Spain’s 100% tax on non-EU buyers: what actually happened.
Announced in January 2025, submitted to Parliament in May 2025, never debated, never voted on, and absent from the 2026 housing package. Here is the proposal, its legal status today, and what non-EU buyers genuinely pay.
The headline travelled. The law did not.
On 13 January 2025 the Spanish government announced, inside an eleven-measure housing package, a purchase tax of “up to 100%” on homes bought by non-EU, non-resident buyers. The story circulated worldwide within days.
As of the date of this review, no such tax exists in Spanish law. The bill was submitted to Parliament on 22 May 2025. It has not been debated or voted on in Congress, and the government’s January 2026 housing package did not include it.
What the draft bill actually said.
The draft creates a complementary state tax on qualifying property transfers with a 100% gross rate. Crucially, the bill then deducts the ITP actually paid on the same transaction from the new state-tax liability. In other words, the mechanism is designed to bring the combined burden under this structure up to 100% of the taxable base, not to add another 100 percentage points on top of regional ITP.
Three features of the draft matter more than the headline rate. The trigger is residence, not nationality: the text refers to buyers who are not resident in the European Union, so a British national already tax-resident in Spain would fall outside it as drafted. The scope was resale property and the acquisition of rights over it — new-build purchases, which carry VAT rather than ITP, sat outside the drafted perimeter. The base would be the higher of the cadastral reference value or the agreed price.
A minority government, and serious legal doubts.
The government does not hold a parliamentary majority and depends on partners who have publicly opposed the measure. Regional governments in Andalusia, Madrid and the Valencian Community — where foreign buyer activity is economically significant — have pushed back hard.
Specialists in constitutional and EU law have also questioned whether a tax of this shape would survive review, given free-movement-of-capital principles that extend to third countries.
None of that makes the proposal dead. It makes it dormant. The sensible response is monitoring, not panic — and certainly not pricing a hypothetical tax into a purchase decision today.
Real 2026 purchase costs, non-EU buyer.
| Cost | Resale property | New build | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main transfer tax | ITP, set regionally — 7% in Andalusia | 10% VAT (IVA) | Rates differ by autonomous community; verify for your region |
| Stamp duty (AJD) | Generally only on the mortgage deed | Roughly 1.2% in Andalusia | Since a 2018 Supreme Court ruling, lenders typically bear AJD on mortgage deeds |
| Notary and Land Registry | Commonly around 0.5% to 1% combined | Scales are regulated but vary with price and complexity | |
| Legal fees | Typically about 1% plus VAT | Independent lawyer, not the agency’s | |
| Realistic total | Approximately 10% to 13% above the purchase price | Budget the upper end for financed purchases | |
Foreign demand did not stop.
The four questions we are asked every week.
Can I still buy as a non-EU national?
Yes. There is no restriction on non-EU nationals owning property in Spain, and no additional purchase tax on that basis today.
Would it apply retroactively?
Under general Spanish tax principles, a new tax does not reach back to transactions already completed. A closed purchase is closed.
Does buying still give residency?
No — and that is a separate change. The golden visa was abolished on 3 April 2025. Ownership and residence are now unrelated questions.
Should I rush to buy before it passes?
Urgency built on a dormant bill is a poor reason to transact. If the measure ever advances, planning — including residence status — is the response, not speed.
This article cannot answer your case.
Everything above is general information, accurate to the best of our knowledge at the date of last review. It is not legal or tax advice and does not create a client relationship.
Tax outcomes depend on your residence status, your nationality, the region you buy in, how the purchase is structured and which treaties apply to you. Legislative status can change between reviews.
Before committing to a purchase, take an individual consultation with a Spanish lawyer and a tax adviser, with your own documents and circumstances in front of them. HOMESEE can introduce you to independent professionals.
Plan against the law that exists, not the headline that travelled.
A proposal is not a law. Eighteen months after the announcement, the practical position for non-EU buyers is much closer to the status quo than to a revolution.
What has genuinely changed for foreign buyers is elsewhere: the end of the golden visa, and tighter residency rules. Those are worth restructuring around. A bill that has never reached a vote is worth watching.
