Owners who let their properties in Spain are obliged to inform the Guardia Civil who is staying in them.
We understand the difficulties with holiday letting in the Canary Islands, it’s not easy to get an official license and owners are worried about the consequences of trying to do the right thing, but getting fined for illegal letting.
Owners should be notifying the police of your paying guests (hotels have to do this) and declaring the income to the tax authorities in Spain.
Guardia Civil Notification
If you own a property in Spain that you are holiday letting, you are obliged to notify the Guardia Civil with details of the occupants within 24 hours of their arrival.
This lawful obligation applies to properties both with and without an official holiday letting license and records must be kept for 3 years.
The first step is to register your property at your local Guardia Civil with this form: ALTA/MODIFICACIÓN DE ESTABLECIMIENTOS DE HOSTELERÍA
If you need some help completing the form, the Citizens Advice Bureau in Spain have a guideline available. This form can be presented in person, posted or processed online.
The easiest way to register the details of your guests going forward is via the Guardia Civil’s online register. To clarify, this is for your paying guests, not friends and family who may be staying free of charge. For this you need to be applying for “Transmisión de fichero vía internet”.
If you require further clarification, please visit the Spanish Government’s website with details on communicating data to police agencies.
Once you have your access codes from the Guardia Civil, you can enter your guests details here: https://hospederias.guardiacivil.es/
The police require identification details for your guests aged from 16 years old upwards, the information they want entered can be found on their passport or national identity card.
Holiday Letting Income Declaration
If you are letting your property in Spain, this income should be declared to the tax authorities in Spain.
A non resident owner is required to submit quarterly returns and pay any IGIC collected every 3 months.
A resident owner should declare this income on their declaración de la renta (annual income declaration).
Owners who are EU citizens can claim tax relief on expenditure related to the property (cleaning, maintenance etc), this must be substantiated with invoices.
If you are in any doubt about your obligations, please seek legal / professional advise from a lawyer or accountant.
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