1. What the government approved and since when it applies
The Council of Ministers approved Royal Decree-Law 25/2026 on 29 September, “por el que se adoptan y se prorrogan determinadas medidas en el marco del Plan Integral de Respuesta a la Crisis en Oriente Medio”; the BOE published it on 30 September and it entered into force the next day, 1 October (BOE-A-2026-20265). Article 6 sets the hydrocarbon tax cut at “20 céntimos de euro por litro” for diesel and unleaded petrol in October, “13 céntimos” in November and “6 céntimos” in December. It is a tax cut, not a rebate at the pump: the station pays less tax and the market decides how much reaches the customer, as with September's rebate.
The safeguard clause in the same article 6: “si por circunstancias extraordinarias, en el mes de septiembre de 2026 el índice de precios al consumo (IPC) de la gasolina o del gasóleo supera en más de un 15 por ciento el IPC del mismo mes del año anterior”, then 20 cents apply in November and 13 in December. Diesel crossed that threshold in July (15.7 per cent, El Español); the statistics office INE published the September figure on 14 October: diesel 34 per cent and petrol 27.5 per cent above a year earlier. So the 20-13-6 path no longer applies but 20-20-13; if October is also above 15 per cent, December stays at 20 cents (preamble of the decree; INE figure on 13 November). The rest of the decree: direct aid for professional diesel of 5, 12 and 19 cents a litre in October, November and December for vehicle holders under article 52 bis of Law 38/1992 (art. 17), so hauliers and taxis keep 25 cents every month; farm diesel up to 70 per cent of the gap to the pre-war price, capped at €0.20 a litre, until 31 December (art. 16); and a cap on the regulated gas tariff (art. 1). All measures approved since March together exceed €12 billion (Qué!, Pressdigital).
2. What changes at the pump on 1 October, and what changes in November and December
As of 4 November: the table below shows the 20, 13 and 6 cent path as it stood in the law on 1 October. It has been overtaken. Because September inflation came in at 34 per cent for diesel and 27.5 per cent for petrol (INE, 14 October), the cut stays at 20 cents in November, so the November column is the same as October. December brings either 13 cents, about 8.47 cents a litre more with VAT than in November, or 20 cents if October inflation is also above 15 per cent (INE on 13 November). The market moved more than the tax in October: petrol 95 fell from €1.849 in the week to 5 October to €1.751 in the week to 26 October, diesel from €1.918 to €1.888 (EU Oil Bulletin); on 4 November the daily averages were €1.711 and €1.892 (fuel-prices.eu).
For diesel nothing happens on 1 October: September's 20-cent cut simply continues. For petrol it does: the cut rises from 5 to 20 cents, 15 cents more, which with 21 per cent VAT is 18.15 cents a litre less if stations pass it on in full. On the 30 September average of €1.952 (El Independiente, ministry data) petrol 95 would come to about €1.77; diesel A at €1.938 is untouched by the decree. Under the original path the cut would have fallen to 13 cents on 1 November, 8.47 cents a litre more with VAT, and by another 8.47 cents on 1 December. Because the safeguard clause has kicked in, November stays like October and the first rise comes on 1 December at the earliest.
| Fuel | 30 September (actual) | 1 October (calculation) | 1 November (calculation) | 1 December (calculation) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diesel A | €1.938/L (cut 20 ct) | ≈ €1.94/L (20 ct, unchanged) | ≈ €2.02/L (13 ct, +8.47 ct) | ≈ €2.11/L (6 ct, +8.47 ct) |
| Petrol 95 | €1.952/L (cut 5 ct) | ≈ €1.77/L (20 ct, −18.15 ct) | ≈ €1.86/L (13 ct, +8.47 ct) | ≈ €1.94/L (6 ct, +8.47 ct) |
The calculation adds or subtracts only the tax effect with 21 per cent VAT on the 30 September prices; the actual price each month also depends on crude and gasoil on the world market, where Brent stood at $96.93 at 07:03 CEST on 1 October after the roll to the December contract (HeizOel24) and gasoil remains tighter than crude (see Diesel shortage winter 2026/27). A 50-litre fill of petrol gets about €9 cheaper from 1 October; a fill of diesel stays the same in November because the safeguard clause applies, and gets about €4.20 dearer from 1 December if the cut falls to 13 cents. Why diesel costs almost as much as petrol despite the larger cut is explained on Why is diesel more expensive than petrol.
3. Where the rebate comes from and what the earlier version of this page said
September's rebate came from Royal Decree-Law 18/2026 of 29 June with an automatic trigger: 20 cents for the fuel whose annual inflation exceeded 15 per cent, 5 cents for the other. Diesel reached 15.7 per cent in July and petrol 7.3 per cent, which is why September had 20 cents on diesel and 5 on petrol (El Español, 1 September 2026). That aid was due to expire on 30 September, and as of 22 September the government had not confirmed an extension; Motor16 then calculated that diesel would rise 24 cents on 1 October and pass €2 for the first time. That scenario has not happened: RDL 25/2026 replaces it with the 20-13-6 path and the safeguard.
The backdrop is unchanged: petrol and diesel about 30 per cent dearer than in June and inflation at 4.3 per cent in August (Qué!, 18 September). Germany has cut its energy tax on petrol and diesel by 14.04 cents, up to 16.7 cents with VAT, since the same 1 October, flat for three months (see Germany's fuel tax cut); France chose on 22 September to pay €100 to 5.5 million heavy drivers instead of cutting the price. Spain is now the only one of the three with a tapering cut written into law.
4. What drivers, visitors and fleets should do in October, November and December
As of 4 November: November is a full 20-cent month for diesel and petrol. If you can choose when to fill up, do it at the end of November, before the cut may fall to 13 cents on 1 December. On 13 November the INE publishes October inflation; if it is above 15 per cent, December also stays at 20 cents and there is no rush. For visitors, filling up in Spain still pays: diesel averaged €1.892 on 4 November, against €2.262 in France (fuel-prices.eu).
If you drive petrol, do not fill up on 30 September or early on 1 October: the cut rises by 15 cents and it pays to wait until stations pass it on, which took a few days in September. If you drive diesel, October was your good month and November is just as good: on 14 October the INE reported diesel inflation of 34 per cent for September, so the cut stays at 20 cents in November. The first rise comes on 1 December at the earliest. Visitors driving their own diesel to Spain in October can still count on the cut: at €1.938 on 30 September Spanish diesel stays well below Germany (€2.428 on 28 September, ADAC) and France (gazole €2.41 on 20 September, Hérault Tribune). Fleets with article 52 bis vehicles keep 25 cents every month through the article 17 direct aid, but receive the direct part afterwards, not at the pump.
For heating oil the decree changes nothing: article 6 covers road diesel and petrol, and gasóleo C stood at 175.7 cents a litre on 3 November, after 172.2 cents on 30 September (calienteybarato.com), driven by the same distillate market as diesel. Spain's ordering rule is on Gasóleo de calefacción: ¿comprar ahora o esperar?; the US version of the rule on Heating oil: buy now or wait?.
See in a minute what 8 cents more a litre from December does to your annual budget.
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