If you own a Spanish property that is not rented out, you still owe annual income tax under Spain's IRNR. Spain imputes a deemed income to every non-resident property owner — whether the property is a holiday home, an investment flat, or an inherited house. This guide explains exactly how to calculate and declare it.
The imputed income tax on empty Spanish properties — renta imputada de bienes inmuebles — is by far the most widely unknown tax obligation affecting non-resident property owners in Spain. We encounter it daily: clients who bought a holiday home five, ten, or even twenty years ago, never rented it out, and genuinely had no idea that an annual tax return was required. They assumed that because the property generated no income, they owed no Spanish tax.
The assumption is wrong. Spain's IRNR deliberately imputes a deemed income to non-resident owners of non-rented Spanish property. The policy rationale is that ownership of real estate confers an economic benefit — the right to use, enjoy, or leave the property vacant — and that benefit is treated as income for tax purposes. The amounts involved are typically modest, but years of non-compliance accumulate into a substantial liability and, critically, into the AEAT's enforcement radar.
The concept of imputed income on real estate (renta imputada de bienes inmuebles) exists in both the Spanish resident income tax (IRPF) and the non-resident income tax (IRNR). For non-residents, the specific legal basis is Article 24.5 of the LIRNR (Real Decreto Legislativo 5/2004), which applies the deemed income rules of Article 85 of the LIRPF (as amended) by analogy.
The legal fiction is this: if you own real estate that is available for your use — i.e., it is not rented to third parties — you are deemed to receive an annual economic benefit equivalent to a percentage of the property's cadastral value. That deemed benefit is treated as income and subjected to IRNR. The logic mirrors the IRPF treatment of Spanish residents who own additional (non-primary) properties: they too are taxed on the deemed income from those properties.
The imputed income rule serves two policy purposes. First, it ensures that property owners who choose to leave their real estate vacant — rather than contributing it to the rental market — bear some tax cost for doing so. In a country with chronic housing availability issues in major cities, this creates a modest incentive to let vacant properties. Second, it ensures that the non-resident's economic benefit from owning a Spanish asset (the right to use and enjoy it) is captured in the tax base, in the same way that actual rental income would be.
Critics argue that the imputed income calculation is largely disconnected from economic reality — cadastral values are often well below market values, and the resulting imputed income charge is typically very small. A €300,000 market-value apartment might have a cadastral value of €80,000, generating an imputed income charge of just €880 per year (at 1.1%). Nevertheless, the legal obligation is real and the AEAT enforces it.
The imputed income obligation applies to any non-resident individual (or entity without permanent establishment) who:
A property is treated as "not rented" for a given period if no rental income was received from it during that period. This includes:
The imputed income is calculated as a fixed percentage of the valor catastral (cadastral value) of the property, as at 1 January of the tax year. The applicable percentage depends on when the cadastral value was last reviewed:
| Cadastral Revision Status | Applicable Rate | How to Verify |
|---|---|---|
| Cadastral value was revised or updated within the last 10 years | 1.1% | Check revision year on Catastro website or from AEAT guidance for your municipality |
| Cadastral value has NOT been revised in the last 10 years | 2% | Applies to most older municipalities; default if revision year is unknown |
The AEAT publishes an updated list of municipalities whose cadastral values have been revised in the last 10 years. This list is updated annually and is available on the AEAT's website. For a 2025 imputed income return (tax year 2025), a "revision within the last 10 years" means any revision carried out from 2015 onwards. If your municipality had a cadastral revision in 2018, you apply 1.1%. If the last revision was in 2008 or earlier, you apply 2%.
You can also check the revision history for a specific municipality through the Dirección General del Catastro's website (sede.catastro.gob.es), which shows the year of the most recent cadastral review by municipality.
If the property was owned for the full calendar year and was completely empty throughout, the calculation above applies in full (365/365 = 100%). If the property was owned for only part of the year (e.g., purchased in March) or was rented for some periods (requiring quarterly rental income returns for those periods), the imputed income is calculated pro-rata — see Section 6.
Once the imputed income base is calculated (cadastral value × 1.1% or 2%), the resulting figure is taxed at the standard IRNR rate applicable to the taxpayer's country of residence:
| Taxpayer Residency | Rate | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| EU member state | 19% | Germany, France, Netherlands, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Belgium, Austria, Denmark, Poland, Ireland, etc. |
| EEA member (non-EU) | 19% | Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein |
| Non-EU / Non-EEA | 24% | United Kingdom (post-Brexit), United States, Israel, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, UAE, Russia, China, etc. |
A British resident owns a holiday apartment in Nerja. The IBI receipt shows a cadastral value of €95,000 as at 1 January 2025. The last cadastral revision was carried out in 2009 — over 10 years ago — so the 2% rate applies. The property was empty throughout 2025.
A German resident owns an apartment in Palma de Mallorca. The IBI receipt shows a cadastral value of €110,000 as at 1 January 2025. The municipality last revised values in 2022 — within 10 years — so the 1.1% rate applies. The property was empty throughout 2025.
The difference between EU and non-EU treatment for the same imputed income amount is approximately 5 percentage points — modest in absolute terms, but it accumulates over years of ownership.
The imputed income return has a uniquely generous filing window compared to other IRNR obligations. Unlike the quarterly rental income returns (which have tight 20-day windows) or the post-sale capital gains return (which has a 3-month deadline), the annual imputed income return for tax year N can be filed at any point during tax year N+1: from 1 January N+1 to 31 December N+1.
| Tax Year (Accrual Year) | Accrual Date | Filing Window Opens | Filing Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 31 Dec 2023 | 1 Jan 2024 | 31 Dec 2024 (now expired) |
| 2024 | 31 Dec 2024 | 1 Jan 2025 | 31 Dec 2025 (now expired) |
| 2025 | 31 Dec 2025 | 1 Jan 2026 | 31 Dec 2026 |
| 2026 | 31 Dec 2026 | 1 Jan 2027 | 31 Dec 2027 |
The imputed income accrues as at 31 December each year — the last day of the tax year. The obligation relates to the entire calendar year of ownership (subject to proration for partial-year ownership). Despite the full-year filing window, many non-residents leave even this generous deadline unfiled year after year.
The imputed income for a given year accrues as at 31 December of that year. Ownership on 31 December means the full year's imputed income has accrued (subject to pro-rata for part-year ownership). If you sell the property on 15 December, you owned it for all but 16 days of the year — the pro-rata calculation applies.
If the property was owned for only part of the calendar year — because it was purchased or sold during the year — the imputed income is calculated for the days of ownership only:
Imputed Income = Cadastral Value × Rate (1.1% or 2%) × (Days Owned ÷ 365)
Where the property is rented for some periods and empty for others in the same calendar year, two separate IRNR returns are required:
The two obligations cover separate days and there is no overlap. To calculate the imputed income for a mixed year:
Imputed Income = Cadastral Value × Rate × (Empty/Personal-Use Days ÷ 365)
The cadastral value (valor catastral) is the cornerstone of the imputed income calculation. Using the wrong figure is one of the most common filing errors. There are several reliable ways to find the current cadastral value of your Spanish property:
The IBI (Impuesto sobre Bienes Inmuebles) is the annual Spanish council tax levied by the municipality. The IBI receipt issued each year shows the cadastral value used to calculate the IBI charge. This is the definitive value as at 1 January of the tax year — the correct value for the imputed income calculation. The IBI receipt is typically issued by the municipality in the autumn and paid in a single annual instalment (or in instalments where the municipality allows). Non-residents who pay IBI by direct debit will have a copy in their bank records or can request a duplicate from the municipal tax office (recaudación municipal).
The Dirección General del Catastro operates an online portal at sedecatastro.gob.es (or via sede.catastro.gob.es). With a digital certificate or Cl@ve PIN, you can access the cadastral data for your property, including:
Without a digital certificate, you can still find the cadastral reference number (not the value) by searching by address on the public cadastre portal (catastro.minhap.gob.es).
The original purchase deed (escritura de compraventa) states the cadastral reference number of the property. While it typically does not state the current cadastral value, the reference number allows you to look up the current value on the Catastro portal. Note that cadastral values change over time — the value in the original deed may be outdated; always use the current year's IBI receipt value for IRNR purposes.
For the depreciation deduction (relevant if you are an EU resident landlord), you need the separate construction value (valor catastral de la construcción), not the total cadastral value. The total cadastral value = land value + construction value. The IBI receipt or Catastro portal data shows this breakdown. For imputed income purposes, the total cadastral value is used — not just the construction portion.
Most Spanish urban properties have an assigned cadastral value. However, in some situations — particularly for newly built properties that have not yet been registered with the Catastro, or for rural properties recently converted to urban use — a formal cadastral value may not yet have been assigned.
In this situation, the LIRNR provides an alternative calculation basis:
This alternative method typically produces a lower imputed income figure than the standard cadastral value approach, because acquisition prices may be lower than official valuations in some areas, and because only 50% of the price is used as the base.
Once a cadastral value is assigned to the property (which may happen in subsequent years as the Catastro processes new registrations), the standard 1.1%/2% of cadastral value method applies from that year forward.
A non-resident who owns more than one Spanish property must file a separate Modelo 210 imputed income return for each property. There is no mechanism to consolidate multiple properties into a single annual return. Each property generates its own imputed income calculation (using its own cadastral value and applicable rate), and each must be declared in a separate filing.
This means that a non-resident who owns three Spanish properties — say, a flat in Barcelona, a villa in Marbella, and a parking space in Madrid — must file three separate annual Modelo 210 imputed income returns each year (assuming all three are empty for the full year or for the relevant empty periods).
Where a property is jointly owned (e.g., 50/50 between spouses), each co-owner files their own return for their proportionate share of the imputed income. Co-owners with different nationality/residency status apply their own applicable rates.
If you have owned a Spanish property for several years and have not filed imputed income returns, you have outstanding IRNR obligations. This section explains how to assess and regularise the position.
The statute of limitations for IRNR is 4 years from the last day of the voluntary filing period (Article 66 LGT). For imputed income:
| Tax Year | Filing Deadline | Limitation Period Expires | Status as at May 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 31 Dec 2022 | 31 Dec 2026 | OPEN — expires end 2026 |
| 2022 | 31 Dec 2023 | 31 Dec 2027 | OPEN |
| 2023 | 31 Dec 2024 | 31 Dec 2028 | OPEN |
| 2024 | 31 Dec 2025 | 31 Dec 2029 | OPEN |
| 2025 | 31 Dec 2026 | 31 Dec 2030 | CURRENT — filing window open |
Tax year 2020 (with a filing deadline of 31 December 2021) expired on 31 December 2025 — it is generally outside the 4-year window as of May 2026. Tax years 2021 through 2025 remain open.
Voluntary filing of outstanding returns before the AEAT contacts you attracts only the recargo (surcharge) under Article 27 LGT — 5%, 10%, 15%, or 20% depending on delay, plus late-payment interest for filings more than 12 months late. This is substantially less than the 50%–150% sanctions regime that applies once the AEAT initiates a formal proceeding.
The AEAT uses several data sources to identify non-residents who have not filed imputed income returns:
The increasing sophistication of AEAT data-matching means that non-filers are being identified more efficiently every year. The risk of remaining undetected for multiple consecutive years is steadily decreasing.
Failing to file any imputed income return is by far the most common Modelo 210 violation. Most non-resident holiday home owners have never heard of the obligation. The AEAT's enforcement campaigns targeting non-filers have intensified since 2020, with land registry cross-referencing and IBI payment data used to build non-compliance lists. If you own a Spanish property and have not filed annual Modelo 210 returns, this is an immediate priority.
Some taxpayers calculate the imputed income using the market value or the purchase price of the property rather than the cadastral value. The cadastral value is a completely different figure — typically 30%–60% of market value in popular areas — and is the only correct basis for the calculation. Using a higher value (market value) dramatically overstates the imputed income and over-pays tax. Using the purchase price is also incorrect unless the property has no cadastral value (see Section 8).
Applying 2% when 1.1% applies (or vice versa) is a calculation error that results in either over- or under-payment. The correct rate depends on whether the municipality revised its cadastral values in the 10 years preceding the tax year. Applying 2% to a property in a municipality that revised values in 2019 overstates the imputed income by almost double. The check takes minutes — look up the revision year for your municipality on the AEAT's annual list or the Catastro portal.
Filing the full-year imputed income for a property that was only owned for part of the year, or that was rented for some of the year, overstates the imputed income base. The imputed income applies only to the days the property was (a) owned by you, and (b) not rented out. Applying the full-year calculation to a property purchased in September, or to a property rented out for June–August, inflates the tax paid unnecessarily.
Some landlords file a single annual imputed income return (code 23) even for years in which the property was rented, because they know about the annual imputed income return but not about the quarterly rental obligation. For any period in which the property was rented, the rental income return (code 07) must be filed quarterly — the imputed income return does not substitute for it and does not declare the rental income correctly.
The relevant cadastral value is the value as at 1 January of the tax year — not the value when you bought the property. Cadastral values are periodically revised upwards (revalorización catastral) by the municipality, meaning the value at purchase may be significantly different from the current value. Always use the IBI receipt for the relevant year to confirm the value in force at 1 January of that year.
Co-owners must each file their own individual Modelo 210. Filing a single return for both spouses or partners understates the formal obligations — both are independently liable for their own proportionate share of the imputed income. One co-owner's filing does not constitute compliance for the other.
Where a parking space or trastero is registered as a separate property element with its own cadastral reference, it generates its own imputed income obligation. Many non-residents file for the main apartment but overlook the ancillary elements. Check your property title (nota simple del Registro de la Propiedad) to identify all separately registered elements.
The applicable rate changes when the taxpayer's country of residence changes. A UK national who moved from Germany to the UK in 2021 should have switched from 19% to 24% for their IRNR returns from that date. A French national who retired to Switzerland faces the opposite: from EU rate to non-EU rate. Rate errors accumulate over multiple years and may require corrective filings with either additional tax or refund claims.
Some taxpayers who have missed several years attempt to file a single Modelo 210 covering all missed years in one go. This is not accepted by the AEAT system — each tax year must be declared in a separate Modelo 210 return specifying the relevant accrual year. Combined or multi-year returns will be rejected or processed incorrectly, leaving years undeclared.
Yes. The imputed income obligation applies for the full year — whether you visited for two weeks, two days, or not at all. Owner occupation is treated the same as leaving the property empty: both are "available for the owner's use" and generate imputed income for those days. There is no minimum occupancy threshold or owner-use exemption. The only relief from imputed income for a given period is rental income from that period (which is instead declared as rental income).
Where no cadastral value has been officially assigned, the alternative calculation method applies: imputed income = 50% of the acquisition price × 1.1%. This is described in Section 8 above. You should monitor when the Catastro assigns a cadastral value to the property — this typically happens within 1–3 years of construction or registration — and switch to the standard method (cadastral value × 1.1% or 2%) once assigned.
No. Each tax year must be declared in a separate Modelo 210 return. The form requires you to specify the accrual year, and only one year per return is accepted. If you have four years of missed returns, you must file four separate returns. These can be filed on the same day or in close succession, but they cannot be combined. A professional adviser can prepare all outstanding returns simultaneously and submit them sequentially.
Yes, completely. Imputed income (code 23, annual filing) and rental income (code 07, quarterly filing) are separate obligations declared on separate Modelo 210 returns. For a property that was rented for part of the year and empty for the rest, you file both: quarterly rental returns for the rental periods and one annual imputed income return for the empty periods. They are not substitutes for each other.
Strictly speaking, the imputed income obligation is tied to ownership of an urban property. If the property is registered in the Land Registry as existing (even if uninhabitable due to fire, flood, or other damage), it may still generate an IRNR obligation until the ownership is formally registered as ended (e.g., through demolition and deregistration with the Catastro). In practice, where a property is genuinely uninhabitable and a claim has been made with the insurer or a demolition proceeding is underway, a reasonable position can be argued. Professional advice is recommended to document the factual position and, if appropriate, file with a note explaining the exceptional circumstances.
The imputed income obligation begins from the date you became the registered owner of the property — typically the date the inheritance is formalised and accepted (date of the escritura de herencia or, if earlier, the date of the inheritance acceptance). The obligation does not wait until the property is transferred into your name in the Land Registry, though in practice the Catastro and land registry date alignment can affect the first year's calculation. If you inherited a Spanish property in 2023 and the inheritance was formalised in May 2023, you owe imputed income for the days of ownership from May to 31 December 2023 (pro-rata), declared in a 2024 filing.
Yes, for the period from 1 January to the date of sale (the days you owned it before the transfer). If you sold on 1 July, you owe imputed income for 181 days (1 January to 1 July) — unless the property was rented during some of those days. The imputed income for the year of sale is calculated on a pro-rata basis. Additionally, you will have the capital gains Modelo 210 obligation for the sale itself (within 3 months of the deed date). These are two separate returns. See the capital gains guide for details on the sale return.
In virtually all cases, no. Most double tax treaties follow Article 6 of the OECD Model Convention, which gives the country where the property is located (Spain) the primary and exclusive right to tax income from immovable property. This includes imputed income — Spain's domestic characterisation of the deemed benefit of property ownership. The treaty's role is to provide a credit in the home country for the Spanish tax paid, not to reduce the Spanish rate. Some taxpayers argue that imputed income (as a deemed rather than actual income) falls outside the scope of treaty income provisions, but this argument has not succeeded in Spanish administrative or judicial proceedings.
Use this checklist to ensure your annual Modelo 210 imputed income filing is complete and accurate:
Jacob Salama (Colegiado nº 11.294 ICAMálaga) advises non-resident property owners from the UK, Germany, the US, Israel, and beyond on imputed income obligations, voluntary regularisation of past years, calculation of correct cadastral values, and AEAT penalty mitigation. Book a structured assessment of your position.