease/rental contract, license confirmation and that there are no service and utility bills, taxes and rents outstanding.

Any unpaid debts that remain unpaid can be deducted from the completion proceeds before Mallorca Bar Sales transfers the balance into the seller’s account.

It’s a good idea to allow somewhere between £1000 and £1,500 towards legal charges, local taxes and the town hall charges this is usual for a business transfer for a shop or small bar.
These will normally increase with the size of the business you are looking to buy.
 
Make sure you are not being charged unfairly high charges by the agency, of course they have a fee for a business sale and services but make sure your are not being over charged. On a Traspaso and freehold sale the agency fees will normally be met by the vendor and on a rental contract they will usually be included in the first years ingoing costs.
Be aware that some agencies actually ask you for a fee upfront. Do not ever pay a fee direct to an agency just for showing you a business for sale.

Every document that you may need to take over a business and live in Mallorca like new lease contract for the premises, license transfers, NIE, residencia’s and the registration for your social security will be included in the legal fees you discuss with your Gestoria. It's a good idea to check these charges beforehand. We can help you with this.

Licences

Licences here in Mallorca are for the bar, restaurant or café premises not the person.
Although there is a set format here for the licence, the way it is interpreted can be different from one local council (Ajuntamento) to another. Your Gestoria will advise on specific requirements for your specific area.

However in the main:
Every business in Mallorca must secure an opening licence or ‘Apertura’ before it begins trading. If you are buying a business that is already trading then there is every chance this is already in effect.
If your business happens to be a club, restaurant or a bar, you also need to acquire ‘Turismo’ licence to get started.
If you serve food then the ‘Food handlers’ certificate is needed for everyone involved in the preparation of the food.  
Further, the requirements for a 'Music' licence depend upon which resort or area your business belongs to and these could be strict and inflexible or very easy at times.

On all the above you will work with your Gestoria to determine what is and what is not required.

So once again you can see the importance of working with a business agency who has local knowledge.