Anne and Peter Lindqvist live in Gothenburg. In 2011 they bought a flat in Torrevieja in equal shares for 150,000 €, plus 12,000 € of taxes and notary fees. In 2018 they refitted the kitchen for 9,000 €, with an invoice. Between 2016 and 2022 they let it to a long-term tenant; after that they used it themselves in the summer. On 8 September 2026 they sold it for 240,000 €, paid 7,260 € to the estate agent and 2,100 € of plusvalía municipal (the municipal tax on the increase in value of urban land). At the notary's they saw that the buyer kept 7,200 € of the price "for Hacienda", the Spanish tax authorities, and they do not know whether that money is their tax, an advance or a loss.
What those 7,200 € are
It is a withholding, not the tax. Article 25.2 of the Non-Resident Income Tax Law requires anyone who buys a property from a non-resident seller without a permanent establishment to "withhold and pay in 3 per cent" of the consideration, "as a payment on account" of the seller's tax. With a price of 240,000 €, that is 7,200 €: 3,600 € for each of the Lindqvists.
The buyer pays that amount in with Modelo 211 within one month of the date of sale, under Order EHA/3316/2010, and must give the sellers a copy as proof. That piece of paper is what Anne and Peter need later to offset what was withheld.
Three figures that must not be mixed up
| Figure | How it is calculated | In the Torrevieja case |
|---|---|---|
| Withholding | 3 % of the price, whether or not there is a gain | 7,200 € (3,600 € each) |
| Gain | Transfer value minus acquisition value | 81,402 € (40,701 € each) |
| Tax | 19 % of each seller's gain | 7,733.19 € each |
The withholding looks at the price. The tax looks at the gain. They almost never coincide, and the difference is settled in each seller's return.
The gain, step by step
Article 24.4 of the non-residents' law refers to the IRPF rules (Spanish personal income tax). Article 35 of that law builds the acquisition value from the price, the costs and taxes of the purchase and the improvements, and says that this value "shall be reduced by the amount of depreciation". Article 40.1 of the Regulations specifies that "in any event the minimum depreciation" is counted, even if it was never deducted.
Depreciation for the years it was let. According to the IBI receipt (the annual municipal property tax), the land is 40 % of the cadastral value, so the building is 60 % of the cost:
- Purchase cost: 150,000 + 12,000 = 162,000 €. Building: 97,200 €.
- Annual depreciation at 3 %: 2,916 €. For seven years of letting (2016 to 2022): 20,412 €.
- The kitchen, an improvement made in 2018, is also depreciated for as long as the flat was let: 9,000 × 3 % × 5 years = 1,350 €.
- Total to subtract: 21,762 €.
Acquisition value: 150,000 + 12,000 + 9,000 − 21,762 = 149,238 €.
Transfer value: the price less the costs paid by the sellers: 240,000 − 7,260 − 2,100 = 230,640 €. The plusvalía municipal is a tax inherent in the sale and is subtracted here.
Gain: 230,640 − 149,238 = 81,402 €, to be split 50/50.
Each seller: 40,701 × 19 % = 7,733.19 €. Less the 3,600 € already withheld, each pays in 4,133.19 € when filing their 210.
The 19 % rate applies to the gains of all non-residents, whether they live in the European Union or outside it: it is set by article 25.1.f) of the law. The guide on minimum depreciation on sale develops the calculation, and repair or improvement when selling helps to classify each piece of work.
Many sellers forget to subtract the depreciation for the years of letting. Here that would mean 21,762 € less gain and 2,067.39 € less tax per head. If the tax authorities detect it, they will claim the difference with interest and may open penalty proceedings. It is not a saving: it is a risk.
The seller's deadline
The same Order EHA/3316/2010 sets the deadline for the self-assessment of the gain: "three months once the period of one month from the date of the transfer has elapsed", whatever its result. For the Lindqvists, the period opens on 8 October 2026 and runs for three months, until early January 2027. Filing after those three months means a surcharge on whatever turns out to be payable.
Each seller files their own Modelo 210 for their half. There is no joint 210 for the couple, even though there is a single deed.
If you would like us to calculate the gain before you sign, so that you know how much money to set aside, you can send us the purchase deed, the invoices and the IBI receipts through the non-residents form.
When the withholding is more than the tax
If the flat had been sold with little gain or at a loss, the withholding would be greater than the tax and a refund would have to be requested. That refund does not arrive on its own: it requires filing the 210, supporting the calculation and waiting for Hacienda to review it. It often asks for deeds, invoices and proof of residence. The guide on recovering the 3 % withheld goes through the procedure, and when will I get the 3 % back? deals with the timing.
If the buyer did not pay in the withholding
Article 25.2 adds a consequence that is often forgotten: if the withholding is not paid in, the property sold "remains charged" with payment of the lower of two amounts, the withholding or the corresponding tax. In other words, the flat answers for it, and that is a problem for the buyer, not for the seller. Even so, it is in the seller's interest to ask for proof of the 211, because without it they will have to show in some other way that tax was withheld from them before they can offset it. What happens in that case is in the buyer did not pay in the 3 %.
The plusvalía municipal, with a different person liable
The 3 % withholding is a payment of the state tax. The plusvalía municipal is a different tax, a municipal one. When the seller is a non-resident individual, article 106.2 of the consolidated Local Finance Law (Haciendas Locales) makes the buyer a substitute for the taxpayer: the buyer is the one who declares and pays it, and that is why they usually withhold that amount from the price as well. The deadline is thirty working days from the sale, under article 110 of the same law. More detail in who pays the plusvalía when a non-resident sells?.
Before the notary
- Tax residence certificate for each seller, to show that they are not resident in Spain.
- NIE (the foreigner's identification number) for both of them, which the notary requires and which appears on the 211.
- Purchase deed and invoices for costs and improvements, with proof of payment.
- IBI receipt, to separate land from building.
- A list of the years in which the flat was let, which determines the depreciation.
- If there are rental or imputed income returns not filed, it is best to regularise them first, because the sale draws Hacienda's attention; see what can Hacienda do to me if I have not filed for years?.
The non-residents page explains the other income that an owner living abroad declares in Spain, from imputed income on an empty flat to letting, and how each year's forms fit together.