Tax purposes by selling your property

Plusvalía

It is possible that when selling your property, you will be required to pay certain taxes. If you sell your property for a higher amount then when you bought it, you will have to pay a tax called Impuesto sobre el Incremento de Valor de los Terrenos Urbanos or Plusvalía over the profit you have made. When you, as a seller, are a non-resident in Spain, the tax percentage is 21% over the difference between the selling price and the price you paid at the time of purchase. The expenses you made for selling the property are deductible from the amount of Plusvalía you are required to pay.

Withholding

The notary is required to withhold the equivalent of 3% of the purchase price if the selling party is a non-resident. This happens under the concept 'reservation'. In Spanish the deduction is called retención. This 3% is not given to the seller. The reason for this deduction is that some people will emigrate from Spain after selling their property. In the past it happened that some people left without leaving a new address and by this failed to pay their tax due. To prevent this, the Spanish government implemented this system.

Energy Performance Certificate

If you want to sell your Spanish property an Energy Performance Certificate or ‘EPC’ is required. The certificate is also commonly referred to as an energy label. You are probably already familiar with the EPC as it is required in whole of the European Union. The EPC is also applicable on white goods appliances and other consumer electronics. The certificate gives the potential buyer information about the energy consumption of your property, including heating, hot water, ventilation, lighting and cooling.

If you are not in possession of an Energy Performance Certificate we are happy to arrange this for you. It is necessary to have an energy certificate if you want to sell your property. Without a valid EPC The Spanish notary will not transfer the title deeds. Does your property already have an EPC? In that case, the certificate is valid for up to 10 years after the issue date.