Spain

FITA helps you find
service providers for:

Business Environment

General information: Executive planet
Kwintessential
Opening hours and days: Closed the afternoon between 2:00 pm and 4:00 pm, and the evening around 8:00 pm. (10:00 pm. for the superstores/ hypermarkets).
In July and August, closed at 3:00 pm. Banks close to the public at 2:00 pm.
Closed on Saturday afternoons and on Sundays (except major brands, all are closed on Sundays).

New Year	January 1
Twelfth Night - Epiphany (Festival of Mages Kings)	January 6
Good Friday	the Friday before Passover/ Easter (March/April)
Labor Day	May 1
Assumption	August 15
National Festival (Día de la Hispanidad)	October 12
All Saints Day	November 1
Constitution Day	December 6
Immaculate Conception Festival	December 8
Christmas	December 25

Holiday compensation: If a public holiday falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the Monday is a holiday instead.

Christmas and New Year holidays	Between December 25 and January 6.
Summer vacation	August
Holy Saint Week	From Thursday to Sunday of Passover.

Tax year: From January 1 to December 31 of the same year.
Accounting standards: General Accounting Plan
Accounting regulation bodies: ICAC
Accounting reports: The annual accounts consist of the balance sheet, income statement, (cuenta de perdidas y ganancias), net assets modification statement, cash flow statement and the schedule (memoria). Summary annual accounts can be used under certain conditions of amount and staff for the SME and micro-enterprises.
Publication requirements: Annual.
Professional accountancy bodies: ICCAC
ICJCE
AECE
Spanish Association of Tax Consultants
AECA
Certification and auditing: Association of public auditors of Spain
Accounting news

Nature of the tax: Impuesto sobre el Valor Anadido (IVA), except for Canary islands, Ceuta and Melilla.
Tax rate: 16%
Reduced tax rate: 7% for food and non-alcoholic beverages, veterinary drugs, health equipment and products, accommodations, some passenger transport systems, average and low end hotels and restaurants, etc.
4% for essential foodstuff, medicines, cultural goods, cars for physically handicapped, etc.
Other consumption taxes: There are special taxes:
- IIEE: special production tax (alcoholic drinks, hydrocarbons, tobacco, electricity)
- IEDMT : special tax on certain means of transport
- Special tax on carbon
- IVMDH: tax on retail sales of some hydrocarbons.

Company tax: 30%
Tax rate for foreign companies: The companies set up in Spain are taxed on their worldwide revenues and profits, while the foreign (non-resident) companies are taxed only on their revenues made in the country.
Capital gains taxation: 30%
Main allowable deductions and tax credit: Relief for Ceuta and Melilla, export business, local public service,
Deductions for R&D activities, technological innovation, TIC development, protection and distribution of historical assets, investment in movie and audiovisual productions, publishing books, investment in environment protection or in geographic positioning systems via satellite or mobility of persons with handicaps, childcare, professional training, job creation for handicapped people, reinvestment of excess profits, employer contribution to special worker protection systems.
Tax rebate exists but is not used much. Compensation for losses can benefit from a tax rebate over 15 years.
Other corporate taxes

IRPF	Between 24% and 43%.
Savings tax	18%

Allowable deductions and tax credit
Special expatriate tax regime: The tax regime of the expatriation country is applied in the majority of cases.Else, the Spanish tax department deducts 24%.

Countries with whom a double taxation treaty have been signed: See the list of non-double taxation agreements signed by Spain
Whithholding taxes: Dividends: 18%, Interest: 18%, Royalties: 24%

National organizations: Oficia Espanola de Patentes y Marcas for patents and trademark registrations.
Intellectual Property Central Registry
The competencies related to intellectual property were transferred to the Autonomous Communities which have their own registry, in coordination with the State Registry.
Regional organizations: OEB, European Patent's Office.
International membership: Member of the WIPO

Type of property and law	Validity	International agreements signed
Patent « Ley de patentes » (11/1986 of March 20)	20 years
Trademark « Ley de marcas » (17/2001 of December 7)	10 year protection, renewable by 10 year periods.	Nice agreement
Design « Ley de protección Jurídica del Diseño Industrial » (20/2003 of July 7)	5 year protection, renewable for 5 year periods, up to 25 years maximum.
Copyright Royal Legislative Order 1/1995 of April 12	lifetime of the author plus 70 years after his death.
Industrial Models Royal Law-Order of July 26, 1929	20 years

Independence of justice: Judicial power is largely independent in Spain; however, it was affected by the Basque county terrorism to the extent that judiciary employees and policemen were the target of the separatist group ETA.
Equal treatment of nationals and foreigners: Foreign nationals can expect an impartial proceeding in judicial matters. However, corruption is still a problem.
The language of justice: Spanish.
Recourse to an interpreter: Possible but only those selected by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (list of interpreters and sworn translators).
Sources of the law and legal similarities: Spanish laws' foundations are in the 1978 Constitution, then in the Community Directives from 1986. The judicial system of the county is based on a civil right system with regional variations. Spain accepts the mandatory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) with reservations.
Checking national laws online: Norma Civil
Derecho.com
1978 Constitution in English

National standards organizations: Spanish Association for standardization and certification (AENOR)
Integration in the international standards network: At European level:
- European Committee for Standardization (CEN)
- European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC)
- European Telecommunications Standardization Institute (ETSI)

At the international level:
- International Standard organization (ISO)
- International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)
- International Telecommunications Union (ITU)
Classification of standards: UNE, national certification mark.
CE, European certification mark.
Online consultation of standards: The catalog of Spanish standards
The catalog of European standards
The ISO catalog
Certification organizations: Accredited certification companies

Any comments about this content? Report it to us.