A significant portion of cooperatives in the Canary Islands, specifically over 65%, are at risk of dissolution due to their legal inactivity. This situation led the Parliament of the Canary Islands to approve an extension in January for these societies to adapt their statutes to Law 4/2022. The deadline, initially set for January 10, 2026, has been postponed until January 10, 2027, offering additional time to comply with regulations.
“"Many cooperatives had submitted their initiative, but due to administrative overload problems, the registry of cooperative societies of the Canary Islands had not been able to authorize these adaptations."
The decision to extend the deadline stems from the Public Administration's inability to process the relevant files in a timely manner. According to data from the Canary Islands Department of Tourism and Employment, had the regulation not been modified, nearly 65% of cooperatives would have faced dissolution and liquidation. The amendment focuses on the first section of the second transitional provision of Law 4/2022, of October 31, on Cooperative Societies of the Canary Islands, which now grants cooperatives established before 2023 until January 10, 2027, to adapt their statutes.
The situation of legal inactivity is alarming in both provinces. In Las Palmas, out of 961 registered cooperatives, 715 (74.40%) are inactive. This means that approximately three out of four provincial cooperatives are at risk of being legally dissolved. In Santa Cruz de Tenerife, out of 628 registered cooperative societies, 540 (86%) are in the same situation. At the autonomous community level, out of 336 cooperatives, 218 (65%) are registrally inactive.
In contrast, the number of active cooperatives in the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands totals 118. Broken down by provinces, Santa Cruz de Tenerife has 88 active cooperatives and Las Palmas has 246. These societies operate in various productive sectors, from agriculture and transport to education, associated work, and housing. A cooperative is considered legally inactive when it has failed to comply with its registration obligations for more than ten years, such as legalizing books or submitting annual accounts.
