The IPHAS H{alpha} survey provides a rich database to search for emission-line sources in the northern Galactic plane. We are systematically searching for symbiotic stars in the Milky Way using IPHAS. Our final goal, a complete census of this class of objects in the Galaxy, is a fundamental figure for discussing their overall properties and relevance to other classes of stars. Candidate symbiotic stars were selected using a refined combination of IPHAS and 2MASS photometric colours. Optical spectroscopy, together with the analysis of their spectral energy distribution in the IR, were obtained to confirm their nature and determine their main properties.