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Article 183 of the Spanish Criminal Code: online grooming of a child under sixteen
Quick answerArticle 183 punishes a person who contacts a child under sixteen through information technology and proposes a meeting for a sexual purpose, provided the proposal is accompanied by material acts of approach, and also a person who entices such a child into supplying pornographic material. Sentences range from six months to three years of imprisonment, increased where coercion, intimidation or deceit is used.
Known in practice as the online grooming offence, this provision implements the Lanzarote Convention and Directive 2011/93/EU. Its present wording comes from final provision 4.8 of Organic Act 10/2022 of 6 September, which moved the content of the former article 183 ter into article 183 and updated the internal cross-references following the reform of title VIII. It is an offence of danger that brings forward the threshold of criminal protection to preparatory conduct, which makes rigorous scrutiny of each of its elements essential.
Also cited as: article 183 Spanish Criminal Code · art. 183 CP · Spanish Penal Code article 183 · artículo 183 del Código Penal.
Wording of the provision
1. Any person who, through the internet, the telephone or any other information and communication technology, contacts a child under sixteen years of age and proposes to arrange a meeting with that child in order to commit any of the offences described in articles 181 and 189, provided that such proposal is accompanied by material acts directed towards the approach, shall be punished with one to three years of imprisonment or a fine of twelve to twenty-four months, without prejudice to the penalties corresponding to the offences actually committed. The penalties shall be imposed in their upper half where the approach is obtained by means of coercion, intimidation or deceit.
2. Any person who, through the internet, the telephone or any other information and communication technology, contacts a child under sixteen years of age and performs acts aimed at enticing that child into supplying pornographic material or showing him or her pornographic images depicting or featuring a minor, shall be punished with six months to two years of imprisonment.
Consolidated text published by the Spanish Official State Gazette, Organic Act 10/1995 of 23 November, the Criminal Code. Unofficial English rendering; the Spanish text is the authentic one.
Sentencing range. Paragraph 1: one to three years of imprisonment or a fine of twelve to twenty-four months, in the upper half where the approach is obtained by coercion, intimidation or deceit. Paragraph 2: six months to two years of imprisonment. Penalties apply without prejudice to those for any offence actually committed.
Key facts
| Location | Book II, title VIII, chapter II bis of the Criminal Code |
|---|---|
| Protected interest | Sexual indemnity of the child under sixteen and free development in the digital environment |
| Nature | Offence of danger with anticipated completion |
| Perpetrator | Any person; no particular age or prior relationship with the victim is required |
| Victim | A child under sixteen years of age |
| Means | Internet, telephone or any other information and communication technology |
| Current wording | Final provision 4.8 of Organic Act 10/2022 of 6 September, in force since 7 October 2022 |
Elements and scope
- Contact with the child through a technological medium. Purely physical approaches fall outside this provision and are dealt with under articles 181 and following.
- The victim must be under sixteen; the perpetrator’s awareness of that fact forms part of the mental element.
- Under paragraph 1, a proposal to arrange a meeting with the purpose of committing an offence under articles 181 or 189. Sexual conversation alone, without a proposal to meet, does not satisfy the offence.
- Material acts directed towards the approach, a separate and cumulative requirement that constitutes the real limit of the provision: travel, purchase of tickets, sending money, fixing a place and time, or any external conduct going beyond words.
- Under paragraph 2, acts aimed at enticing the child into supplying pornographic material or showing pornographic images involving minors, without any need for a proposed meeting.
Points of application
Sexual conversation is not enough. The Second Chamber of the Supreme Court has consistently required that the proposal to meet be accompanied by external material acts, so that the exchange of sexual messages, however explicit, does not by itself constitute the paragraph 1 offence. The opposite reading would turn the provision into the punishment of mere intention.
Concurrence with the substantive offence. Where the meeting takes place and a sexual offence is committed, the prevailing view resolves the concurrence of provisions by absorption in favour of the completed offence, subject to the express cumulative clause contained in article 183 itself.
Entrapment and undercover officers. Undercover online officers require judicial authorisation under article 282 bis, paragraph 6, of the Criminal Procedure Act. The absence of authorisation, or the creation by the officer of a criminal intent that did not previously exist, renders the evidence void and leads to acquittal.
Mistake as to age. Knowledge that the victim is under sixteen belongs to the mental element. Physical appearance, the profile declared on the platform and the child’s own statements are decisive in assessing a mistake of fact under article 14, whether avoidable or unavoidable.
Enticement under paragraph 2. The statutory verb requires conduct amounting to grooming or qualified deceit; a bare request for images, without any stratagem, falls outside this provision, without prejudice to its possible treatment under article 189.
Defence strategy
Challenge the existence of material acts of approach. This is the principal defence under paragraph 1. The task is to establish that the exchange never went beyond words and that there was no travel, no specific appointment, no money transfer and no external act of approach.
Question the chain of custody of the digital evidence. Device images, screenshots and extractions from messaging applications must be produced with a guarantee of integrity. The absence of a hash value, of a forensic imaging record or of the intervention of the court clerk undermines their evidential value.
Establish the absence of knowledge of the victim’s age. The platform profile, the child’s own statements about age and the service’s own adult-only requirement support a mistake of fact.
Examine the police operation. Judicial authorisation for the undercover online officer must be verified, together with compliance with the limits of article 282 bis, ruling out that the criminal initiative came from the officer.
Consider suspension of the sentence. Where the sentence does not exceed two years and the defendant has no prior record, suspension under article 80 is available, although the prohibitions of article 57 and the disqualification of article 192 should be anticipated.
Defence in this area
If you or your company are facing proceedings in this area, the firm provides defence and prosecution in Alicante and Madrid, with 24-hour assistance to detained persons.
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This page is provided for information only and does not constitute legal advice. The application of any provision depends on the circumstances of the case and requires review of the file by a lawyer. The English rendering of the legal text is unofficial.
Last reviewed: 21 September 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is sexual conversation with a minor sufficient for conviction?
No. Paragraph 1 requires, in addition to the proposal to meet, material acts directed towards the approach. Without that external element the offence is not made out, without prejudice to liability under other provisions.
What if the child lied about their age?
Knowledge that the victim is under sixteen forms part of the mental element. If the defendant reasonably believed he was dealing with an adult, the mistake of fact under article 14 must be examined, which may exclude or reduce liability.
Is asking a minor for photographs an offence?
Paragraph 2 punishes acts aimed at enticing a child into supplying pornographic material. Conduct amounting to grooming or deceit is required; the assessment depends on the actual content of the messages and the context of the relationship.
May the police pose as a minor?
Yes, through an undercover online officer, but judicial authorisation is required under article 282 bis, paragraph 6, of the Criminal Procedure Act. Operating without judicial cover, or generating a criminal intent that did not exist, vitiates the proceedings.
Can a prison sentence be suspended?
Where the sentence imposed does not exceed two years and the requirements of article 80 are met, suspension is possible. Such decisions usually impose restraining and non-communication orders and the special disqualification of article 192.
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