The Beckham Law in Spain: who qualifies and how to apply

The Beckham Law in Spain: who qualifies and how to apply

Blog Article

Relocating to Spain raises one question very quickly: what your tax bill will look like. For a lot of expats, the answer comes down to one special rule — the special expat tax regime, commonly called the Beckham Law.

The idea is straightforward: rather than paying progressive resident rates on everything you earn globally, you are treated as a non-resident for tax purposes on your Spanish-source employment income, at a flat rate of 24% up to 600,000 euros with 47 percent applying beyond that threshold. For higher earners, the difference is substantial.

Not everyone qualifies. As a general rule, you must have been non-resident in Spain for ver web the previous five tax years, your relocation must be linked to an employment contract or a director role, and the work must be carried out mainly in Spain. Recent reforms opened the door to digital nomads and some self-employed profiles.

The deadline is where most applications fail. You have to apply within six months of starting the activity that triggers residence. Let that window close and you cannot recover it later. Once granted, it applies for the year of arrival and the following five.

It is not automatically the better option. If you have significant income outside Spain, the effect on wealth tax and on the 720 declaration needs to be modelled first. A short analysis before applying is usually time well spent.

Report this page