Costs and Taxes

When you are selling an apartment, you need to have an Energy Efficiency Certificate and a Cedula.

Energy Efficiency Certificate

All property owners must have an energy performance certificate and the results of the energy efficiency should be added to all adverts, to information of the property and to all contracts.

The certificate costs around €200 and is valid for 10 years. A certified technician will inspect the property and take care of the necessary paperwork. The relevant energy department of the Catalan government will then issue the certificate to the owner, called 'Certificado de Eficiencia Energética'. It is important that owners obtain this certificate, as the penalty fee of breaching this will range from €300 to €6,000. However, there are a few exemptions that do not need to get a certificate, which include: provisional properties with a planned use of 2 years or less, non-residential buildings (or parts of buildings) that do not require maintaining a comfortable temperature (like a warehouse or a garage), buildings or parts of buildings that are isolated and have a useful surface less than 50 m2, properties that will undergo extensive refurbishing work, and properties used less than 4 months a year (like a holiday home) as long the energy expenditure is less than 25% of what would result from its use year-round and the owner declares it as such.

Cedula - Certificate of Habitation

The certificate of habitation (cédula de habitabilidad) is a document which shows the confirmation from the Town Hall that the property is ready for habitation. You need this document to obtain the permission of the Town Hall to live in the property and to register the main utilities on your name in order to pay the consumption bills.

The cedula fee you need to pay depends on whether you are employed, a business owner, or unemployed. The cedula is valid for 1 year once obtained.

Selling as an Individual

You are required to pay capital gains tax if there is a profit on the sale of the property:

Capital gains tax is the main cost of selling property in Barcelona. This amount is based on the difference in the transfer value (what the buyer pays for the apartment and what the seller previously paid for the same property).
If you are a resident in the European Union and sell your habitual residence in Spain, you are exempt from this tax for the fraction of the capital gains that goes into the purchase of another residence within a maximum of 2 years. If, for example, you sell your residence and, in less than 2 years, buy another property where you intend to live, which is of the same or higher value than the one you sold, you are completely exempt from this tax.
Spanish residents over 65 years of age who sell their habitual residence are always exempt from this tax, whether they use their gains to buy another property or not.
In the case that the seller is not a EU resident, the buyer is obliged to retain 3% of the purchase price from the seller and give this amount to the public treasury. The seller will be able to request a refund of the excess in the case that the capital gains tax is inferior to this 3%. On the other hand, the seller must pay the remaining if the capital gains tax is higher.
The tax rate depends on the amount of profit made from the sale. The rates are described below:

Up to €6,000	19%
From €6,001 to €50,000	21%
Over €50,000	23%

You are also required to pay the municipal capital gains when you sell your property:

Municipal capital gains is a tax on the increase in the value of the land on which the property is built, during the time that you were the owner.
The tax rate is calculated according to the value of the land at the time of the sale, and the number of years that you owned the property. However, if there was no increase in the value of the land while you were the owner, you don't need to pay this tax as long as you can present sufficient proof to the city hall and they approve your application.
The seller is the one who pays this tax. However, if the seller is not a resident of Spain, the buyer who will be obliged to pay it.
The tax must be paid to the Barcelona city hall within a maximum of 30 business days since the date of the sale.

Selling as a company

If the seller of a property acts as a company or as a legally registered business person, the company is required to pay capital gains taxes on the profit.

The profit is the difference in the transfer value (between what the buyer pays for the apartment and what the seller originally paid for the same property).
Companies and legally registered business people are taxed at a company’s tax rate of 25%.

Companies are also required to pay municipal capital gains, based on the gain in value of the land where the property is built, the same as the individuals above.

For more detailed information about taxes, Casamona recommends speaking to a lawyer specialized in taxation in Spain.

Cost of buying

The cost of buying a property in Spain

If you are interested in buying a property in Spain, there are various costs you need to know about. This section will give you a clear overview of what you need to know about the Spanish fiscal system.

Any person or company who has the intention of purchasing property in Spain is subject to two main types of expenses, the first being taxes and the second being registration costs.

Costs when buying a Property in Barcelona

Buying as an Individual

The purchase price
Notary fees which range from €500 – €1000- those must be paid by the owner
Registration costs: €1000 – €2000- these are paid to various authorities. As the process may be difficult, you can also pay a notary for the service to distribute your money to the appropriate authorities
Taxes (Transfer tax 10% of the purchasing amount) and a smaller amount for Registration taxes (100 euros - 400 euros)

We would recommend that you consult the taxes you need to pay with a specialized tax lawyer.

Buying as an Individual (Age under 32 years)

You only pay 50% of the transfer tax if you are:

The purchase price
Notary fees which range from €500 – €1000- those must be paid by the owne
Registration costs: €1000 – €2000- these are paid to various authorities. As the process may be difficult, you can also pay a notary for the service to distribute your money to the appropriate authorities
Taxes (Transfer tax 10% of the purchasing amount) and a smaller amount for Registration taxes (100 euros - 400 euros).

Under the age of 32, you will be using the property as your habitual residence and your annual income does not exceed the legal limits (approximately €35 000)

We would recommend that you consult the taxes you need to pay with a specialized tax lawyer.

Buying as an Individual - NEW BUILD

The purchase price
Notary fees which range from €500 – €1000- those must be paid by the owner
Registration costs: €1000 – €2000- these are paid to various authorities. As the process may be difficult, you can also pay a notary for the service to distribute your money to the appropriate authorities
Taxes (The Value Added Tax- VAT 10% of the purchasing amount) and Registration taxes (1.5 % of the value of the property except if you pay with a mortgage, then it is 1.5 % of the mortgage)

We would recommend that you consult the taxes you need to pay with a specialized tax lawyer.

Buying as a Company

When buying property as a company you will have to pay 10% VAT tax instead of the transfer tax. However, if you are planning to re-sell the property within a period of 3 years (5 years for properties purchased before May 1st, 2020), you only have to pay 3% in tax. If after 3 years you still haven't sold it, you will have to pay the remaining 7%.

We would recommend that you consult the taxes you need to pay with a specialized tax lawyer.

Description of Taxes

The three taxes to consider when buying a property are the following: ITP, VAT and AJD. Luckily, not all three taxes must be paid.

Transfer tax- ITP (Impuesto Sobre las Transmisiones Patrimoniales), is a wealth transfer tax that applies to the transfer of the ownership of a property. The rate varies depending on what region of Spain you are in. In Catalonia the ITP is fixed at 10% for properties up to €1.000.000 in value. Above €1.000.000 a tax rate of 11% is applied.
The Value Added Tax- VAT (or IVA in Spanish) is a consumption tax that applies to all products and services. The VAT is the same for anywhere in Spain. In the case of purchasing a property, the rate is 10%. You pay a VAT tax instead of the transfer tax above if you buy as a company or if you buy a new build home.
Registration taxes- AJD (Actos Jurídicos Documentados), is a tax that applies to several types of administrative documents and is paid at the Notary. In the case of purchasing a property, this tax is applied to the Notary documents. The variable rate is different in each region of Spain, but in Catalonia it's 1,5% of the declared value of the property (except in the case of buying with a mortgage, in which case the variable AJD tax will be 1,5% of the mortgage value).

The Cost of Owning

The IBI

The IBI is a mandatory property tax, which is paid to the local town hall. These taxes are aimed at improving the infrastructure and cleanliness of the given community.
Property tax slips are issued by the municipality, normally between the months of September and November. The tax rate is usually between 1% and 2% of the cadastral value of the property.
Both residents and non-residents have to pay IBI.
Most flats are paying around 200-1000 euros per year in IBI.

The cost of Utility

Firstly, for all taxation purposes, it is essential to establish whether or not you are classed as a Spanish tax resident.

Electricity is normally very cheap in Spain you can choose between many different electricity companies.
Gaz
Water
Phone / Internet

Community Fees

Community fees are costs paid to the president of the building. This fee is paid towards the maintenance of the building.
The cost of the community fees depends on the building and the maintenance required.
Both residents and non-residents have to pay community tax.

Insurance

Residents' Personal Income Tax (IRPF)

IRPF (Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Físicas) is the Spanish income tax paid on any source of income including the ownership and renting out of property. Even if you are not renting out your property, you must still pay a wealth tax and include it in your IRPF if the property is not your habitual residence. If it is your habitual residence, you are exempt from this tax if the value of the property is €300.000 or less. If you pay this tax in Spain, remember to file the relevant forms exempting you from income tax in your home country.

Non-residents' Personal Income Tax (IRNR)

IRNR (Impuesto sobre la Renta de No Residentes) is the income tax that non-residents must pay on any source of income generated within Spain, including income from owning and renting out property. Just as it is for residents, non-residents must also pay a wealth tax, to be included in their IRNR, simply for owning property even if they do not rent it out. They must pay this tax even if they currently live in said property, unlike residents, because it cannot be considered their habitual residence (which is located in another country). This tax is calculated according to the cadastral value of the property.