VACATIO LEGIS it is technical term, this is the period between the formal enactment of a law and its coming into force. (It may be the case that the norm that belongs to the legal system is not yet applicable because it is still in the period of vacatio legis.)
In accordance with article 2 of Spanish Civil Code “Statutes shall enter into force twenty days after their full publication in the Official State Gazette, unless otherwise provided therein.” This term (of 20 days) can be lengthen or shorten if it is necessary, also the statute can provide the date, when provisions will come into force.
Vacatio legis is an adequate means to get both citizen and authority or official to know the law and adapt to it.
