Buying or selling in Mallorca as a non-resident: the tax is decided before completion

Is this you?

• You are buying a home in Mallorca from abroad and want the tax cost and the ownership structure settled before you sign.
• You are selling a property here as a non-resident and want the 3% withholding handled and the refund claimed.
• You are buying from a non-resident seller and have been told you must withhold part of the price.

What Spanish law requires

Buying. The NIE, the foreign identification number, is needed before any deed can be signed. Where the seller is a private individual, the buyer pays transfer tax at the Balearic bands: 8% up to 400,000 euros, 9% from 400,001 to 600,000, 10% from 600,001 to one million, 12% from one to two million, and 13% above two million. Each rate applies to its own slice of the value. The base is the reference value set by the Cadastre, or the price if higher. On a new build from a developer, the buyer pays 10% VAT plus 1.5% stamp duty.

Where the seller is a non-resident, the buyer must withhold 3% of the price and pay it to the tax office on Tax Form 211 within one month. A buyer who fails to withhold becomes liable for the seller's tax up to that amount, and the property stands as security. Where the seller is non-resident, the buyer also answers to the town hall for the municipal land value tax, which is why the deed should provide for a retention of funds.

Selling. The 3% withheld is a payment on account, not the tax. The tax is 19% of the capital gain, for all non-residents whatever their country. The gain is the sale price, less the costs of sale borne by you, less the acquisition value increased by the taxes and costs paid at the time and by the cost of improvements. For property acquired before 1995, transitional reduction coefficients may still apply.

The seller's return is filed on Tax Form 210 within three months after the buyer's one-month period to pay the withholding, a little over four months from completion. Where the withholding exceeds the tax, the excess is reclaimed in that return; the tax office has six months to pay it, after which interest accrues. Where the gain is large, the withholding covers only part of the tax and the balance must be set aside.

A sale is usually the moment when unfiled Tax Form 210 years come to light, and the refund is processed once you no longer have any presence in Spain. A representative and an address for service in Spain should be in place.

What we do

• On a purchase: obtaining the NIE, computing the transfer tax on the reference value, reviewing the deposit contract and the deed, and advising on whether to hold the property personally, jointly or through a company, with the wealth tax and future inheritance in view.
• Where you buy from a non-resident: filing the 3% withholding on Tax Form 211 and the retention for the municipal land value tax.
• On a sale: assembling the acquisition value and the deductible costs, computing the gain, filing the Tax Form 210 within the deadline and claiming the refund of any excess withholding.
• Review of the open Tax Form 210 years before completion, so that nothing surfaces during the refund.
• Appointment as your representative in Spain and address for service after the sale.

What we need from you

Send these by email or through the secure link we give you after the first call. We tell you exactly what is missing.

• On a purchase: passport, the listing or the deposit contract, and the cadastral reference of the property.
• On a sale: the purchase deed, the transfer tax or VAT paid at the time, invoices for improvement works, and the agency, notary and registry costs of the sale.
• The copy of Tax Form 211 the buyer gives you at completion.
• The NIE of each owner and a certificate of tax residence.
• The Tax Form 210 filings for the last four years, or a note that there are none.

Deadlines

Frequently asked questions

Sources: Articles 25.1.f).3 and 25.2 of the consolidated Non-Resident Income Tax Act (Real Decreto Legislativo 5/2004); Balearic Decreto Legislativo 1/2014 on transfer tax; consolidated Local Finance Act (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2004).

This page is general information and reflects the rules in force on the date shown. It is not advice and does not replace an assessment of your own case. Last reviewed: 18 September 2026.