Items left behind by guests: how long to keep them, when to hand them to lost property and how to return them (Spain, Portugal, Italy and Greece, 2026)

Updated: 9 November 2026

A charger, glasses, a ring on the bedside table. Every property has a box of left-behind items. Most go back within days if you act fast. This is what we checked in official texts (links at the end). This is not legal advice: where we could not confirm something we say so.

First: try to return it

At a property you almost always know who slept in the room. That changes things:

The Spanish Civil Code (art. 615) says whoever finds a movable item must return it to its previous holder.
Only if the owner is unknown must it go to the mayor (in practice, the town hall's lost property office).
Note the date, room, who found it and a description. Take a photo.
Lock away valuables (jewellery, cash, documents, phones).

Spain: what the Civil Code says

Art. 615: if the owner is unknown, the item must be handed 'immediately' to the mayor of the town where it was found.
The town hall publishes it on two consecutive Sundays. If nobody claims it within two years of the second notice, it goes to the finder.
Art. 616: if the owner turns up in time, they pay a reward of one tenth of the value (one twentieth above 2,000 pesetas, an old figure in the text).
Arts. 1783-1784: innkeepers are liable as depositaries for guests' belongings brought in, if they were told about them and the guest followed their instructions. Not for armed robbery or force majeure.
The Code sets no period for the hotel to keep items before handing them in. Local bylaws may say more: we have not checked.

Italy: one year

Arts. 927-930 of the Codice civile (text read in an official municipal regulation):

A finder who cannot return a movable item to its owner must hand it 'without delay' to the Sindaco (mayor) of the place.
The Comune publishes it on its official notice board on two consecutive Sundays.
After one year without the owner appearing, the item or its price goes to the finder.
The owner owes a reward of one tenth of the value (one twentieth above EUR 5.16) if the finder asks.
Hotel-keeper liability (arts. 1783-1786): not confirmed in an official source.

Portugal: to the PSP or GNR police

The official procedure of the Município de Cascais, based on Ordinance 1513/2007, sends found items to a PSP or GNR police station.
Documents, cards, keys and phones are handed in on the next working day.
We could not read arts. 1323 and 1324 of the Civil Code on the official site: ask your câmara municipal or the PSP.

Greece: not confirmed

We found no official source for arts. 1081 ff. of the Greek Civil Code. Ask the local police or your lawyer what to do with unclaimed items.

Contacting the guest without data problems

Use the booking email or phone only to return the item. Do not add it to marketing lists (purpose limitation, art. 5(1)(b) GDPR).
Describe the item in general terms and ask the guest to identify it. That avoids handing it to the wrong person.
Do not post photos showing names, documents or guest details.
If they booked through a platform, you can use its messaging.

How to return it

Agree shipping in writing: address, courier and who pays.
Send it tracked and keep the receipt.
If someone else collects it, ask for the guest's written authorisation.
If there is no reply, try once more; then hand it to lost property with your log.

How iQuota helps

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Frequently asked questions

How long must I keep a left-behind item in Spain?

The Civil Code sets no period for the hotel. If you do not know the owner, art. 615: hand it to the town hall promptly; the two-year period runs there.

Can I keep it if nobody claims it?

In Spain, only if the town hall awards it to you after two years (art. 615). In Italy, after one year from publication (art. 929).

Can I use the booking email to tell the guest?

Yes, to return the item. Not to send them advertising.

Sources

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