Moving to Spain! ADVICE PLEASE!
 

Hi guys!

First post so I hope I'm going about this in the correct manner! I'm a 26 year old male and have just taken a position where I will be working in the Middle East month on, month off. Ideally I don't want to be based in the UK when I start so I can escape the dreaded income tax! If I was to move to Spain is it a straight forward enough move? Would I indeed be 'tax free' if I was in Spain for 6 months of the year but officially living there? I like the thought of the city life but not too far from the beach so would Malaga be a good choice for someone my age? In the next few weeks I will be looking for some guidance from someone here in the UK regarding my move, however I'm not all to sure whether I should be speaking to my bank, a financial advisor, an accountant or even all three! Hopefully some of you guys with a slightly older head and a bit more life experience can give me some advice on what my first steps should be!

Thanks for your time. :)

Re: Moving to Spain! ADVICE PLEASE!
 

As Concierge for the Spanish section of BE I would like to say hello and welcome.

BE is a very large expat website, so if you have problems finding your way around we have concierges who will try to direct you. The moderators for the Spanish forums are Mitzyboy and Fred James, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderador who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. At the top of the page you will find a quirkily named thread called Free Beer which is full of important and useful information. Hope you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

Re: Moving to Spain! ADVICE PLEASE!
 

If you are registered as living there, then you will be tax resident there, and subject to Spanish income tax on all worldwide income.

Re: Moving to Spain! ADVICE PLEASE!
 

The rules on where you pay tax are very complex and I'd suggest you take some professional advice on this.

The general rule is that the country you spend more than 183 days in during the year is where you are liable for tax on your worldwide income. So for example you could work in Saudi Arabia for 4 months, then move to Spain for 8 months and the Spanish tax authorities would be very happy as they would claim the tax from your Saudi employment. This happened to me moving from Ukraine to Russia in May one year. At the end of that year I paid all the tax in Russia. PWC handled it all.

If you live in multiple countries in a year it gets more complex and it's up to you to prove where your"vital centre of economic interest" is. For example, you have a house a family in the UK, but you work 3 months in 4 different countries. The UK would claim the tax.

Re: Moving to Spain! ADVICE PLEASE!
 

With my job though I won't be in any one place for more than 6 months of the year so would I still be liable to pay Spanish tax even though I wouldn't be there more than 183 days of the year?

Re: Moving to Spain! ADVICE PLEASE!
 

Then as I understand you pay tax where you spend more than 183 days or where is deemed your vital centre of interest. If you are spending your months off in Spain that could be deemed as Spain.

Re: Moving to Spain! ADVICE PLEASE!
 

I suppose it will be where you call 'home', and have your house, apartemnt etc, if that is Spain, then yes. There is no way you can use the 183 days rule to avoid tax, you will be taxed where you call 'home'.