What Taxes to Pay with a Golden Visa in Spain?

The Spanish Golden Visa was a residence-by-investment route that let non-EU nationals obtain a Spanish residence permit by investing at least €500,000, most commonly in real estate. Spain has abolished this investment route: since 3 April 2025, no new Golden Visa applications are accepted, and the articles of Law 14/2013 that governed it have been repealed ^{[1]BOE — Ley Orgánica 1/2025, de 2 de enero (BOE-A-2025-76)}. Investors who already hold a Golden Visa keep their existing residence permit and can renew it under transitional rules, but anyone planning to move to Spain today needs a different route, such as the Non-Lucrative Visa or the Digital Nomad Visa.

The tax rules described in this guide — tax residency, income tax, wealth tax, capital gains tax and property taxes — apply in the same way to Golden Visa holders and to holders of Spain's current residence permits, since Spanish tax law does not treat one residence permit differently from another.

Property purchases in Spain are subject to transfer tax and stamp duty, whose exact rate depends on the autonomous region and on whether the property is new or resale ^{[2]BOE — Real Decreto Legislativo 1/1993, texto refundido ITP y AJD (BOE-A-1993-25359)}:

Tax advantages. Under Spanish tax law, a residence permit holder is only taxed on worldwide income once they become a Spanish tax resident, generally by spending more than 183 days a year in Spain ^{[3]Agencia Tributaria: Impuesto sobre la Renta de No Residentes}. This makes routes such as the Non-Lucrative Visa and the Digital Nomad Visa attractive to applicants who intend to keep most of their time, and their tax base, outside Spain.

Obligations. Even without full tax residency, permit holders still face Spanish tax obligations: non-resident income tax on Spanish-source income, property taxes, and capital gains tax when selling Spanish property.

Meeting these fiscal obligations is a condition of keeping a Spanish residence permit in good standing. It's important to understand the tax implications before choosing a route to Spanish residency.

If you spend more than 183 days a year in Spain, or your main economic interests are based there, you become a Spanish tax resident and must declare your worldwide income ^{[3]Agencia Tributaria: Impuesto sobre la Renta de No Residentes}.

If you stay fewer than 183 days a year, you are taxed only as a non-resident, on Spanish-source income.

Income tax. Spanish tax residents pay progressive personal income tax (IRPF) on a state scale from 19% to 47%, applied across six income bands from €12,450 up to €300,000 ^{[4]Agencia Tributaria — Gravamen estatal (IRPF)}. Each autonomous community sets its own regional scale on top of the state scale, so the effective marginal rate varies by region.

Non-resident income tax. Non-residents pay a flat rate of 24% on Spanish-source income, reduced to 19% for residents of the EU, Iceland, and Norway ^{[3]Agencia Tributaria: Impuesto sobre la Renta de No Residentes}.

Keep track of the number of days you spend in Spain each year: it determines which of these two regimes applies to you.

Beyond income tax, Spanish residents and property owners need to plan for capital gains tax, wealth tax, and local property taxes.

Capital gains tax. Gains from selling Spanish property, shares, or investment funds are taxed on a progressive savings-income scale, from 19% on the first €6,000 of gain up to 28% on the portion above €300,000 ^{[5]Agencia Tributaria — Gravamen estatal de la base liquidable del ahorro}.

Wealth tax. Spanish tax residents whose net worth exceeds €700,000 (with a further €300,000 exemption for the primary residence) are liable for wealth tax, on a state scale of 0.2% to 3.5%; several autonomous communities apply their own reliefs ^{[6]Agencia Tributaria — Escala estatal (Impuesto sobre el Patrimonio)}. Net worth above €3 million can also trigger the separate Solidarity Tax on Large Fortunes, at rates of 1.7% to 3.5% ^{[7]BOE — Ley 38/2022, de 27 de diciembre (BOE-A-2022-22684)}.

Local property tax (IBI). Property owners also pay an annual municipal tax based on the property's cadastral value, at a rate set by each municipality between 0.4% and 1.1% for urban property ^{[8]BOE — Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2004, Ley Reguladora de las Haciendas Locales, art. 72 (BOE-A-2004-4214)}.

Given how these taxes interact, it is worth confirming your specific liability with a Spanish tax advisor before you commit to a residence route.

Spain's former Golden Visa was known for not requiring a minimum stay to keep the residence permit itself, since that presence rule was set out in Law 14/2013, now repealed ^{[1]BOE — Ley Orgánica 1/2025, de 2 de enero (BOE-A-2025-76)}. That is separate from tax residency: the 183-day count for Spanish tax purposes has its own rules and has no general carve-out for business trips or volunteering abroad. Anyone who spends more than 183 days a year in Spain becomes a Spanish tax resident, regardless of how those days were used.

Managing tax residency. If you want to stay below the 183-day threshold, track your days in Spain carefully and keep supporting documentation, such as boarding passes, hotel bookings, or work records, in case the Spanish tax authorities question your residency status.

Non-EU nationals who hold a Spanish residence permit, whether from the former Golden Visa or from a current route, can apply for Spanish citizenship by naturalisation once they have lived legally in Spain long enough.

The general residence requirement is 10 years. It is reduced to 2 years for nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, and Portugal, and for Sephardic Jews ^{[9]BOE — Código Civil, arts. 22 y 24 (BOE-A-1889-4763)}.

As a Spanish citizen, you gain the rights of an EU citizen: the right to vote in local and European elections, freedom of movement within the Schengen Area, and access to Spain's social services and healthcare system.

Naturalisation generally requires renouncing your prior nationality. The same law exempts the nationalities listed above from this requirement.

Whether you hold a legacy Golden Visa or a current Spanish residence permit, understanding tax residency, income tax, capital gains and wealth taxes, and local property taxation is essential to planning your move to Spain.

Workers can benefit from exemptions on income earned abroad, and families can reduce their tax base through the dependent-children allowance.

Working through these tax rules with a Spanish tax advisor before you apply for residency, and again before you apply for citizenship by naturalisation, helps you avoid unexpected tax burdens.