The 1978 Constitution created a new administrative territorial division in Spain, with three administrative levels: central government, Autonomous Communities or Regions and local councils (municipalities and provinces). According to the areas of competence laid down in the Constitution, all three levels have general responsibilities for culture, although the majority of public cultural expenditure comes from regional and local governments, which together represented 83.5% of public cultural spending in 2023 (see chapter 5.1).
The central government holds the exclusive responsibility for protecting cultural property against export, creating legislation to protect copyright, overseeing the basic rules on freedom of expression, creation and communication and regulating the means of communication (radio, television and the press) solely to the extent that such freedoms are threatened. At the same time, it retains the ownership of certain major cultural institutions, such as some museums, archives and libraries, even if their administration is sometimes delegated to the regions.
In November 2025, a new structure of the Ministry of Culture was established (Royal Decree 1028/2025) with four Directorates General:
- Directorate-General for Books, Comics and Reading Promotion
- Directorate-General for Cultural Rights
- Directorate-General for Cultural Heritage and Fine Arts
- Directorate-General for Performing Arts and Music
This lean organisational structure is partly explained by the existence of autonomous cultural bodies with independent legal status (public law entities) and a certain degree of operational autonomy. This is the case, for example, of the Prado Museum, the National Library of Spain, and the Institute of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts.
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