Every April I have the same question, ‘Do I have to file for Spanish taxes?” And every April I look through tens of links to answer the question. So here is a little guide I’ve put together to help you (and me!) unpack this large question.
Do I have to file for taxes?
Auxiliar de Conversación
As an auxiliar de conversación in Spain you are not entitled to file for Spanish taxes as you are earning a scholarship (beca) through the Spanish government therefore are not paying toward IRPR and are not eligible to declare.
Employee of a Spanish Contract (cuenta ajena)
If you are an employee with a Spanish contract and have earned more than 22,000 euros within the last year (Jan. – Dec. 2020) then the answer is yes, you have to legally declare. This threshold to declare is lowered to 14,000 euros if you have had multiple employers for the one year time frame.
Freelancer (autonomo)
If you are a freelancer in Spain, you most definitely have to declare but this is worthy of a completely separate article as there are many other nuances.
Next Steps – When
So, you have to pay taxes. Tax season in Spain this year begins April 7th 2021 and ends 1st of July if you would like to declare online which in my opinion is the most straight forward way. Be careful! If you would like to receive money the cut off is the 25th of June in order to receive direct deposit.
Next Steps – How
First, your employer should have given you a “certificado de retenciones e ingresos a cuenta del Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Fisicas”. The header should be the one below.
After you have obtained this paper and if you have a straightforward claim such as mine – only income, no housing properties, no capital gains in Spain, etc. You can use the Agencia Tributaria’s “borrador” which is essential a rough draft of what you would get back given the data that you have provided in the tool.
- Agencia Tributaria’s Borrador
Please click the link here and a new tab will open up Renta – Agencia Tributaria.
https://www.agenciatributaria.es/AEAT.internet/Renta.shtml - Below you should see the option, ‘Servicio de tramitación borrador / declaracion (Renta WEB)’
3. From there they will ask for your NIE and also the ‘Numero de Soporte’ – don’t fear – it is a number that is on your TIE and you can see where to find it below.
4. Here you will have the option of the following: obtain a reference or if you are registered for Cl@ve, enter your information. If you are not registered for Cl@ve, I recommend that you sign up for it as it can save you a lot of time with updating files online.
5. Once you get past the Cl@ve, if this isn’t your first year paying taxes the Agencia will ask you to confirm your domicilio.
6. Once you confirm, ‘ratificar’, you have access to the Servicios Rentas such as the Draft / Declaration of Tax ‘Borrador/Declaración (Renta WEB).’
7. In my case, they had my information however if this is your first time declaring – this is your opportunity to use the ‘certificado de retenciones e ingresos a cuenta del Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Fisicas’.
8. Once your information is entered you will get the final result. Again, be careful! If it shows up as ( – ) negative, it is because the Spanish government will pay YOU. Imagine it as the state’s balance sheet and it shows that they have to pay the resident.
Check out my next post on how to continue to declare your taxes.
Any questions? Leave a comment below on if you have any problems and I’ll be sure to get back at you.