Moving to a low-tax country and when Spain still taxes you

Key rules

• Who it covers: Only Spanish nationals are caught; other nationalities are tested under the ordinary residence rules.
• Duration: You stay taxable in Spain as a resident in the year of the move and the following four tax years.
• No easy rebuttal: Showing that your move was genuine does not end Spanish residence if the country is listed.
• The list: The list changes by ministerial order, so check it for the year you move.

The short answer

If you are a Spanish national and you move to a country on Spain's list of non-cooperative jurisdictions, Spain still treats you as a tax resident. This lasts for the year you move and the following four tax years. That is five tax years in total. After that, the ordinary residence rules apply to you.

Being a tax resident means Spain taxes your income from anywhere in the world, not just income earned in Spain.

Who the rule covers

The rule applies only to Spanish nationals. If you hold another nationality, it does not apply. You are tested under the ordinary residence rules instead: days spent in Spain (the 183-day test) and where your main economic interests are.

Which countries count

Spain keeps a list of non-cooperative jurisdictions. It replaced the older "tax haven" list. Examples include Anguilla, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Fiji, Guam, Palau, Panama, Samoa, the British and US Virgin Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, Russia and Vanuatu. The government revises the list by ministerial order, so a country can be added or removed.

Gibraltar is handled under its own special regime. If Gibraltar is your destination, ask the Spanish tax agency before you move.

Check the current list before you commit to a destination. Do not rely on this page's examples.

Can you argue your move was real?

Not in the usual way. This is a fixed legal rule, not a presumption you can overturn by showing you really moved your life abroad. Once a Spanish national's residence is in a listed country, the rule applies.

You can argue only two facts:

• You do not actually live in the listed country.
• The country was not on the list in that year.

What to do

1. Confirm you hold Spanish nationality.
2. If it is listed, plan on filing as a Spanish resident for five tax years.
3. If you are unsure, ask the Spanish tax agency or a tax adviser before you leave.

The decision, timeline and checklist below walk through these points.

Choosing between options

Can you avoid Spanish tax residence after moving to a low-tax country?

• You are a Spanish national moving to a listed jurisdiction: The rule applies by law, so you cannot undo it by showing your move is real.

• You do not actually live in the listed jurisdiction: You can argue the facts: that your residence is not really there.

• Your destination was not on the list in that year: The rule does not apply if the country was not listed in the relevant year.

If you are a Spanish national and your residence is in a listed jurisdiction in that year, Spain keeps taxing you as a resident. Only a factual point, such as not living there or the country not being listed, changes that.

Timeline and deadlines

• Year of the move: you are still taxed in Spain as a resident: in the year you move to a listed jurisdiction

• You remain taxable in Spain as a resident for the following four tax years: in each of the four tax years after the move

• Five tax years in total, then the ordinary residence rules apply to you: after the fifth tax year

Checklist

• Confirm that you hold Spanish nationality, because the rule applies only to Spanish nationals.

• Check whether the country you are moving to is on Spain's current list of non-cooperative jurisdictions.

Check the current list of jurisdictions with the Spanish tax agency before you move.

Frequently asked questions

Does the low-tax country rule apply if I am not a Spanish national?

No, the rule applies only to Spanish nationals, so a foreign national leaving Spain is tested under the ordinary residence rules. Those rules look at the days you spend in Spain and where your main economic interests are.

Can I argue that my move to a listed country was real?

No, showing that your move was real does not stop the rule, because it applies by law and is not a presumption you can rebut. The only room for argument is factual: that you do not actually live in that jurisdiction, or that it was not on the list in that year.

Which countries are on Spain's list of non-cooperative jurisdictions?

The list includes places such as Anguilla, the Bahamas, Bermuda, Fiji, Guam, Palau, Panama, Samoa, the British and US Virgin Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, Russia and Vanuatu. The list is revised by ministerial order, and Gibraltar is treated under its own special regime.