Anders Lindqvist lives in Stockholm and is tax resident in Sweden. In 2015 he bought a villa in Marbella for 1,450,000 €, with a mortgage on which 350,000 € remain outstanding at 31 December 2026. In 2021 he also bought a flat in Madrid for 420,000 € for his daughter, who is studying there. He has an account at a Spanish bank holding 60,000 €. Every year he files his 210 returns for the two properties, but nobody has ever mentioned Spanish Wealth Tax (known in Spain simply as Patrimonio) to him. His daughter tells him that Spain has a tax "for the rich" and that her father might be liable for it. Anders does not consider himself rich in Spain: his main wealth is in Sweden.
Only what is in Spain counts
Article 5.Uno of Law 19/1991 (the Wealth Tax Act) distinguishes two ways of being taxed. Residents in Spain are taxed under personal liability, on all their worldwide assets. Everyone else, like Anders, is taxed under real liability: only on assets and rights located in Spain or that can be exercised or must be performed here. His house in Stockholm and his Swedish investments are not included.
There is an exception worth knowing about. The same article treats as located in Spain holdings in unlisted entities whose assets consist, as to at least 50 %, of Spanish real estate. If Anders had bought the villa through a Swedish company, those holdings would still count as a Spanish asset.
How each asset is valued
Article 10.Uno requires real estate to be valued at the highest of three values: the valor catastral (the official cadastral value), the value checked by the Administration for the purposes of other taxes, and the purchase price or acquisition value. In areas such as Marbella, the valor catastral is usually far below the price paid, and it is the price that ends up deciding.
| Asset | Cadastral value (example) | Purchase price | Value declared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Villa in Marbella | 610,000 € | 1,450,000 € | 1,450,000 € |
| Flat in Madrid | 180,000 € | 420,000 € | 420,000 € |
| Account in Spain | — | — | 60,000 € |
| Total assets | 1,930,000 € |
Debts are subtracted separately, not from the value of the property. Article 9 allows the deduction of debts for which the taxpayer is liable, and its paragraph Cuatro limits those deductible under real liability to the ones affecting assets located in Spain. The mortgage on the villa is deducted. A personal loan Anders may have in Sweden is not.
Anders's figures on the state scale
- Assets in Spain: 1,930,000 €.
- Deductible debt, the mortgage on the villa: 350,000 €.
- Net wealth: 1,580,000 €.
- Exempt allowance under article 28, which also applies to those taxed under real liability: 700,000 €.
- Taxable base: 880,000 €.
- Tax on the scale in article 30.2: the first 668,499.75 € carry 2,506.86 €, and the rest, 211,500.25 €, is taxed at 0.9 %, that is, 1,903.50 €.
- Total state tax: 4,410.36 €.
Is he obliged to file? Article 37 imposes the obligation in two cases: when there is tax to pay and when, even if there is none, the value of the assets exceeds 2,000,000 €. On the state scale, Anders has tax to pay, so he would file Modelo 714. If his tax came to zero because of a regional relief, his assets, at 1,930,000 €, would be below that second threshold and he would not have to file. A difference of 70,000 € in values changes the obligation.
The region where the most valuable assets are
The fourth additional provision of the Act gives non-residents the right to apply the rules of the autonomous community (Spain's regions) where the greatest value of their assets and rights in Spain is located. You do not choose the most favourable one: the one with the greatest value applies. For Anders it is Andalucía, because the villa is worth more than three times as much as the Madrid flat. What counts is the value of the assets, not where Anders spends more time.
The Andalusian rules may set their own allowance, their own scale and reliefs on the tax. Those figures change often, and the tax accrues on 31 December, under article 29, so you have to use the rules in force on that specific date, not those of the previous year or the ones described in a press article.
If Anders sold the villa and bought another in Madrid, the applicable region would change with it. The same would happen if the Madrid flat were revalued in a check and overtook the villa. Debts do not count for this comparison: it looks at the value of the assets. The rule is applied each year to the snapshot taken on that 31 December.
If you would like us to calculate your Wealth Tax together with your 210 returns and see which regional rules apply to you, you can send us the escrituras (title deeds), the IBI receipts (the annual municipal property tax) and the balances at 31 December through the non-residents form.
The solidarity tax: from 3,700,000 € net
The Temporary Solidarity Tax on Large Fortunes, created by article 3 of Law 38/2022, has the same taxpayers as Wealth Tax, including non-residents in respect of their assets in Spain. It applies an exempt allowance of 700,000 € and its scale starts to bite on a taxable base above 3,000,000 €. For Anders, with Spanish net wealth of 1,580,000 €, the tax is zero.
Its relevance lies elsewhere. Paragraph Quince allows the Wealth Tax "actually paid" to be deducted. If a region grants relief on Wealth Tax and the taxpayer pays little or nothing there, they have nothing to subtract in the solidarity tax. For Spanish net wealth above 3,700,000 €, the regional relief can end up neutralised. It is worth checking each year whether this tax is still in force and on what terms.
A representative in Spain, depending on where you live
It depends on where you live. Article 6 of the Wealth Tax Act obliges non-residents to appoint a representative resident in Spain when they operate through a permanent establishment or when the Administration requires it because of the amount and nature of their assets here. In the solidarity tax, the obligation applies directly to those not resident in the European Union, with the exception of some European Economic Area states with mutual assistance. Anders, resident in Sweden, is not in that position.
The 714 does not replace the 210s
The 714 taxes what Anders owns on 31 December. His 210s tax what the flat earns him or what is imputed to him. One does not replace the other: the Madrid flat, which his daughter occupies without paying rent, generates imputed income every year whether or not he has to file Wealth Tax. That calculation is in what imputed income is.
Nor does the exemption for the main home apply to Anders. That exemption is designed for the home where the taxpayer lives, and his is in Stockholm.
If he received either of the properties by inheritance, the valuation and the acquisition date come from that file; see I inherit a flat in Spain as a non-resident. The 2,000,000 € threshold is explained in more detail in from what amount Wealth Tax has to be filed, and debts in which debts can be subtracted.
The Salama Tax non-residents page brings together the 210s, Wealth Tax and the sale of a property when the owner lives outside Spain.