Selling in Spain as a non-resident: tax and the retention

The buyer withholds part of the price, you file your own return, and the town hall has its own tax. What each step means and which deadlines apply.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules differ by region and municipality and change over time; have your own situation checked by the notary or a local adviser.

If you live in the Netherlands, Belgium or anywhere else outside Spain and you sell a home there, Spanish tax law treats you as a non-resident seller. That changes how the sale is handled: the buyer holds back part of the price for the Spanish Tax Agency, you file your own return afterwards, and the town hall has its own tax on the increase in land value. None of this is a reason not to sell — but it is a reason to plan it, because the deadlines are short and the buyer and notary will expect you to know the basics.

This guide explains the concepts and the order of things. We deliberately do not quote rates or amounts here: they change and depend on your situation. Follow the links to the Agencia Tributaria and the legislation for the current figures, and ask a Spanish tax adviser to calculate your case.

Am I a non-resident for Spanish tax?

Tax residence is not the same as owning a home or being registered somewhere. Broadly, you are a Spanish tax resident if you spend more than 183 days in Spain in a calendar year, or if the main centre of your economic interests is there. If you live and pay income tax in another country and use the Spanish property as a holiday home, you are usually a non-resident. Your status on the date of the sale determines which rules apply, so if you have recently moved, check this first. The Agencia Tributaria's pages on non-resident income tax (IRNR) explain the criteria.

1. Capital gains tax (ganancia patrimonial)

When you sell, you may make a capital gain: broadly, the difference between what you receive for the property and what it cost you. For non-residents this falls under the Non-Resident Income Tax (Impuesto sobre la Renta de no Residentes, IRNR), and the gain is calculated using the general rules of Spanish personal income tax. According to the Agencia Tributaria, gains from selling real estate located in Spain may be taxed in Spain under the tax treaties Spain has signed.

What counts in the calculation, in general terms:

Transfer value: the sale price in the deed, less costs that the seller bears in connection with the sale.
Acquisition value: what you paid, plus the costs and taxes linked to your purchase and the cost of improvements (not ordinary maintenance).

That is why your purchase deed, the invoices of your purchase costs and the invoices of renovations are worth gold: without them you cannot prove your acquisition value. If you inherited the home, the value declared for the inheritance is relevant instead.

Former main home: the Agencia Tributaria describes an exemption for residents of another EU or EEA country who sell what was their habitual residence in Spain and reinvest the proceeds in a new habitual residence. It applies only in specific conditions; a holiday home does not qualify. Even if it applies, the retention and the return described below still have to be done.

2. The retention by the buyer (retención, modelo 211)

Because the tax office cannot easily chase a seller who lives abroad, Spanish law makes the buyer help. When the seller is a non-resident without a permanent establishment in Spain, the buyer — resident or not — must withhold part of the agreed price and pay it to the Treasury. The buyer does this with form 211 within one month of the date of the transfer, and must give you the copy intended for the non-resident seller.

Three things are important to understand:

The retention is not a final tax. It is a payment on account of your own capital gains tax.
If the buyer does not pay it, the property itself remains liable for it. That is why buyers and their lawyers insist on it, and why the notary will mention it.
In practice the retained part is deducted from the price at the signing, and the buyer or the buyer's lawyer files form 211. Make sure you receive your copy — you need it for your own return.

3. Your own return (modelo 210)

As the seller, you declare the gain yourself with form 210 (IRNR, non-residents without a permanent establishment). For income from the transfer of real estate, the Agencia Tributaria gives a filing period of three months after the one-month period for the buyer's retention has ended. In that return you deduct the amount already withheld by the buyer.

If your tax is higher than the retention, you pay the difference.
If the retention is higher than your tax — for example because the gain was small or there was a loss — you can use the return to claim the excess back.

Many sellers do not realise that a loss is a reason to file, not to skip it: without a return, the retained money stays with the tax office. You can file yourself, with a digital certificate, or through a representative or tax adviser.

4. Previous years: imputed income

Non-residents who own a home in Spain that they do not rent out are generally required to declare an imputed income on it every year, also on form 210. If those annual returns were never filed, it is wise to put them in order before the sale; an adviser will usually check this when preparing your capital gains return.

5. The municipal plusvalía (IIVTNU)

Separately from the state tax, the town hall levies the Impuesto sobre el Incremento de Valor de los Terrenos de Naturaleza Urbana, known as the plusvalía municipal. It taxes the increase in value of the land under an urban property during the years you owned it.

In a sale, the seller is the taxpayer.
When the seller is an individual who is not resident in Spain, the law makes the buyer the substitute taxpayer. In practice this means the buyer will usually want to hold back the expected amount from the price, or agree how it is paid.
The declaration must be filed with the town hall within thirty working days of the sale. Many municipalities use self-assessment; the rules and forms are in the municipal tax ordinance.
Since the 2021 reform (Royal Decree-law 26/2021), there is no tax if you can show that the land did not increase in value, based on the values in the deeds — but you still have to declare the sale and provide both deeds. The law also lets you choose between methods of calculating the taxable base.

Rural land (rústico) is not subject to this tax. Check with the town hall — or its tax collection agency — where the property is located.

6. IBI in the year of sale

The IBI for a year is due from whoever owns the property on 1 January. Buyers and sellers often agree to share that year's IBI in proportion to the months each owns the home. Whatever you agree, write it into the arras contract and the deed.

7. Tax in the country where you live

Your country of residence may also want to know about the sale, or may tax it too. Tax treaties decide which country may tax what and how double taxation is avoided. In the Netherlands, for example, a second home abroad is usually part of box 3; in Belgium other rules apply. Ask an adviser in your own country as well, ideally before you sign.

What to prepare

Your NIE, and preferably a Spanish bank account for any refund
The purchase deed or inheritance deed, and invoices of purchase costs and improvements
Proof of the annual non-resident returns for previous years
The deeds that show the land value at purchase and at sale, for the plusvalía
A Spanish tax adviser or representative who files form 210 in time

Next: read how the notary and the signing work, and which documents you need. Or go back to selling your house in Spain.

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More guides for selling in Spain

Documents you need to sell a home in Spain — Nota simple, escritura, energy certificate, habitability, IBI, community certificate and NIE.
The notary and the sale process in Spain, step by step — From the arras contract to signing at the notario and registration in the Land Registry.
How to list your home on idealista and fotocasa as a private seller — Photos, floor plan, description, price, handling enquiries and avoiding scams.
Sell your house in Spain
Selling an inherited house abroad

Sources

Consulted on 30-09-2026. Always check the current version at the source.