# Taxes due in spain



## mr_madonna007 (Sep 17, 2012)

I'm sure this is a question that's raised often.

I'm a non resident, own a house in Cebolla and is not rented out.

It's my first year to pay taxes.

I've been told IBI/Non Resident taxes are to be paid before 31st December - is this correct?

Kind regards


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

mr_madonna007 said:


> I'm sure this is a question that's raised often.
> 
> I'm a non resident, own a house in Cebolla and is not rented out.
> 
> ...


Certainly, non-resident tax is due by the end of the year.

The other taxes/charges are varied and are due at different times of the year. I don't know your area but for us IBI is due around June and Basura in October.


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## mr_madonna007 (Sep 17, 2012)

snikpoh said:


> Certainly, non-resident tax is due by the end of the year.
> 
> The other taxes/charges are varied and are due at different times of the year. I don't know your area but for us IBI is due around June and Basura in October.


Thanks Snikpoh

Non residence tax is what you pay for owning a property but not living in Spain right i.e. paying income tax - even if your property is not rented out? Or is non residence tax a separate tax?

Also, how much trouble do you get into if you DON'T pay your IBI & Busura on time? I'm worried that I may get into deep trouble as I've mis-understood - thinking I paid all taxes by the end of the year!

The last time I was in Spain was June, the only bill that came was for the water.

I'm going to Spain in November for 5 weeks - thinking I would be OK by paying the IBI & Busura before the end of the year.

Now I'm panicking - being the first year of taxes for me.

Please help!


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

mr_madonna007 said:


> Thanks Snikpoh
> 
> Non residence tax is what you pay for owning a property but not living in Spain right i.e. paying income tax - even if your property is not rented out? Or is non residence tax a separate tax?
> 
> ...


You won't be hauled off to jail for not paying your IBI or Basura bills on time (although if they remained unpaid for a very long time, the property could have an embargo placed on it). What there will be, however, are surcharges for late payment. If the bills haven't been paid by the end of what's called the Periodo Voluntario, you need to go to your Ayuntamiento and ask for an updated bill which they will print off for you, which will include the surcharges. 

It would be a good idea to ask them to set up direct debits so that they can be paid on time next year, which would avoid you having to pay extra in the future if you aren't in Spain at the time they need to be paid.


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## mr_madonna007 (Sep 17, 2012)

Lynn R said:


> You won't be hauled off to jail for not paying your IBI or Basura bills on time (although if they remained unpaid for a very long time, the property could have an embargo placed on it). What there will be, however, are surcharges for late payment. If the bills haven't been paid by the end of what's called the Periodo Voluntario, you need to go to your Ayuntamiento and ask for an updated bill which they will print off for you, which will include the surcharges.
> 
> It would be a good idea to ask them to set up direct debits so that they can be paid on time next year, which would avoid you having to pay extra in the future if you aren't in Spain at the time they need to be paid.


Lynn thank you - I can breathe easy now!

After reading about this on line - IBI, Basura & Non Residence tax, I didn't sleep well at all!

I'm glad to read Non Residence Tax is paid at the end of the year - this was my misunderstanding. I thought all taxes including IBI/Basura were also to be paid by 31st December!

I've asked my friend to contact the builder (by translating my email into Spanish) who renovated my house (and lives in Toledo) to contact the town hall in Cebolla or the town hall in Talevera de la Reina to find out what taxes are due and how much.

As you suggested, I think it's a good idea to set up a direct debit.


:clock:


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

Just to be clear;

Non-resident tax is a tax on the imputed rental that your property COULD have earned. It is based on the cadastral value and is quite low.

Water bills are (generally) payable every quarter and could be paid by direct debit.

Electricity bills are (generally) payable every two months and could be paid by direct debit.

Basura is (generally) payable annually but is sometimes loaded with the water bill - best to get it checked. Also payable by direct debit.

IBI is paid annually - check when it's due in your area. Also payable by direct debit.

The last two bills can be sorted at your local town hall where they can organise the paperwork required to pay by direct debit.


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## Rabbitcat (Aug 31, 2014)

Snikpoh thats a very useful and important post for many of us newbies, thank you.

Could you go a bit further if possible and suggest a percentage figure ( of cadestral value)which the non resident tax would be ( roughly)

Also could you explain what IBI is. 

Just trying to tot up annual tax outgoings. 

Your help is appreciated


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## mr_madonna007 (Sep 17, 2012)

Thank you all for your responses/help.

I feel a little better.

As soon as I get to Spain, these taxes will be paid! Hopefully 1 out of 2 is just overdue - or hopefully neither! I'll soon find out. Hopefully I'll hear from the builder with news before I get there.

It's all a learning curve and will be better prepared next year.

In case anyone reads this, and it's their first time paying non residence tax, I've just found a company in the UK called Spanish Tax Forms Ltd. For £25 they fill out the Spanish Tax Form 210 with the information you provide to them.

I don't know the value of my house - I have no previous bills i.e council tax/land tax bills to verify what it's worth (I bought it as a bank repo), so they'll be able to help and work it out.

As it's my first time submitting a 210 tax form, I want to play it safe.

It could be next year I'll be able to submit the 210 form myself - we'll see.

Here's what I found regarding IBI & Basura taxes:

Local Taxes

There are two local property taxes which are both based on the property's theoretical rental value according to the local land registry, and is adjusted in line with inflation. The rates of tax will vary from region to region due to the varying rates of tax imposed by the regional and local governments.

Local property tax (Impuesto Sobre Bienes Inmuebles (IBI))

This is the main local property tax affecting owners of properties in Spain payable yearly to the Town Hall. The amount of the tax is calculated by reference to the valor catastral (official value of the property) registered in respect of all properties in Spain. The percentage charged varies from area to area, and is roughly 0.5% to 1%.

Local mains drainage and refuse collection tax (basura y alcantarillado)

This local tax payable by property owner and a related to rubbish collection and drainage.The amount to pay varies from area to area, and should be paid to the local Town Hall every 3 or 6 months. This tax should be between €200 and €250 per year. Also, if your spanish property has a garage entry you are obliged to pay €18 per year.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Rabbitcat said:


> Snikpoh thats a very useful and important post for many of us newbies, thank you.
> 
> Could you go a bit further if possible and suggest a percentage figure ( of cadestral value)which the non resident tax would be ( roughly)
> 
> ...


You can see how to calculate the amount of non-resident property tax from this link:-


Property taxes for non-residents - Spanish Property Insight

IBI is the equivalent of Council Tax in the UK.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

mr_madonna007 said:


> Thank you all for your responses/help.
> 
> I feel a little better.
> 
> ...


A friend of mine uses that firm to submit her non-resident tax returns and says the service is very good. It's certainly the cheapest such service I've seen.

Good for you for finding all that out - just goes to show all the information is easily available online if you look for it, and it would be really good if everyone who is interesting in buying a property in Spain went into all these things before they even start looking for a property. Much better to read all the information for yourself and take the time to digest it rather than rely on some estate agent who has a vested interest in making a sale to give you all the necessary information. That way there should be no nasty surprises!


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## Rabbitcat (Aug 31, 2014)

Excellent Lynn. Thanks very much


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

mr_madonna007 said:


> Local mains drainage and refuse collection tax (basura y alcantarillado)
> 
> This local tax payable by property owner and a related to rubbish collection and drainage.The amount to pay varies from area to area, and should be paid to the local Town Hall every 3 or 6 months. This tax should be between €200 and €250 per year. Also, if your spanish property has a garage entry you are obliged to pay €18 per year.



Many areas only have Basura (rubish collection and drainage - like water rates and bin collection in UK). The 'usual' price for Basura does vary by area but should be around 80€. 

Not sure where the figure of 200-250€ comes from.

I presume the 'garage entry' is for town houses only.


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## mr_madonna007 (Sep 17, 2012)

snikpoh said:


> Many areas only have Basura (rubish collection and drainage - like water rates and bin collection in UK). The 'usual' price for Basura does vary by area but should be around 80€.
> 
> Not sure where the figure of 200-250€ comes from.
> 
> I presume the 'garage entry' is for town houses only.


Yes I agree, I did think that was quite a high estimate.

Is it possible they've combined to the 2 taxes together? IBI & Basura?

I'll soon find out when I get to Cebolla.

:noidea:


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

mr_madonna007 said:


> Yes I agree, I did think that was quite a high estimate.
> 
> Is it possible they've combined to the 2 taxes together? IBI & Basura?
> 
> ...


Given that my IBI is over 1100€, I suspect not.

I don't actually know what the 'average' IBI is in Spain nor what the 'average' house price is - does anyone?


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## Rabbitcat (Aug 31, 2014)

If IBI is as stated earlier 1% of house price it sure is quite costly -with 100k houses attracting annual bills of €1000, not cheap!!!


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Rabbitcat said:


> If IBI is as stated earlier 1% of house price it sure is quite costly -with 100k houses attracting annual bills of €1000, not cheap!!!


Well, that's not quite what the information posted said. It was actually:-

"The percentage charged varies from area to area, and is roughly 0.5% to 1%."

Also, it is based on the catastral value (similar to the old rateable value in the UK) and not the purchase price of the house. In some areas, where catastral values have not been revised for several years, the catastral value can be much lower than the price of the house.

Conversely, in other areas it can be the case that the catastral value exceeds the market value of the house. That can give rise to something else which prospective purchasers need to be aware of. If they buy a property for a price substantially lower than the catastral value, and pay the 10% transfer tax based on the amount they paid for the house, they may still receive a bill some time later from Hacienda (the Spanish tax office) demanding extra transfer tax as they calculate the amount due on either the catastral value or the sale price, whichever is the higher.

I doubt very much whether there is any "average" IBI bill or house price in Spain. The IBI bills vary so much, according to which municipality they are in, whether it's a town or campo area, size of property, and so on. My annual bill should be €580 but I get a discount (and this year an extra discount from the Malaga Provincial Government) so I only actually had to pay €296. These discounts are not available to second home owners, though.


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## Rabbitcat (Aug 31, 2014)

Thanks again Lynn- you're very helpful and very quick to reply.

Am bit by bit totalling up what my taxes/ govt payments should roughly be.

As far as I can add up so far for a 100k house in Alicante region, not renting out and non resident I should budget for around 1200 a year all in. ( utilities not included)

Not cheap but if that's the price then that's the price and best to know these things now before making the big purchase


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Rabbitcat said:


> Thanks again Lynn- you're very helpful and very quick to reply.
> 
> Am bit by bit totalling up what my taxes/ govt payments should roughly be.
> 
> ...


No, I don't suppose buying and running a second home is ever really going to be cheap, wherever it may be. 

You could always buy a holiday home in the UK. But what could you get for 80,000 pounds? And how much would the Council Tax be? Local Authorities (since 2012) have had the power to charge extra Council Tax for second homes or empty properties, although not all choose to do so.

In France, the taxes on second homes are higher than they are here.

If you buy in some far off country where property prices etc are extremely cheap, then you have to spend proportionately more on air fares (and a lot longer in terms of travel time) to get there.

You are quite right, it's far better to find out about these things well in advance before going ahead and buying.


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## GallineraGirl (Aug 13, 2011)

Rabbitcat said:


> If IBI is as stated earlier 1% of house price it sure is quite costly -with 100k houses attracting annual bills of €1000, not cheap!!!


 t

We have a house that is worth substantially more than this and we pay just over 100€. A shock for us this year as the IBI for our area has been reassessed - for the last 7 years it has been 40€!


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