Taxes
Who pays what and why: VAT, inheritance, gifts, wealth tax and non-residents.
The Spanish child tax allowance
Each child adds an amount Spanish income tax does not touch. Two different income limits apply, and the second can remove it when your child claims a refund.
7 min readHow to calculate Spanish VAT: adding it, removing it, and not getting it wrong
To add VAT you multiply by 1 plus the rate, and to remove it you divide. Subtracting 21 % from a price that already includes it always takes off too much.
15 min readSpanish VAT rates: 21%, 10% and 4%, and what falls under each
Spain has three VAT rates: a standard 21% and two reduced ones. What falls under each, and why the Canaries, Ceuta and Melilla charge IGIC and IPSI instead.
14 min readWhat Spanish inheritance tax is: who pays it and why the region decides
The same Spanish estate costs nothing or thousands depending on the region. What inheritance tax is, who has to pay it, and which region sets your bill.
12 min readSpanish gift tax: who pays it, how much, and why the deed changes everything
Spanish gift tax is paid by the person who receives, not the one who gives. Without a public deed, ten of the fifteen regions withdraw their 99 % rebate.
11 min readSpanish forced heirship: what is reserved and to whom
Spanish law reserves part of every estate to close family and the testator cannot give it away. How much it is, to whom, and why six regions answer differently.
15 min readSpanish bare ownership: what it is and what it is worth
A statutory scale splits a Spanish home between usufruct and bare ownership. What bare ownership means, how that split works and what is paid when it ends.
10 min readHow Spanish form 600 is filed
It is not one form but seventeen, because the law devolves approval to each region. Where you file, how long your own region gives you and the surcharge.
13 min readWhat Spanish form 211 is: the 3% the buyer withholds
Spanish form 211 is filed by the buyer of the property, not the seller. How much is withheld, when it falls due and why the 3% is rarely the real tax.
11 min readRegistering for Spanish business tax: who files, and on which form
Hardly anyone registers for Spanish business tax, because hardly anyone pays it. Those who do may not use form 840 at all: it depends on their municipality.
11 min readChanging your Spanish tax address: deadline and fine
Changing your Spanish tax address takes three months if you are not self-employed, not one. Check which form applies, when it falls due and the fine is less.
11 min readThe Beckham law: what it is and who gains
The Spanish Beckham law is not a flat 24%: it splits your income in two bases and saves nothing on one of them. And the clock does not start on moving day.
11 min readWhat Spanish form 216 is: withholding for non-residents
Form 216 is sometimes due even when nothing at all was withheld. Which rate applies, why the withholding almost always overshoots, and when July is really due.
9 min readWhat Spanish form 296 is: the annual IRNR summary
Spanish form 296 reports payments your form 216s never saw, and that is not a mismatch. Which income belongs on it, what must match, and when it is due.
8 min readThe Spanish maternity deduction: a ceiling that vanished
Since 2023 the deduction no longer depends on what you contributed. Work out your qualifying months, the nursery top-up and whether to file form 140.
10 min readRectifying invoices and the VAT nobody paid you
The window to recover VAT on an unpaid Spanish invoice shuts at month 18. The four-year limit that everyone quotes is never the one that actually binds here.
9 min readForm 714: who files the Spanish wealth tax
It is filed in two independent cases, and the second counts exempt assets and deducts no debt. How each asset is valued and which exempt minimum applies.
14 min readWhat Spain’s form 720 is and what it costs today
The EU Court of Justice struck down form 720’s penalty regime in 2022. The three €50,000 blocks, the magnitude almost nobody measures, and what is left.
15 min readSpanish non-resident tax: what it is and who pays it
Spain taxes the Spanish income of people who do not live there. What you declare, the 19% or 24% rate by where you reside, and which deadline applies.
12 min readWhat happened to Spain's Plan MOVES, and what the EV grant pays now
Spain's state Plan MOVES ended in 2024 and came back for 2025 only. Since July 2026 the grant is called Auto+, it is national, and it is worked out differently.
12 min readWhat Spanish road tax (IVTM) is and how it is worked out
Selling your car refunds you none of the Spanish IVTM you already paid. What the road tax is, who owes it, and where the figure on the bill comes from.
12 min readSpanish form 576: a tax return with no due date
Form 576 has no deadline date: its window is two events, not a day. Who files it, what form 06 is for, and what happens if you bring a car in.
9 min readSpain's mutualist income tax refund, explained
Who qualifies for the Spanish mutualist pension refund and how much comes off. Which tax years survive the 216-day suspension, and by which route.
11 min readWhat IGIC is, and why the Canaries do not charge VAT
IGIC takes the place of VAT in the Canary Islands, with seven rates and a 7 % general rate. Who sets it, why shops do not charge it, and what importing changes.
11 min read
The content is educational and does not constitute financial advice.