Annual property taxes in Spain for non-residents (2026): IBI, IRPF, basura

Once you own a flat in Spain, you owe 3-4 yearly taxes even if you never rent it out. Real numbers for a typical 250 000 € apartment in Valencia owned by a non-resident.

What you actually owe each year as a non-resident owner

Once you sign at the notary and become the owner of a Spanish property, four recurring annual payments are waiting for you, plus one situational. Skip any of them and the Hacienda will eventually bill you with interest and surcharges.

Quick map of what is in this article:

IBI (municipal property tax)
Basura (garbage tax)
Comunidad (building community fees, technically not a tax)
IRPF Renta de no Residentes (non-resident income tax - the one nobody warns you about)
Patrimonio (wealth tax, if your assets are large)
Plusvalía / Renta when you sell (not annual, but worth knowing)

We will use one example throughout: a typical 250 000 € two-bedroom flat in Valencia owned by a non-resident.

1. IBI - Impuesto sobre Bienes Inmuebles

The Spanish equivalent of council tax. Charged by the municipality where the property sits. Annual, paid once a year (Valencia usually August-November).

How it is calculated: a fixed percentage (0.4 % to 1.1 %, set by each city) applied to the valor catastral (cadastral value) of the property. The cadastral value is typically 30-60 % of the market price.

For our 250 000 € flat in Valencia:

Cadastral value: about 80 000-100 000 €
IBI rate in Valencia city centre: 0.703 %
Annual IBI: 560-700 €

Coastal towns and richer districts may have slightly higher rates. Smaller villages can be lower (around 0.4 %). The first IBI bill of your ownership arrives the year after you buy (cycle starts 1 January, you pay for any full year you owned the flat).

2. Basura - garbage tax

Separate from IBI, paid to the same municipality. Covers waste collection. In Valencia city the residential rate is typically 50-150 €/year for a flat. Some municipalities bundle it into IBI; most invoice it separately twice a year.

3. Gastos de comunidad - building community fees

Technically not a tax, but a recurring monthly payment to the building's comunidad de propietarios for shared expenses: stairwell cleaning, lift maintenance, security, communal heating, lawyer fees, sometimes pool, sometimes concierge.

Typical ranges per month for a 2-3 bedroom flat in Valencia:

Building type	Monthly fee
Older block without lift / pool	25-60 €
Standard newer block with lift	60-120 €
Building with pool, gym, concierge	150-300 €
Luxury / branded residence	300-600 €

You pay this regardless of whether you live in the flat. The community charges run through your Spanish bank by direct debit.

4. IRPF Renta de no Residentes - the surprise tax

This is the one nobody mentions and that catches every foreign owner.

Rule: any non-resident who owns Spanish property must file an annual income tax declaration on form Modelo 210 even if the flat is empty.

The logic of Spanish tax law: an empty property "produces" imputed income for its owner, calculated as 1.1 % of the cadastral value (or 2 % for cadastral values not updated in the last 10 years). That fictional income is then taxed at the non-resident income tax rate of 19 % (EU/EEA residents) or 24 % (everyone else).

For our 250 000 € Valencia flat with cadastral value 90 000 €:

Item	Calculation	Amount
Imputed annual income	1.1 % × 90 000 €	990 €
IRNR rate (non-EU residents)	24 % × 990 €	238 €/year
IRNR rate (EU residents)	19 % × 990 €	188 €/year

If you rent out the flat (long or short term), the rule changes: you pay 24 % (or 19 % for EU) on the actual net rental income (rent minus deductible costs like repairs, community fees, depreciation, agency fee). EU residents can deduct expenses; non-EU residents in most cases cannot, which makes the effective tax on rental income for, say, a UK landlord painful: 24 % of gross.

Filing deadline: 31 December of the year following the income year. So 2025 income is declared by 31 December 2026.

We file Modelo 210 for our clients each year through our partner gestoría for around 60-90 € per flat. Avoiding it leads to compound penalties.

5. Patrimonio - wealth tax (only if you are wealthy)

Spain has an annual wealth tax. For non-residents, it applies only to your Spanish assets. The first 700 000 € of Spanish-located wealth is exempt (per person, not per property). Above that, progressive rates from 0.2 % to 3.5 %.

For a 250 000 € flat owned by a single individual: 0 € wealth tax. For a 1 200 000 € villa owned by one person: tax kicks in on the 500 000 € above the exemption, ~1 000 €/year.

If two spouses jointly own a 1 500 000 € villa: 750 000 € each, both under the 700 000 € exemption, 0 € wealth tax.

6. When you sell - non-annual but worth knowing

Two taxes hit at sale time:

Plusvalía municipal (~1-3 % of the gain): paid to the municipality, calculated on the increase in cadastral value during ownership
Capital gains in IRNR: 19 % for EU sellers, 24 % for non-EU. On the difference between sale price and original purchase price plus documented improvements.

If you reinvest the proceeds in a primary residence within 2 years AND you are a Spanish tax resident, you can defer capital gains. As a non-resident, no deferral - pay on sale.

The full annual bill - our 250 000 € example

Item	Cost / year
IBI	600 €
Basura	100 €
Community fees (modern building, 90 €/mo)	1 080 €
Home insurance	280 €
IRNR Modelo 210 (filing fee + tax for non-EU owner)	90 + 238 = 328 €
Patrimonio	0 €
Total	2 388 €

For a typical mid-range Valencia flat, budget around 2 500 €/year in fixed running costs if you do not rent it out. Add utilities (water 150 €, electricity 600 €, internet 350 € on standby) and you are around 3 500 € of fixed cost per year.

Tax treaty considerations

Spain has double-taxation treaties with most countries. Practical implications for typical Wesna clients:

EU residents (Germany, France, NL, Czech Republic, etc): taxed at 19 % IRNR, can deduct rental expenses. Tax paid in Spain offsets tax at home.
UK residents (post-Brexit, third country): 24 % IRNR on gross rental, no deductions. UK-Spain treaty avoids double tax but you still owe at the higher of the two rates.
US residents: 24 % IRNR plus FATCA reporting. The IRS lets you credit Spanish tax against US tax owed.
Canadian residents: 24 % IRNR, similar credit treatment with CRA.

What you must NOT do

Skip the Modelo 210 because the flat is empty. Hacienda finds out from the cadastre. Penalties compound over 4 years.
Underdeclare rental income. Banks share rental data with Hacienda. Airbnb shares too.
Try to deduct rental expenses if you are a non-EU non-resident. Spanish law does not allow it for that group.
Forget basura. Tiny tax but unpaid bills accumulate to four-digit debts.

What we do

We set up automatic direct debits for IBI, basura and community fees with your Spanish bank at signing day. We connect you with our partner gestoría that files Modelo 210 for 60-90 €/flat/year. For rental owners we arrange monthly bookkeeping for ~30 €/month.

Email info@wesnagroup.com with the flat you are considering and we will send you a personalised annual cost sheet.