hello,

Firstly, apologies if this is treading over old ground, but are there any offshore workers (North Sea) who are currently living in Spain?

Me and the Missus are looking into relocating, but before we dive into any research, we just want some clarity regarding the income tax situation.

Do you pay your UK tax only, do you pay UK AND Spanish tax or just Spanish tax? I've tried to find this info but found the information provided more confusing than the appeal of American Football.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

There is an agreement with Spain that means in almost all cases tax is paid only once, usually to the country you live in (spend more than 6 months of the year in).

Thank you Horlics,

So in our situation (with me working a 2 weeks on/3weeks off rota), does that mean I'd pay Spanish tax, and if so, how much is it?

Cheers

I know others in a similar situation who pay Spanish tax.

As and when you become tax resident, you will be liable at the same rate as any other Spanish resident in Spain. Spanish tax rates and allowances for 2015.

Your rota is not a factor, it's the number of days you spend in Spain that determines whether you are taxed in Spain or elsewhere. If you spend over 6 months in Spain you will be taxed in Spain.

Missile's link provides the details of how much. The main differences are that you are taxed on the first 10k ish you make, whereas you are not in the UK, and the top rate is higher too.

There are other very important things to consider, one of which is any houses you own in the UK. If you have a property in the UK but live in Spain (spend more than 6 months of the year there) the Spanish authorities will consider your home in Spain your primary residence. This means that should you sell the UK place while living in Spain, capital gains tax will be taken. And in the meantime, they'll assume you are making rental income from it and will be talking to you about that.

Cheers Horlics,

I included the rota to confirm that I would indeed be spending 60% of the year in Spain, and only 40% working in the UK - thus making me liable for Spanish tax.

Is there a Spanish tax calculator to incorporate married allowances, child allowance etc? As I would be the sole earner, I'm guessing a joint application would be more beneficial financially? But there does seem to be a lot of "ifs and buts".

If your wife and family were resident in Spain then you would have to pay tax in Spain anyway even if you personally didnt fall under the residency rules

Spanish tax rates are pretty similar to those in the UK, although the higher rate of tax is higher (either 47% or 52%). There is no child benefit as such, but you get about a grand a year more tax allowance per child. Here is a calculator:

Calculadora de sueldo neto | Calcula tu salario con Cinco Días

I know there are allowances for married couples but I am not sure about any child allowances. When I was looking to work out my taxes I used this as a reference: Spanish income tax rates 2012 to 2014

But, my taxes are far simpler than yours, so I felt confident in doing it myself. The key factor being that I don't earn much, so any mistake is not going to have a very great impact on me. When I was working full time I lived and worked abroad and took the step of paying for a professional. You might want to consider that once you do decide to make this move. Professionals can suggest ways of earning and declaring that you and I would never have thought of! E.g. If you can set up and company and have your employer pay your company rather than treat you as a PAYE employee, that opens up all sorts of options.

I understand that at the moment you are just doing some initial exploration so sites like the one I have linked to may be sufficient.

Cheers cricketman and Horlics, this is all very helpful and very much appreciated; I don't suppose there is an English version of the tax calculator cricketman? I'm afraid my Spanish only stretches to ordering a couple of beers at the moment!

Not that I know about I'm afraid, although you could try searching in Google

Believe me, I've done more "tax" searches on Google than Jimmy Carr! But thanks a mill anyway.

I don't know of an English version of a tax calculator for Spain, unfortunately.

Have you seen the wiki page of Spanish taxation? It includes several examples of the tax burden for different wage levels and personal circumstances, e.g. married/single children/none.

As for you Spanish only stretching to a couple of beers, I can hold quite fluent conversations in Spanish but am a long way off being able to understand the tax documentation!

If you have google chrome installed on your COMPUTOR you can set it automatically translate web pages.

The link that missile posted earlier gives the tax rates and is in English.

Spanish tax rates and allowances for 2015.

This link shows you the personal allowances and child allowances

A guide to Spanish income tax in 2015.

There is no married allowance as such, but if you decide to make a joint declaration your wife cannot claim the personal allowance but you get a special allowance of €3400.

There is enough info there to enable you to calculate a decent estimate.

Cheers everyone, I've done a rough calculation, seems to be approx a third of your earnings in tax - only slightly more than the UK! Better than what I was expecting....mind you, I'm hardly Carol Volderman so I'll get it double checked.