With the arrival of the opening season, the Barcelona rental market is heating up again. Recently, China citizens have suffered rental fraud, causing economic losses. Criminals often publish so-called "direct rental of high-quality housing without intermediaries" information through social media, and use so-called "real shot" pictures or videos to attract attention. After the renter expresses his intention to see the house, the criminals require the renter to first pay a deposit through domestic payment platforms, or cleverly establish items such as "residence certificate fee" and "city tax" to defraud funds. After the victim transferred the money, the criminals found excuses to delay the meeting and then disappeared.

The Consulate General in Barcelona has warned Chinese citizens of the territory to be vigilant about the lease trap.Be sure to rent a house through a qualified home brokerage agency or a third-party trading platform and sign a formal rental contract. Do not trust the direct rental information posted by individuals on social media, and do not easily transfer money to strangers, beware of being scammed.

In case of fraud, please contact the payment platform or bank as soon as possible to freeze funds, and report the case to the local or domestic police where the household is located to recover the loss as much as possible.

contact information

Alarm number: +34-112

Foreign Ministry Global Consular Protection and Emergency Service Hotline (24 hours)

+86-10-12308

+86-10-65612308

Consular Protection and Assistance at the Consulate General in Barcelona:

+34-932125622