Individuals are resident in Spain for tax purposes if they meet at least one of the following criteria:
- Spend more than 183 days in Spain during a calendar year. In determining the period of stay, temporary absences are included in the count, except when the tax residence in another country can be proven. Special anti-avoidance rules are established for tax havens. Temporary visits to Spain to comply with contractual obligations under cultural and humanitarian collaboration agreements with the Spanish authorities which are not remunerated are not included when calculating the 183-day residence period.
- Have Spain as their main base or centre of activities or economic interests. It is presumed, unless proven otherwise, that a taxpayer’s habitual place of residence is Spain when, on the basis of the foregoing criteria, the spouse (not legally separated) and underage dependent children permanently reside in Spain. Spanish PIT law contains specific anti-avoidance rules regarding this matter.
Persons who do not meet any of the foregoing criteria are not resident in Spain for tax purposes. In such cases, Spanish-source income and capital gains in Spain are subject to NRIT.
Under Spanish law, the concept of part-year resident does not exist. An individual is either resident or non-resident and is taxed as such for the entire tax year.
However, in certain situations, a person may be resident for tax purposes in two different countries. This could be the case, for instance, of expatriates working in Spain who are resident in both Spain and their home country. A person who is resident in another country may qualify for a relief or exemption of Spanish tax under DTTs between the home country and Spain.
In such situations, the relevant DTT should be consulted to determine the country wherethe person is resident (see Double tax treaties [DTTs] in the Foreign tax relief and tax treatiessection for further information).
Most DTTs signed by Spain consider the following to be relevant when determining place of residence:
- Permanent home.
- Personal and economic relations (centre of vital interests).
- Habitual dwelling.
- Nationality.
See Exit tax in the Other taxessection for a description of the exit tax regime.
