Spain's animal welfare law, Ley 7/2023, changed the default for bars and restaurants in a way that's more explicit than almost anywhere else in this guide. Reporting on the law confirms that an establishment's owner can still choose to bar pets, but has to make that clear at the entrance with a visible sign, and spell it out in the venue's own terms. Animals still can't enter areas where food is actually handled or prepared, and a venue can still refuse a specific animal that poses a genuine risk to other customers or staff.
In practice, this flips the usual assumption: rather than needing to ask whether a dog is welcome, the more useful habit in Spain is to look for a sign saying it isn't. Terrazas (outdoor terraces) are almost universally welcoming regardless, the same pattern found across southern Europe, and a growing number of indoor dining rooms are too, helped along by the law's sign-based default.
Assistance dogs sit on even firmer legal ground: Spain's 2025 royal decree on assistance dogs guarantees access to any space open to the public nationwide, restaurants and hospitality venues included, replacing a patchier set of rules that dated back to 1983 and that varied by region. Refusing a recognised assistance dog is treated separately from simply declining an ordinary pet, and carries its own distinct consequences.