Will they pay inheritance tax?

Q.
I am confused by the Spanish law on inheritance tax. I have a property in Almeria but I am not resident. I have a Spanish will which leaves my property to my son and my daughter equally. They both live in the UK. Will they have to pay some high rate of inheritance tax that will leave them in debt?

S W (Costa del Sol)


A.

Your property is in Andalucia, so we should not speak of Spanish law but of Andalucian law, because each of Spain’s 17 Autonomous Regions has its own rules. Further, many of the Regions changed their rules in 2015 after the European Court of Justice ruled that the previous national law violated the equal rights of non-residents who are EU citizens. In your case, the Andalucian inheritance law applies. Your son and daughter, also EU citizens, each have an exemption of €175,000. If your property is valued at under €350,000, this means they will pay no tax at all. After Brexit, when your heirs are no longer EU citizens, they will face a tax bill of around €65,000 on a property worth €350,000.


Send your questions for David Searl through lawyers Ubeda-Retana and Associates in Fuengirola at Ask@lawtaxspain.com, or call 952 667 090.

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David Searl

You and the law in spain Send your questions for David Searl through lawyers Ubeda-Retana and Associates in Fuengirola at Ask@lawtaxspain.com, or call 952 667 090.

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