Hi furbydoggy and viking
thanks for your replies - very useful both of them
Well, we decided to take the bull by the horns today and off we went to
the ajuntament in tortosa to find out what was what.
Firstly, they were very helpful - I personally was bricking it!
We were honest and said that we had already done the work but now understood that we should have got permissions first ... "lo siento" what now?
The nice man looked up our land and informed us that as we lived in what they called 'brown land' ie land that is not irrigated from the ground (a well) we would have to satisfy 2 requirements before they would submit a planning request.
1st - we had to have more than 4,000 square metres of land - we're ok on that one.
2nd - we have to prove that what we make more than 50% of our income (money coming from the uk as we are not yet residents) from the land. A bit more difficult to prove but do-able I think with a bit of help. He then said if we return with receipts of these and copies of our escritura, an architects plans of the whole building and external photos and they will submit a planning application and then we wait 1 year. They were also very helpful in suggesting reasons we might give to why we have had to do the building work and even suggested that the application would be to register the property as a dwelling =not something we could have dreamed was possible in the campo. Obviously, we are not holding much hope out on that one!
We then went to the agents rural's office in Tortosa to tell them what the ajuntament had said (as they had requested) (omitting the house as a legal dwelling idea) .... this is where things got more complicated.... they did not appear too happy that it appears the ajuntament are willing to take on the application and have asked us to return on monday with "someone who can speak better spanish to expain to them!"
I think this is where we are going to come up with the most opposition but will again keep you all posted on Monday.