Guide · Compra de vivienda: IVA, ITP y AJD
Buying a home in Spain: VAT or transfer tax, stamp duty, and the NIE
A new home bought from the developer pays 10% VAT; a resale is exempt from VAT and pays transfer tax instead, at a rate set by each region — 6% where the region has set none. The deed also pays stamp duty. And you need a NIE before you sign.
Checked at source ·
- VAT on a new home (first sale)
- 10%
- Resale of a home
- Exempt from VAT; pays transfer tax
- Transfer tax, if the region has set no rate
- 6%
- Stamp duty on the deed, if the region has set no rate
- 0.5%
- Identification a foreign buyer needs
- A NIE
Source: Boletín Oficial del Estado — Ley 37/1992, del Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido — arts. 3, 20 y 91 (texto consolidado). Checked .
Source: Boletín Oficial del Estado — Ley 37/1992, del Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido — arts. 3, 20 y 91 (texto consolidado). Checked .
Source: Boletín Oficial del Estado — Real Decreto Legislativo 1/1993, texto refundido de la Ley del Impuesto sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales y Actos Jurídicos Documentados — arts. 11 y 31. Checked .
Source: Boletín Oficial del Estado — Real Decreto Legislativo 1/1993, texto refundido de la Ley del Impuesto sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales y Actos Jurídicos Documentados — arts. 11 y 31. Checked .
Source: Ministerio del Interior — Documentación de las personas extranjeras — Número de Identidad de Extranjero (NIE). Checked .
First, the NIE
Buying property in Spain is one of the economic interests for which a foreign national has to apply for a NIE. It is not assigned automatically for a purchase. If you are buying from abroad, you apply through the Spanish consulate that covers where you live; in Spain, at an Immigration Office or a police station. The process, the fee and the traps are on our NIE page. Allow for it before you agree a completion date.
New or resale: which tax applies
The Spanish VAT Act treats the first sale of a building by the developer, once construction or refurbishment is finished, as a supply subject to VAT. For buildings suitable for use as homes, including up to two parking spaces and storage annexes sold with them, the rate is the reduced 10%. Business premises sold with a home are not annexes and pay the ordinary rate. Certain officially protected homes of the special regime, sold by their developers, pay 4%.
Second and later sales of a building after it was finished are exempt from VAT. They pay transfer tax instead: the Impuesto sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales, ITP, charged on the price.
VAT does not apply in the Canary Islands, Ceuta or Melilla, which have their own indirect taxes. Everything said here about VAT is for the rest of Spain.
Transfer tax is regional
The transfer tax rate on property is whatever the autonomous community has approved. The national law only provides a fallback: if the region has approved no rate, 6% applies to the transfer of property. In practice the regions set their own, and they differ. Check your region's current rate before making an offer; on a resale it is the largest cost after the price.
Stamp duty on the deed
The first copy of a notarial deed that has a value and can be entered in the Property Registry also pays stamp duty, Actos Jurídicos Documentados, AJD. Again the rate is the one the region has approved, with a fallback of 0.5% where it has approved none.
Which of these applies to a purchase depends on the combination: a new home pays VAT and stamp duty on the deed; a resale pays transfer tax.
After the purchase
If you live in the home as your main residence, register on the padrón at that address: it is the proof of address every later procedure asks for. Owning a home also brings recurring local and income taxes, which depend on the municipality and on whether you are tax resident; they are outside this guide.
Common questions
Do foreigners need a NIE to buy property in Spain?
Yes. Buying property is one of the economic reasons for which a foreign national applies for a NIE, and it is not assigned automatically. You can apply from abroad through a Spanish consulate.
What tax do I pay when buying a new home in Spain?
10% VAT when buying from the developer, outside the Canary Islands, Ceuta and Melilla, plus stamp duty on the deed at the regional rate.
What tax do I pay when buying a resale home?
Transfer tax, ITP, at the rate approved by the region. If the region has approved none, the national fallback is 6%. A resale is exempt from VAT.
The procedures this leads to
- How to get a NIE number in Spain
The NIE is a personal identification number for foreigners dealing with Spain. Many people are given one automatically and never need to apply; those who do apply pay €9.84, not the €12 usually quoted.
- Empadronamiento: registering with your town hall
Everyone living in Spain is legally obliged to register at their town hall. It is usually free and quick — but for non-EU residents without long-term residence it expires after two years unless renewed, and nobody reminds you.
- Non-lucrative residence in Spain (residencia no lucrativa)
Living in Spain on your own income without working. You need €2,400 a month, plus €600 for each dependant, health insurance — and from the first renewal, more than 183 days a year in the country.
Sources
Every fact on this page comes from one of these. We do not cite other guides, because a copy gives us no way to notice when the original changes.
- Ley 37/1992, del Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido — arts. 3, 20 y 91 (texto consolidado)Boletín Oficial del Estado
- Real Decreto Legislativo 1/1993, texto refundido de la Ley del Impuesto sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales y Actos Jurídicos Documentados — arts. 11 y 31Boletín Oficial del Estado
- Documentación de las personas extranjeras — Número de Identidad de Extranjero (NIE)Ministerio del Interior
This is information, not advice
Your own case depends on your nationality, your status and your history with the administration — none of which a web page can see. Confirm anything that matters with the responsible authority or a qualified professional before you act on it.