If you own a property in Spain but do not live there permanently, you are a non-resident. You own a home there without being tax resident there. You still have Spanish tax obligations.
What makes you a non-resident #
You are non-resident in Spain if you spend fewer than 183 days a year in the country, your main life is in the UK, and you are not registered as resident in Spain. The Spanish tax authority looks primarily at where your economic and personal interests sit.
For most British owners this is straightforward, particularly since the 90/180 rule caps your stay well below the 183-day threshold anyway.
What you pay #
IBI, the annual property tax #
A municipal tax comparable to council tax, though calculated differently. It is charged annually at somewhere between 0.4 and 1.1 per cent of the cadastral value, paid to the town hall where the property sits. A fixed cost for every owner.
Non-resident income tax (IRNR), even with no rent #
This one surprises British owners. Spain charges tax on a notional income from your property even if you never let it.
For non-EU residents, which includes the UK since Brexit, the rate is 24 per cent. The base is usually 1.1 or 2 per cent of the cadastral value, depending on when that value was last revised.
An example. On a cadastral value of €100,000, the notional income is €1,100 and the tax at 24 per cent is €264. An EU owner would pay €209 on the same property, because their rate is 19 per cent.
Tax on rental income #
If you do let the property, you pay tax on the actual income at 24 per cent.
The important difference from an EU owner: as a non-EU resident you cannot deduct costs. Maintenance, community fees, utilities, mortgage interest and management fees are all deductible for an EU owner and none of them are deductible for you. You are taxed on gross rent, not on profit.
This is the single largest financial consequence of Brexit for a British owner, and it belongs in your yield calculation from the start.
When it is due #
IBI is paid once a year, on a date that varies by municipality.
IRNR on a property you do not let is filed annually, by 31 December for the preceding year.
Rental income is filed on Modelo 210. Since 2024 non-residents can group a year’s rental income into a single annual return submitted in January, where it was previously quarterly. Confirm which applies to your situation.
Practical points #
Check with the town hall how IBI is collected and set up a direct debit, because a missed payment attracts interest and penalties from a country you are not in.
Use a Spanish tax adviser, particularly if you let the property. Keep every payment receipt, both for your records and for the eventual sale, where they reduce your capital gains tax.
In short #
As a non-resident you are a Spanish taxpayer. The rules are clear and the amounts are manageable, provided you know the 24 per cent rate applies to you rather than the 19 per cent figure that appears on most websites written for EU buyers.
Tax rules change and personal circumstances vary. This article is general information, not tax advice. Have your own position confirmed by a qualified adviser before acting on it.
Last reviewed 2026-08-24
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