The Spanish government is reported to be planning to impose a 100% tax on non-residents, from outside the EU, buying homes in the country.

The country’s prime minister, Pedron Sánchez, has said that this is to prevent non-residents from buying property in Spain to let.  This has caused a shortage of property for sale in the country.

It is not clear whether the tax will be imposed on purchases in all regions and no timeline for the necessary legislation to pass has been provided.  It is also unclear whether the tax will be imposed retrospectively. In Spain people are considered to be non-residents if they spend less than 183 days a year in the country. Currently, non-residents pay 6-10% in tax.

Even the suggestion of such a tax is likely to affect the movement of people from non-EU countries, especially the UK, to Spain.  The speculation is that those people may choose alternative destinations such as Cyprus, Italy or Dubai.

Photo: The Spanish flag.