Treasury unifies the procedure for guarantees, surety bonds, and deposits

Instruction 1/2026, dated October 27, issued by the counselor of Finance, Public Governance, Digital Society and Government Spokesperson, Alfonso Domínguez Simón, establishes the administrative procedure for constituting, canceling, seizing, and substituting guarantees via bank guarantee, surety bond, and cash, as well as for constituting deposits before the General Deposit and Guarantee Fund of La Rioja. The regulation is published in the Official Gazette of La Rioja number 210, dated Friday, October 30, 2026, within section III, Other Provisions and Acts, and bears the secure verification code BOR-A-20261030-III–4082 (reference III.4082). The text, spanning 28 pages, includes the application forms and the standard templates for guarantees and surety bond certificates.

Legal framework and replacement of the 2022 instruction

The instruction is based on Article 91 of Law 11/2013, of October 21, on the Public Finance of La Rioja, which entrusts the Treasury of the Autonomous Community to act as the General Deposit and Guarantee Fund and grants the head of the department the power to issue instructions for its operation. The functions of the General Fund are assigned to the Treasury and Financial Policy Service, which reports to the General Directorate of Budgetary Control, whose competencies regarding Treasury are detailed in Article 14.k) of Decree 51/2023, of July 14, on the organic structure of the department.

Royal Decree 937/2020, of October 27, which approves the regulation of the General Deposit Fund, continues to apply subsidiarily. The experience accumulated since the instruction of September 2, 2022, issued by the then counselor of Finance and Public Administration, has led to its replacement: the new regulation renders it ineffective and unifies guarantees and deposits into a single text. Resolution 239/2023, of July 28, delegates to the general director of Budgetary Control the execution of guarantees in securities and the order for the return and execution of bonds and guarantees.

Four admitted modalities and verification periods

The scope covers guarantees that must be constituted at the disposal of the regional Administration and its autonomous bodies, and cash deposits that must be placed under the custody of the Community. Only four modalities will be accepted:

• Cash in euros, deposited in the Treasury, without accrual of interest in favor of the interested party.
• Guarantee from a credit institution, financial credit establishment, or authorized and registered mutual guarantee society.
• Surety bond from an authorized and registered insurance entity.
• State debt securities.

The General Fund will not accept any other modality. The application is formalized using the “Request for Constitution of Guarantees” form (Annex I-A) and, if not submitted by the owner, guarantor, or depositor, a representative must be designated. For cash guarantees, the deposit is made into the general account opened at Caixabank (IBAN ES89 2100 6196 3213 0057 4783), indicating the depositor’s CIF/NIF and the file number or operation concept.

Electronic submission opens a period of two days for the Treasury and Financial Policy Service to verify the documentation; if it does not meet the requirements, a correction period of ten days is granted in accordance with Article 73 of Law 39/2015, with a warning of withdrawal. The date of constitution of the cash guarantee shall be the date of deposit into the Community’s account, regardless of the transfer order.

Digital guarantees, seizure, and substitution

Digital guarantees issued by entities with a submission platform and a secure verification code from the Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre, sent to the address tesorería@larioja.org, are accepted. The guarantee must be joint and several with respect to the primary obligor, with an express waiver of the benefit of excussion, indefinite, and payable upon first request from the Treasury. Paper guarantees are submitted at Portales, 71, 3rd floor, Logroño, and interested parties may voluntarily request a prior verification by email, which does not replace the formal constitution.

Total or partial seizure requires a prior adversarial procedure and is requested using the Annex II-A form; in the case of guarantees and insurance, the guaranteeing or insurance entities are also interested parties. For surety bonds, the request must be submitted within thirty days from the declaration of breach, according to Article 23 of Law 50/1980, of October 8, on the Insurance Contract. Payment is claimed within the voluntary period of Article 62.2 of Law 58/2003, of December 17: if this does not occur, enforcement proceedings are initiated. For substitution, authorization from the body in whose favor the guarantee was constituted is required, and it is processed using the Annex I form.

Approved forms and deposits

The instruction approves the application forms in Annexes I-A, I-B, II-A, and II-B, the standard forms in Annexes III to VI, and the forms for guarantees and surety insurance certificates regarding contracting (Annexes III-A to III-D and IV-A to IV-D). Management centers may propose adapted forms to the General Directorate of Budgetary Control based on the nature of the obligations to be guaranteed; their approval shall be carried out by a resolution published on the Government of La Rioja website and the electronic office. Deposits are requested using Annex I-B, have indefinite validity unless expressly indicated, and are returned via payment order.

The change affects contractors, concessionaires, insurance companies, and companies operating with the Community: the regulation homogenizes previously dispersed procedures, establishes deadlines and unique forms, and clarifies who orders each refund or execution. For SMEs bidding in La Rioja, the two-day window to review electronic documentation and the possibility of prior verification reduce the risk of a poorly presented guarantee invalidating an award.

Source: Official Gazette of La Rioja, no. 210, October 30, 2026, section III (Other Provisions and Acts), page 18390 (official reference: BOR-A-20261030-III–4082).