MADRID — Spain has approved €30 million in aid for the victims of the train crash near Urda, offering the relatives of each person killed a total of €144,242 in aid and advance payments, under a decree adopted this week, according to the text of the decree and the Ministry of Transport.
The Council of Ministers, Spain’s cabinet, adopted the measure as Royal Decree-Law 32/2026 on November 3, and it took effect when it was published in the Official State Gazette, Spain’s official government bulletin, the following day. The Transport Ministry split the €30 million into €15 million of direct aid and €15 million of advances on civil liability compensation — money paid ahead of a final legal settlement so that families are not left waiting.
How the payments work
For each person killed, eligible relatives receive €72,121.46 in aid that does not have to be repaid, and may request an advance of the same amount, bringing the total to €144,242.92 per death, according to the decree. The amount matches the rate set after a deadly crash near Adamuz in January, under an earlier decree adopted on January 27.
The train operators Renfe and Iryo have 15 days to send the government the list of people who were on board. A further official resolution will set out how to apply, and victims will then have three months to apply, a period that can be extended. Decisions are due within six months after that window closes, though partial approvals can come earlier, and each grant is paid in a single payment. Sick leave that began before November 30 as a result of the crash counts as a work accident for benefit purposes.
The crash
The decree places the collision on October 28 at kilometre 118 of the Madrid-Seville high-speed line near Urda, in Toledo province. Renfe’s AVE train 2080, with 397 passengers on board, struck the back of Iryo train 6076, which was carrying 147 passengers, at high speed. Four cars at the back of the Iryo train derailed and fell down an embankment. The decree records 69 deaths and more than 100 people injured.
Spain’s transport minister, Óscar Puente, resigned on Tuesday over the crash, telling lawmakers that stepping down was “good for the country and for democracy.” All 69 victims were identified by November 2, authorities said, and the high-speed line between Madrid and Seville remains closed with no confirmed reopening date.
What happens next
Because Spain’s parliament has been dissolved since October 5 ahead of new elections, oversight of the decree rests with the Permanent Deputation of the Congress of Deputies, the small standing committee that acts for parliament between sessions. Investigators have not yet announced a final cause of the crash.
Read the decree summary: Spain approves €30 million for Urda crash victims.
