Alongside IBI and income tax there is Spanish wealth tax, the Impuesto sobre el Patrimonio. There is nothing like it in the UK, which is why it catches British owners by surprise.
When it applies #
Wealth tax applies to residents and non-residents alike. Residents pay on worldwide assets. Non-residents pay only on assets located in Spain, meaning property and Spanish bank accounts.
If all you own in Spain is one property, only that property counts.
The allowance #
There is a general allowance of €700,000 per person.
That per person part matters more than anything else in this article. A couple buying jointly has €1.4 million of allowance between them before wealth tax enters the picture at all. In practice most buyers never encounter this tax.
Residents also get an additional €300,000 allowance on a main home. Non-residents do not.
Regional differences #
Wealth tax is set nationally but administered regionally, which produces real differences along the coast.
Costa del Sol (Andalusia). A 100 per cent rebate applies, so in practice no wealth tax is payable, including on higher values.
Costa Blanca (Valencia region). The allowance was raised to €1 million, effective from June 2025.
Costa Cálida (Murcia). The general rules apply, so check the current position for your specific purchase.
Where wealth tax is payable, the rates are progressive and run roughly from 0.2 to 3.5 per cent, with the exact bands varying by region.
The state solidarity tax #
Separately from regional wealth tax, Spain operates a national solidarity tax on large fortunes (ITSGF) that applies above €3 million. It exists partly to catch assets in regions that have rebated their own wealth tax, so an Andalusian rebate does not necessarily mean nothing is payable at that level.
Relevant to very few buyers, but worth knowing it exists.
Filing #
Non-residents file using Modelo 714. The filing window normally runs from April to June, submitted digitally to the Spanish tax authority.
How it interacts with UK tax #
Simply: the UK has no wealth tax, so there is nothing to offset and no double taxation question. You either owe Spanish wealth tax or you do not.
That makes this one of the more straightforward parts of the picture, and it is a genuine difference from buyers in countries that do tax wealth.
Practical points #
Check the rules in the region where you are buying, because they differ materially. Remember the allowance is per person, so how you structure joint ownership matters. And on larger values, take advice before completing rather than afterwards.
In short #
Spanish wealth tax does not come into play for most buyers. Between the allowance and the regional rebates, the majority of British owners pay nothing.
Regional rules change, sometimes at short notice. Confirm the current position for your region before relying on it.
Last reviewed 2026-08-24
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