Tax Lawyer Spain for Expats — Property, Inheritance & IRNR (2026)

If you are a foreign property owner, expat retiree, or international heir with assets in Spain, the Spanish tax system stops being theoretical the first time the Agencia Tributaria sends a letter asking for explanations. This page is a service overview: which Spanish tax areas CostaLuz Lawyers covers for non-resident and resident foreign clients, and how we work with you when something has gone wrong or you want to make sure it does not.

Property Tax for Non-Resident and Resident Owners

Anyone who owns Spanish real estate carries an annual filing obligation, even with zero rental income. The non-resident regime (IRNR via Modelo 210) captures imputed income from unrented properties, actual rental income from short and long lets, and capital gains on sale. Residents of Spain file the same incomes through their general personal income tax (IRPF) instead.

The areas we routinely cover for property owners:

• Modelo 210 imputed income — the 1.1% or 2% rateable value calculation for unrented holiday homes, filed annually, with the EU/non-EU residence-status distinction that determines the applicable rate (19% EU/EEA, 24% non-EU after Brexit).
• Modelo 210 rental income — annual filing for long lets — 1–20 January for 2024 and 2025 income, 1–20 April from the 2026 tax year, plus the per-let filings for short-term and Airbnb-style operations.
• Plusvalía municipal — the municipal land-value increase tax on every sale, gift, or inheritance transfer of urban property. After the 2021 Constitutional Court ruling, the calculation methodology shifted to two routes (objective and real gain), and the lower of the two applies.
• Capital gains on sale — the 19%/24% Spanish capital-gains rates for non-residents and the 3% retention the buyer’s lawyer withholds on closing, refunded against the final Modelo 210 capital gains return.
• IBI and rubbish-collection rates — local council tariffs we audit when clients suspect over-billing or the catastral value is out of step with actual property characteristics.

Inheritance Tax (Impuesto de Sucesiones y Donaciones)

Spanish inheritance tax is set by region — and Andalusia, Madrid, Valencia, and Murcia have moved aggressively to reduce the practical rate to near-zero for direct-line heirs in recent reforms. The catch: the tax obligation exists regardless of the rate, and the filing must be done within six months of death (extendable once by a further six months) at the regional tax office where the asset sits.

Our work in this area:

• Pre-death planning — choosing the right form of testamentary instrument (Spanish will, mirrored UK/Irish/US will, lifetime gift, life-interest deed) to use regional reductions before the death event.
• Six-month filing — the actual Impuesto de Sucesiones (ISD) filing, valuation reports, regional reduction applications, and bank/registry release coordination so heirs can complete the asset transfer.
• Mixed jurisdictions — international successions where the deceased held a habitual residence in one country and Spanish-situs property, governed by EU Regulation 650/2012 (the Succession Regulation) and the underlying national probate procedures.
• Andalusia 99% reduction — the practical paperwork to claim Andalucía’s 99% reduction on direct-line heirs, which is administrative not automatic.

IRNR and Modelo 210 — Non-Resident Income Tax Returns

The IRNR is the Spanish non-resident income tax regime, and Modelo 210 is its operational form. For most foreign property owners, this is the file the Spanish tax authority cares about most.

Where files commonly go wrong, and where we intervene:

• Missed annual imputed-income filings for holiday homes — every year not filed is a separate possible infraction. We file the missed years simultaneously, the extemporáneo route, with the right wording.
• Wrong residence classification — UK nationals tagged as EU residents post-Brexit are taxed at the wrong rate. We rectify with the correct fiscal-residence certificate from HMRC and the EU/non-EU declaration on the form.
• 3% retention recovery — when the buyer’s lawyer withheld 3% on sale but the seller’s capital gain is lower than the retention, the difference is recoverable via Modelo 210 within four months of the sale.
• Rental Modelo 210 quarterlies — the per-quarter filing schedule, deduction allowability for EU/EEA landlords (court-confirmed: deductions allowed for EU residents only), and the cross-check with the holiday-rental licensing regime.

International Succession and Cross-Border Estates

EU Regulation 650/2012 (the Succession Regulation) governs which national law applies to a deceased person’s estate when they had cross-border assets. The default is the law of habitual residence — but a person can elect (in a will) to be governed by the law of their nationality instead. The election clause is often the single most important sentence in a will for someone living in Spain with assets in the UK, US, or another jurisdiction.

Our work in this area:

• Drafting Spanish wills with the professio juris election clause that locks in the testator’s national succession law.
• Coordinating with UK solicitors, US estate attorneys, and Irish probate offices on the dual-process where the same estate is administered in two jurisdictions in parallel.
• Apostille and sworn-translation chaining for the foreign probate documents the Spanish bank or registry will demand before releasing the Spanish-situs asset.
• Tax planning the Spanish ISD filing against any double-taxation treaty in force (Spain has bilateral inheritance treaties with France, Greece, and Sweden — the rest of the world, including the UK and US, is unilaterally relieved via Spanish domestic law).

The Beckham Law — Special Tax Regime for Inbound Workers

The Beckham Law (Article 93 of the Spanish IRPF Law, enhanced by the Startup Law 28/2022) is Spain’s flat-tax regime for new arrivals who meet the impatriate criteria. For the year of arrival plus the following five natural years, employment income up to €600,000 is taxed at a flat 24%, with the excess at 47% — instead of the progressive 19%–54% general regime.

Eligibility and planning we routinely handle: confirming the five-prior-years non-residence requirement, filing the election within the six-month window from arrival, and modelling the worth of the regime against the specific compensation structure (especially for clients with significant equity, RSU vesting schedules, or pension contributions, where the analysis is non-trivial). The 2025 TEAC ruling on imputed rental income from primary residence (Resolución 3697/2025) is an open jurisprudential question — TSJ Madrid 665/2025 reached the opposite conclusion — and we advise the more conservative position until a Supreme Court ruling consolidates the doctrine.

Modelo 720 — Declaration of Foreign Assets

Modelo 720 is the informative declaration Spanish residents file annually for foreign-held assets exceeding €50,000 in any asset class (bank accounts, securities, real estate, cryptocurrencies). Since the TJUE ruling of 27 January 2022 and the implementing Spanish Law 5/2022, the original disproportionate sanctions regime has been eliminated — but the filing obligation remains in full force, now subject only to the general LGT penalty framework (€100 per data item, minimum €1,500 for omission). The 2025 calendar-year declaration is due before 31 March 2026.

Who We Help

Our typical tax clients are:

• UK, Irish, German, Dutch, Belgian, and Scandinavian retirees with Spanish holiday or main homes.
• US-resident or US-citizen property owners with Spanish-situs assets and FATCA / FBAR considerations on the US side.
• Filipino, Mexican, and Argentinian expats relocating to Spain under the NLV or DNV and needing the Beckham Law analysis.
• International heirs (often the next generation of long-term Spanish property-owning families) inheriting Spanish-situs assets while themselves resident in another country.
• Spanish-based remote workers whose primary income is from a foreign employer and who need to align the DNV residence permit, the Beckham regime, and the home-country tax treaty.

Get Expert Tax Advice

If you have received an Agencia Tributaria letter, are planning a sale or inheritance, or want a structured opinion on your residence and tax position before you act, send a brief outline of the situation and we will tell you whether and how we can help. Book a no-obligation review or write to marialuisa@costaluzlawyers.es. We work in English and Spanish only.

Filipino expats moving to Spain: our full 2026 visa & residency guide

Related Guides

• Spanish Wealth Tax for Non-Residents (2026)
• Impuesto sobre el Patrimonio para No Residentes (2026)
• Spain Residency Options for UK Nationals (2026)
• Spanish Lawyers for Expats — Property, Tax, Immigration, Inheritance (2026)

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need a Spanish tax lawyer if I only own a holiday home?

If you own Spanish real estate, you have an annual non-resident income tax filing obligation (Modelo 210) even without rental income — that single filing is what most foreign owners miss. A Spanish tax lawyer ensures the filing happens on time, at the correct EU or non-EU rate, with the correct catastral-value base. The fee is small relative to the late-filing sanction risk if missed for several years.

What is the difference between IRNR and IRPF in Spain?

IRNR (Impuesto sobre la Renta de no Residentes) applies to non-tax-residents of Spain — typically foreign property owners who live abroad but earn Spanish-source income. IRPF (Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Físicas) applies to tax residents of Spain — anyone spending more than 183 days per calendar year in Spain or whose centre of economic interests is in Spain. The two regimes have different rates, different deductions, and different filing schedules. Determining which regime applies in a given year is the first question a Spanish tax lawyer answers.

How is inheritance tax calculated in Andalusia in 2026?

Andalusia applies a 99% reduction on inheritance tax for direct-line heirs (spouse, descendants, ascendants) — meaning the effective rate is approximately 1% of the standard ISD calculation. The reduction is administrative, not automatic: it must be claimed in the six-month ISD filing with the correct family-relationship documentation. The reduction also applies to lifetime gifts (donations) between qualifying family members, subject to specific procedural requirements. Other Spanish regions apply different reductions, and the rate effectively paid depends entirely on where the property or asset is situated.

Is the Beckham Law still active in 2026?

Yes. The Beckham Law (Régimen Especial de Impatriados, Article 93 LIRPF, enhanced by the Startup Law 28/2022) remains active in 2026. Eligible new Spanish tax residents pay a flat 24% rate on employment income up to €600,000 for the year of arrival plus the five following natural years, with the excess at 47%. The eligibility window is five years of prior non-residence and the election must be made within six months of arrival. A recent TEAC ruling (Resolución 3697/2025) suggests Beckham filers should impute deemed rental income on their Spanish primary residence, while TSJ Madrid 665/2025 disagrees — an evolving area where conservative advice is warranted.

What happens if I have not filed Modelo 210 for several years?

You file the missed years simultaneously via the extemporáneo (late-filing) route. Pre-emptive late filing — before the Agencia Tributaria sends a requirement letter — limits the penalty to a percentage surcharge tied to the delay duration, instead of the higher post-requirement sanction. The capital-gains 3% retention from any sale during the missed period can sometimes be applied against the late-filing balance. We have completed multi-year catch-ups for clients with five, eight, and in two cases ten consecutive missed years.

Do I still need to file Modelo 720 after the EU Court of Justice ruling?

Yes. The TJUE ruling of 27 January 2022 eliminated the original disproportionate sanctions regime (the 150% asset-value fixed penalty), and the Spanish legislator implemented this via Law 5/2022. However, the obligation to declare foreign-held assets above €50,000 remains in full force. Late or missing filings are now subject only to the general LGT framework (€100 per data item, minimum €1,500 for omission). The 2025 calendar-year filing is due before 31 March 2026.

Important notice: This page describes service areas and is not a definitive legal opinion. Spanish tax law is fact-specific and depends on the calendar year, your residence status, the asset location, and the applicable double-taxation treaty. For a binding opinion on your specific situation, contact CostaLuz Lawyers directly.

Reviewed by María Luisa de Castro, Spanish tax and property lawyer (ICA Cádiz 2745). Policy facts verified via primary government and reputable industry sources on 3 June 2026. This page was prepared with the assistance of generative AI and edited by the CostaLuz Lawyers team. R10-POLICY-VERIFIED-2026-06-03.

Reviewed by María Luisa de Castro, Abogada nº 2745, Ilustre Colegio de Abogados de Cádiz.