Spain residency without tax residency?

[JustAnotherNomad]

I have seen some digital nomads advocate for Spain as a "paper residency" as you aren't automatically considered tax resident, even if you rent a place for the whole year.
So you can get utility bills to show to banks etc. - just make sure you don't spent too much time there and you can prove this if asked. It's basically just your vacation home.

But how much time can you actually spend in Spain with such a setup?
What kind of documentation would they want to see to accept you're not tax resident under Spanish law (which would be much better than hoping for a DTA to save you)?

I guess you would need some other residency (ideally tax residency) to explain to the Spanish tax authority that that's where you really live?
Which is a bit pointless if you really just want a paper residency, with the option to spend some time there when it suits you...

 

[Roo]

I think that is pretty much crap, it may work on a EU passport since‌ you rent a place and declare nothing nowhere but your rent payments will be visible‍ to the hacienda (unless you pay cash) and if they come after you it may⁠ be a long and painful thing to prove you're not a resident there. I guess⁤ having no other ties and showing you didn't stay in the country via plane tickets,⁣ rentals in other countries may help.

Do note renting in Spain needs more paperwork than⁢ you can imagine due to problems with squatters, basically you can stop paying rent tomorrow︀ and they can take forever to legally kick you out especially if you have kids︁ or elderly living there (awful socialist laws...) so as a nomad with no work in︂ Spain and no one to guarantee for you (locals which may know the realtors, etc)︃ you need a lot of luck to rent something other than vacation rental.

You may︄ however be able to do that in Malta, a few years ago one ID and︅ cash for 2 months rent => rental contract without issues.

 

[JustAnotherNomad]

I meant being there officially, with the hacienda accepting that you are only resident, not‌ tax resident.

Spain considers you tax resident if you spend 183+ days in the country‍ or if it's your main base or center of activities or economic interests.
Economic interests⁠ should be simple if you have a company with some substance elsewhere and no Spanish⁤ clients.
But center of activities or "main base" could be tricky. If you spend only⁣ 1 week per year there, I guess it should be fine. But what if you⁢ spend 1 month there? 3 months? 4 months?

I'm not talking about flying under the︀ radar, just trying to understand the rules to decide if it could make sense to︁ have a base there.
I would by far prefer Spain over Malta.

 

[toums]

Exactly. Still the same. Same in Portugal too and central Europe too.

Most probably (as for France), if you⁤ spend less than 183 days there AND you have no local wife no kids there⁣ AND you dont have any business in Spain (or it doesn't represent the main of⁢ your income/investments) AND you have another base abroad (yearly rental or own a flat).. Then︀ probably NO problem.

If you miss 1 of these 4 criterias, then you increase the︁ potential problems..

 

[Roo]

If you don't mind bad weather, the Czech Republic was the same and probably still‌ is, you need an ID and cash, you can rent directly from the owner (beware‍ of scams). I don't think they will look into you much, I know of quite⁠ a few people who didn't declare income there, worked in an office and invoiced from⁤ a different country for their salary, had multiple companies which were just paper companies to⁣ have levels of income below X so their taxes are lower, etc.

I didn't like⁢ Malta, Spain is much better. Romania is also an option to get a rental address︀ easily, no proper document checks or anything there, have the money rent the place. There︁ may be a slight reluctance to rent to foreigners but under and EU passport it︂ should be ok. If you want an EU address for banks and stuff it can︃ be good.

Really depends what you want from that 'main base'. The 183+ days is︄ a generic EU thing but they can be creative if they have a reason to︅ pick on you.
Honestly in Spain if you don't have a NIE I doubt anyone︆ will look into you, without that (which is a tax id for foreigners) it's hard︇ to do anything there, even purchases of over a certain amount of money require a︈ NIE and bank transfer payment. It is kind of the document that proves residency or︉ that you registered for it and then there is a separate one empadronamiento which proves︊ you live at an address. Lots of bureaucracy.

 

[JustAnotherNomad]

Sorry, just to be clear: I am not asking for suggestions for other paper residencies.‌
I am asking only about Spain - because I could imagine actually spending some time‍ in Spain (but I'm not interested in spending time in Romania, Czechia, etc.).
But my⁠ question is: How much time can I officially spend there, before it could become an⁤ issue?
Not looking for ideas how to avoid detection by the hacienda or whatever. I⁣ would simply like to understand the official rules.

Sorry, but no two countries are the︀ same, there is no "as for country X".
Also, "probably" doesn't help. Please only reply︁ if you have knowledge about Spain.

 

[Xshore]

They will not consider you tax resident just because you rent or own a place‌ there. A lot of foreigners have properties in Spain and you don't (automatically) get in‍ the system unless you register as a resident.

I think the official rules for how⁠ long you can stay is not 100% clear, as they say that temporary trips outside⁤ of Spain still counts towards the 183 days limit. I think I read about a⁣ court case confirming that if you're away for 180 days (or something like that) then⁢ that shouldn't be considered temporary absence. Their rules also says that you're a spanish tax︀ resident if your main economic base is in Spain, so if you have a home︁ and funds in Spain then I assume it's a risk that they could consider you︂ tax resident.

 

[JustAnotherNomad]

Correct, that's⁠ why I asked.

 

[Martin Everson]

Ok

You answered your own question.

I would keep i.e a rental contract from property outside Spain, bank statements⁢ showing expenses such as phone, internet and shopping in the country you claim to be︀ living. I would also keep travel records showing arrival in Spain and exit from Spain.︁ If your driving into Spain consider flying in instead to keep records.

I wouldn't personally do this. This is just drawing the Spanish tax authorities attention︄ to yourself. Unless your poor and not wealthy you could be opening up the gates︅ to an investigation. Are we talking foreign banks here? Where are you then going to︆ tell banks your "tax resident" if they even allow you to self certify your tax︇ residency? If you allow then to report to Spain, which most will do anyway, you︈ may get a headache not worth having.

P.S I would personally NEVER consider Spain.

 

[JackAlabama]

Ive seen a lot, but which geniuses advertise for this?⁠

 

[requser]

Sure, you can be a legal resident in Spain and a tax resident elsewhere. You‌ can potentially spend the majority of the year in Spain, even. It is possible, yes,‍ but it is not easy. Definitely not recommended.

Assuming that you plan to spend the⁠ majority of the year in Spain, the country where you want to be tax resident⁤ must be one whose domestic law considers you tax resident for reasons other than time⁣ spent there (center of vital interest, investments, family ties, etc). In other words, you need⁢ to deliberately become tax resident of the two countries according to their domestic laws: Spain︀ by time spent, and the other country by something else. Now, since both countries are︁ claiming you as tax resident, the tax treaty will determine which country wins. No tax︂ treaty? Forget it, pick another country for tax residency. So, read the tax treaty and︃ make 100% sure that the other country wins the claim on your tax residency. That's︄ pretty much it. In theory.

The problem is that, compared to most other countries, Spain︅ is very aggressive when pursuing their claim. They will demand a lot of proof, and︆ you may be forced to challenge whatever they decide by additional legal means. You may︇ be able to do it, but you will waste a lot of time, money and︈ energy instead of living your life. If you have kids attending school in the other︉ country, and you pay social security there, and you have family relatives there, and maybe︊ a company with employees there, and a car registered there, then stuff like that could︋ count as center of vital interests and maybe Spain will leave you alone.

Frankly, it's︌ better to just pick another country for both your legal and tax residency. If you︍ pick one in the Schengen area, you can visit Spain all you want as a︎ tourist.

What is it about Spain, really? Don't feed the monster!

 

[JustAnotherNomad]

No, I was talking about a case‍ where one wouldn't be considered tax resident in Spain under domestic Spanish law.
If you⁠ have a vacation home in Spain and only spend 10 days per year there, this⁤ should be a clear case, even under Spanish law.
But if you spend 3 months⁣ there, maybe not so much? I'd like to know if anyone has some experience with⁢ this, so tax treaties never become relevant.

There are many such countries in Europe, for︀ example, Lithuania and Estonia are the same - but where do they draw the line?︁
I would expect Spain to me more aggressive about this, but still OK if you︂ can show you spend only very little time in Spain and don't do business in︃ Spain. But where do they draw the line?
Even if not formalized in the law,︄ there would usually be some case law, such as "60 days per calendar year are︅ fine", etc.

 

[Benzouser]

"Romania is︊ also an option to get a rental address easily, no proper document checks or anything︋ there," . . . can you confirm a bit more about that , .i know︌ if u do the 90d resident registration there u will get a tax ID .︍ . unsure if u need to pay any taxes if stay less then 183d.

 

[Roo]

I'm only talking about having an EU passport and⁣ showing up and renting a place, no idea about registering, I am aware the ANAF⁢ is desperate to milk money from anyone they can but not very competent. If you︀ do need to register, I know the rules say you should but loads of people︁ don't do between countries inside the EU unless they need paperwork for some specific reason.︂ Owner or real estate agents there are very happy to take your money and rent︃ you a place, you can probably even pay cash month to month, often owners skip︄ registering rentals for skipping tax unless the tenant needs it to be done (like company︅ pays his rent and needs proper legal documents). The bureaucracy there is bad and keeps︆ changing every few years.

 

[BerlusconiSchmidt]

You guys overthink and panic over these things all the times. If you rent a‌ small place in Spain and you don't share Lambos and Rarris on Instagram in Barcelona‍ on a daily basis, no one is every going to bother you. Seriously, do you⁠ think if you rent a 2 bed in Malaga and live 10 months a year⁤ in Checoslovakia they'll ever Tax you in Spain? This isn't a Mafia movie. They barely⁣ can Tax their own citizens.

As long as you don't have any assets in Spain,⁢ you can show them you pay Taxes elsewhere, and they can take it in the︀ butt.

 

[JustAnotherNomad]

That wasn't my question. I'd just like to understand the rules.

 

[JackAlabama]

why dont you ask the genius who talks about that on youtube? He will‍ tell you the reasoning.

 

[scooterguy]

It's usually not a problem if you spend less than 6 months a year‍ there, and I say 'usually' because there are two rules for Spanish residency. They are:⁠

Source: Tax Agency: Individual resident in Spain

Now, the first rule is very︃ easy to follow, just spend less than 183 days there, but just be careful with︄ doing something such as being there from January to March, and then from September to︅ November, because they will count the absence as temporary and then you might need to︆ prove residency somewhere else.

I said 'might', because this is obviously random; they are not︇ checking every single person. But if they do target you after making that mistake of︈ forgetting the sporadic absence thing, you'll have to prove tax residency somewhere else.

The second︉ rule is somewhat vague, and it will depend a lot on your particular circumstances, whether︊ you have assets in Spain or some sort of economic interest, among other things.

If you start opening bank accounts using your residency there, it might get tricky, depending on︋ volume. If you keep renting in Spain for years, continue opening bank accounts with it,︌ Spain will get CRS information and no one knows how they'll eventually handle it.

If you are making big money they might knock on your door one day and ask︍ you what's going on and why do you have all these accounts tied to your︎ Spanish address, to the place you've been renting for the last X years? Now, those️ are exactly the questions you don't want Hacienda to ask you.

I'd personally just spend‌ my summers there in an Airbnb and don't get too fancy with Spain... Plenty of‍ better places to get 'paper residency'.

 

[requser]

If you don't have wife and kids in Spain and don't have center of vital interest‍ in Spain, then as long as you stay in Spain less than 183 days, you⁠ are fine according the law. If you are worrying about spending 90 days or so⁤ in Spain alone, probably just don't worry. Of course, avoid doing silly things such as⁣ having a bank account in Spain, or having a car registered in Spain, or using⁢ a Spanish phone number as your main contact number, etc. In other words, act as︀ a long-term tourist, not as a short-term resident.

 

[Cloudbanck]

So assume you have access to a property that isn t in your name, say‌ owned by an elderly relative that doesnt use it or something. So you dont have‍ to rent anything, and you have no assets in the country, and no local bank⁠ account, and your income comes from a company abroad. I wonder how long you could⁤ live in Spain or similar countries (Italy, France) like this before the tax authorities notice⁣ anything?

I guess you'd still use debit/credit cards in the country, and that non-tourism use⁢ could show up in some tax authority filter. But if one uses cash not coming︀ from an ATM in the country, a foreign company card, or a card without a︁ name if that's possible, or mentor group tricks.

And of course if you are very︂ flashy and visible on social media, authorities may pick up on that.