Negative graphic validation report (IVGA): what to do next

A negative graphic validation report means that the Cadastre (Catastro, Spain’s land and property register for tax purposes) has not been able to fit the outline it was given into the surrounding parcel map. It does not mean that your property is wrong or that you have lost any land. It means that the file, as submitted, does not pass the technical check, almost always for a specific reason that has to be found before anything is changed.

What does the graphic validation report check?

When the real shape of a property does not match the cadastral one, the technician measures it, prepares a GML file (the georeferenced parcel format the Cadastre and the Land Registry require) with the coordinates of its vertices and submits it at the Cadastre’s online office (Sede Electrónica). The answer is the alternative graphic validation report (IVGA, Informe de Validación Gráfica Alternativa). We describe a case with a positive result in IVGA and ICUC for updating the title deed, and the document itself in graphic validation report.

In essence, the validation looks at three things:

• That the file is correct: a valid GML format, the official coordinate system and properly closed outlines.
• That the new geometry fits with the neighbouring parcels, without overlapping them and without leaving gaps.
• Which cadastral parcels are affected by the change.

What it does not look at is who owns the property. A positive IVGA does not prove ownership, and a negative one does not take it away. It is a check on geometry.

What does it mean when the IVGA comes out negative?

It means that the graphic representation, as submitted, does not meet the technical requirements to be incorporated into the Cadastre. The report itself usually points to where the problem lies: an outline that does not close, a parcel it overlaps, a value in the file that is not valid. It is worth reading it in full and calmly, because the clue is almost always there.

There is also an intermediate case that causes a lot of confusion: a report that accepts the geometry but lists neighbouring parcels as affected. That is not a fault in the file. It means that the change touches the neighbours, and that has consequences for the procedure which you should discuss with the notary or the land registrar before going any further.

The question we hear most at that point is: “It came out negative, so has my property been measured wrongly?” Not necessarily. Often the measurement is sound and what fails is the file or the cadastral parcel map around it.

Why does it come out negative? The most common causes

Cause	How to recognise it	What we do
Coordinates in another system	The property appears shifted as a block against the parcel map	Check the system and zone and regenerate the GML in ETRS89
Invalid geometry	An outline that does not close, crossing lines, repeated vertices	Clean up the drawing and generate the file again
Overlap with a neighbour	The new outline enters a neighbouring parcel that is not part of the operation	Review the field measurement and see whether the conflict is real
Gaps or strips	A strip with no parcel is left between your property and the neighbour or a track	Adjust to the shared boundary only if the measurement supports it

Coordinates: the plan that was in another system

This is the easiest cause to fix. An old plan in ED50, or one drawn in the local coordinates of a construction site, that is converted to GML without being transformed appears shifted as a whole against the Cadastre. The shape is right; the location is not. We explain the change of system in from ED50 to ETRS89 and why it matters in the georeferencing of plans.

Overlaps and gaps with the neighbours

This is almost always the heart of the matter. In many developments from the 1970s, the cadastral parcel map is shifted or simplified compared with the real walls. Inland, terraces with dry stone walls do not always follow the line drawn by the Cadastre. If we measure the wall and the Cadastre places the boundary a little further on, the GML enters the neighbouring parcel or leaves a strip that belongs to nobody.

That overlap may be purely cartographic (the Cadastre is drawn wrongly on both parcels) or it may reflect a real disagreement about where the boundary lies. Telling one from the other is fieldwork, not desk work.

Geometry and file format

A GML exported from a CAD drawing that has not been cleaned up may carry duplicated vertices, an outline that fails to close by a few millimetres or a line that crosses itself. A GML made from a sketch or a photograph also fails: without measured coordinates nobody knows where the vertices are.

What about the difference in area?

An area very different from the cadastral one is not, on its own, an error in the file. But it almost always reveals something else: an overlap, a gap or a shifted cadastral map. And outside the Cadastre it does carry weight, because the notary and the land registrar will look at where those square metres come from. If there is more land than registered, we cover it in excess of area (exceso de cabida).

What should you do when the report comes out negative?

This is the order we almost always follow:

1. Read the full report and note every issue and every parcel it mentions.
2. Review the file: coordinate system, zone, vertices and closure of the outlines. If the fault is purely technical, it is corrected and validated again.
3. Go back to the ground if needed: check the doubtful vertices and the physical features that act as the boundary (walls, fences, boundary markers, kerbs) with GNSS RTK or a total station.
4. Compare the measurement with the title deed (escritura), the current and historical Cadastre and orthophotos from different years. That is what we did in the case of the plot that did not measure what the title deed said.
5. Decide on the evidence. If the measurement is correct and the conflict with the neighbour is real, it is not resolved by moving vertices: it has to be dealt with through the proper channel.
6. Generate the corrected GML and validate it again, with a technical report explaining what has changed and why.

What we do not do is move the measurement to force a positive result. A positive IVGA with a geometry that is not the real one only postpones the problem to the day you sell, inherit or apply for a mortgage.

What technical documentation do we prepare?

Everything comes from a field measurement in official coordinates and is signed by Vicent Doménech, engineer in Geodesy and Cartography, chartered surveyor (colegiado) no. 8948:

• Georeferenced plan in ETRS89 UTM 30N, with numbered vertices and their coordinates.
• GML file of the parcel and, if the operation includes them, of the affected parcels.
• Technical report: what we measured and with what, what differences there are with the Cadastre and the title deed, and where they come from.
• IVGA obtained at the Cadastre’s online office, with its verification code, when it is part of the job.
• DWG, DXF or PDF if your architect or notary’s office asks for them (what formats a land surveyor delivers).

We work from Xàtiva and Xàbia on properties throughout the Valencia region (Comunitat Valenciana), Murcia and Albacete, and also on projects in the rest of Spain.

What about the legal side?

We deal with the technical side: where the vertices are, what area they enclose and why they do not fit the parcel map. What happens next with the affected neighbours, which procedure has to be followed or whether the change can be registered are legal questions. Those are for the notary, the land registrar or your lawyer, and our documentation is the technical basis they will need. There is more on the role of each in notary, Land Registry (Registro de la Propiedad) and Cadastre.

Frequently asked questions

Does a negative IVGA mean I have lost part of my property?

No. The report does not affect ownership or the registered area. It says that this outline, submitted in this way, does not fit the parcel map. That may be due to an error in the file, a badly drawn cadastral map or a real difference with a neighbour, and you need to find out which of the three it is.

Can it be submitted again?

Yes. Once the file or the measurement has been corrected, a new GML is generated and validated again at the Cadastre’s online office. What matters is that the correction reflects the measured reality, not whatever it takes to get a positive result.

Can I use the GML another technician prepared?

We look at it. If the underlying measurement is sound and the fault is in the file, the fieldwork does not need to be repeated. If there is no measurement behind it, or nobody knows how it was made, it is better to measure.

What do we need from you to review it?

The negative report with its code, the GML submitted, the cadastral reference, the title deed or land registry extract (nota simple) and any earlier plan. More detail in what documents a land surveyor needs to measure a property.

If your graphic validation report has come out negative, we review the case and prepare the plan, the GML and the report as part of our Cadastre and Land Registry service, always based on a measurement of the plot and its boundaries.

Tags actualizacion catastralgmlgeorreferenciacioncatastro

Written by Vicent Doménech, geodesy and cartography engineer, chartered surveyor no. 8948.