Form 210 and Holiday Rentals for Non-Residents: Annual Filing from 2024

When the rental of a property is taxed under NRIT

If you are a non-resident in Spain for tax purposes and obtain rental income from a property located in Spain (a home, commercial unit or parking space), you must declare that income via Form 210 of the Spanish Non-Resident Income Tax (NRIT). The chargeable event arises at the moment when the rent is due, normally on a monthly basis.

Form 210 is also used to declare imputed income for the periods when the property is empty and at the owner's disposal, but that case is covered in another guide. Here we focus on income actually obtained from rentals.

The holiday-let case under NRIT

Holiday or short-term lets are an increasingly common arrangement. When the holiday let does not include services typical of the hotel industry (cleaning during the stay, 24h reception, food service), it is taxed as real-estate income under NRIT through Form 210, like any other rental.

If such services are provided (daily cleaning, permanent reception, meals), the tax classification may be different and the case should be reviewed individually. It might then qualify as a business activity with specific taxation, which changes both the form and the registration and invoicing duties.

It is common for owners to use an intermediary (Booking, Airbnb, a local agency) to manage the let. This alone does not change the tax classification: what matters is which services are provided to the guest, not who manages them.

Important change: annual filing from 2024 (RD 117/2024)

Until tax year 2023, rental income from non-resident landlords was filed quarterly via Form 210. With the approval of Royal Decree 117/2024, this changes: from the 2024 tax year onwards, rental income from real estate is filed annually, grouping all income for the year.

This is a relevant practical change: it simplifies the administration (one filing per year instead of four) and reduces administrative costs. The accrual date remains each moment the rent is due, but the filing is done in a single block.

Important to note: the change applies to income accrued from 1 January 2024. Income accrued in earlier tax years (2022, 2023) that has not yet been declared is governed by the previous regime (quarterly filing). In practice, this can raise questions for owners with pending past years.

Tax rate: 19% (EU/EEA) and 24% (others)

The applicable tax rate depends on the owner's tax residence:

• 19%: for residents of another European Union or European Economic Area country (Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein) with effective tax information exchange.
• 24%: for residents of any other country (including the United Kingdom after Brexit, the United States, Switzerland, etc.).

Deductible expenses: EU/EEA residence requirement

This is the most important difference between regimes:

• If you reside in the EU/EEA with information exchange, you may deduct expenses directly linked to obtaining the income: IBI (council property tax), community fees, proportional mortgage interest, repair and maintenance costs, property depreciation (3% per year on the higher of acquisition cost or cadastral value, excluding land), insurance, utilities if you pay them, management fees, etc.
• If you reside outside the EU/EEA, Spanish law and the Tax Agency's ordinary position apply 24% to gross income. A favourable but unsettled court route may exist for certain third countries.

In practice we see many owners who do not know the full list of deductible expenses when they reside in the EU/EEA, and they file without applying them, paying more than necessary.

How the tax base is calculated

The calculation is straightforward if your records are clear:

1. Gross income: total rental income obtained during the tax year.
2. Deductible expenses (EU/EEA only): subtract the expenses directly linked to the rental.
3. Tax base: income minus expenses (EU/EEA) or gross income (others).
4. Tax rate: 19% or 24% depending on residence.
5. Tax due: base × rate. Withholdings (if any) and prior payments on account are deducted.

If there are several owners (for example, a married couple with shared title), each one files their own Form 210 for their share of ownership.

2026 update: filing deadline from 1 to 20 April of the following year

2026 update - Order HAC/623/2026: grouped income for 2026 and later years with tax payable is filed from 1 to 20 April of the following year. Income for 2026 is filed from 1 to 20 April 2027.

For separate returns, the new period applies from October 2026; income from April to September keeps the former periods. Direct debit is available from 1 to 15 April.

Required documentation

To prepare Form 210 you should gather:

• Owner's NIE.
• Cadastral reference of the property and IBI receipt.
• Tenancy agreements and proof of rental payments received during the year (bank statements, receipts).
• Proof of expenses: community fees, IBI receipts, mortgage interest (annual bank certificate), insurance, repairs, utilities if paid by the landlord, management fees and platform commissions.
• Tax residence certificate from the country of residence (if applying a treaty or the EU/EEA regime), preferably in Spanish or with translation.
• Bank account details for direct debit, if applicable (must be an account at an entity collaborating with the Tax Agency).
• In case of co-ownership, certification of the ownership percentages.

Documentation should be retained for the tax limitation period (4 years from the end of the voluntary filing period), in case the Tax Agency requests it during a later check.

Common mistakes in non-resident rentals

1. Not filing Form 210 because "the tenant already withholds". The withholding (when applicable) does not exempt you from filing.
2. Deducting expenses without meeting the EU/EEA residence requirement.
3. Forgetting to include all months with income, particularly when the tenant changes several times.
4. Confusing a holiday let with a business activity when hotel-style services are provided, without checking whether the tax classification is correct.
5. Not declaring the empty period as imputed income (when the property is not let, there is an additional duty).
6. Calculating depreciation incorrectly: 3% applies on the higher of acquisition cost or cadastral value, excluding land, and proportional to the rental period.

Special case: UK residents after Brexit

After Brexit, UK tax residents are no longer treated as EU/EEA residents. The Tax Agency's ordinary position applies 24% to gross rent. The known favourable judgments concern a US resident, so a UK claim requires a separate review of Article 63 TFEU, the treaty and information exchange.

This means a UK landlord is taxed at 24% on the gross rental income, with no deductions. The difference compared with a landlord resident in France or Germany can be significant for rentals with substantial associated costs (active mortgage, refurbishments, repairs).

In practice we see UK landlords who had been deducting expenses for years and discover after Brexit that their regime has changed. It is worth reviewing carefully if you own a let property in Spain and you reside in the UK. The Spain-UK double-taxation treaty remains in force and avoids paying twice on the same income, but it does not equate the UK landlord to the EU/EEA regime in terms of deductible expenses.

Some taxpayers with dual residence or complex cross-border situations may find specific regimes apply. Each situation should be reviewed individually.

How GESTISYD can help

• We assess your case and apply the regime that fits your country of residence (EU/EEA or non EU/EEA).
• We compute deductible expenses where they apply and prepare the annual Form 210.
• We coordinate filing within the applicable deadline.
• If there is a holiday let, we review the tax classification and the services provided to confirm the applicable regime.