Everything you need to know about retentions or withholdings for selling properties in Spain

Welex: your conveyancing lawyers in Marbella.

At some point, you might need to know more about the retentions that are carried out for the conveyance of properties in Spain by non-residents.  In such cases, it is important to know that the legislation is different depending on whether or not the seller is a resident of Spain.

 

Below, you’ll find more information about what happens if the seller is a non-resident, what obligations the purchaser has towards the Spanish Tax Office and how to proceed to present model 211.

 

Spanish retention of 3% on the properties of non-residents

What happens if a person is a non-resident in Spain and has purchased or inherited a property in Spain and then decides to sell the property for a variety of reasons, such as the lack of use or because he/she is not making any profit on it? If you decide to make an offer and the seller accepts it, you can congratulate yourself on your good luck. Perfect! You now have a new property.

 

Although, up to this point, you have not encountered any problems, you still need to know your obligations to the Spanish Tax Office, specifically the retention of the 3% of the total selling price. In other words, you are obliged to settle to the Spanish Tax Office 3% of the final purchase price of the property you are purchasing.

How and when to pay:  Model 211

Within one month from the date of transfer of the property, the purchaser is obliged to present model 211, which serves to deposit the retention of 3% of the final purchase price of the property.

 

Once payment has been made, the purchaser must provide the seller with the proof of payment as well as a copy of model 211.

 

There is an exception when purchasing a property from a foreigner. The purchaser shall be exempt from presenting model 211 if the seller is a resident in Spain proven by a certificate duly issued by the Spanish Tax Office.

Welex Lawyers & Accountants
C/ Ramón Gómez de la Serna 23, Local 7, Marbella Tel. (+34) 952 775 521 · info@welex.es · www.welex.es