Tax & Tourist Authorities - Spain

This is a warning to all Spanish holiday home owners. Second home owners letting out property have to be registered with Spanish tax and tourism authorities. Failure to do so may cost dearly.
This is from an article at HomesWorldWide. We do not wish to break copyrights of HomesWorldWide so we acknowledge their website and we quote :

"Those people who own holiday homes in Spain to rent out to tourists may be breaking the law.

According to reports on the website thinkSPAIN, tourism and tax authorities are clamping down on unregistered lets and owners face fines of up to €30,000 if they are caught.

All apartments and villas which are let out to tourists should be registered with the tourism authorities, but at the moment conditions are extremely stringent.

Property owners could also face the wrath of the Spanish tax authorities if they are living in Spain and are not declaring rental earnings.

This comes at a time when more and more British home owners in Spain are deciding to rent out their properties in order to offset their losses. Many have opted to take out buy-to-let mortgages so their rental income covers the mortgage payments and provides them with additional income.

But a growing number of holiday home owners are advertising their properties on websites unaware they need a licence from the tourist authorities to do so, and now face heavy fines as a consequence."

You are advised to check with Spanish Tax and local tourist office regards letting out of your second home.

Finance for Your Dream Home !

Yahoo UK has a good article on buying property abroad which highlights the pitfalls and the checks one should make. Similarly check ThisIsMoney .
There are several overseas property blogs around, TravelFinance is certainly worth perusing. Others include OverseasProperty.

Barclays Bank, a UK bank with branch offices in most countries, now provide finance for properties abroad. This particular site covers main EU countries such as Spain, Portugal, France and Italy. It also gves a brief overview of the legal issues and steps necessary to safeguard your property purchase. Others UK banks include RBS, HSBC and Abbey which is part of Bank Santander, Spain.
More info. will follow soon.

Foreign Currency Transactions

Dear Sirs,

Foreign Payments specialise in all aspects of foreign exchange, in particular with Overseas Home Sales companies and their clients.

Because we deal direct with the client there is no administration on your part. Foreign Payments pay a rebate commission to all companies/agents who refer their clients to us. This means that all transactions will generate a payment for your business. This rebate is paid monthly in arrears and can be paid in the currency of your choice. For property companies dealing with a large client base, this can add up to thousands of pounds per year, with no additional work.


Our transfer service allows your clients to send bank to bank transfers directly to your account. Transfers take 2 working days to credit. We charge just ?10 per transfer below ?10k. Transfers above this amount are sent completely free of charge. Foreign Payments will even send a faxed or e-mailed confirmation to you, giving you details of the transaction.


There are many advantages to recommending our services:

Advantages to the client: Top rates, no fees and daily updates on rates and market news (this is sent via e-mail). We also offer a dedicated adviser for each client, meaning they do not need to deal with numerous people at their bank. We also offer a full back office service meaning we can deal immediately and efficiently with any problems that may arise.


Advantages to your company: Administration becomes easier due to the fact that most payments will be sent direct from one source (Foreign Payments) as opposed to numerous different banks. Confirmations are sent to you once we remit the clients payment. You can therefore know exactly how much you are expecting and when it is due to arrive. Most importantly you receive a rebate commission on all referred business. This is currently ?1.00 per ?1,000 remitted. A transfer of ?150,000 would mean a rebate commission of ?150. You will be aware that banks offer no such rebates. This commission is paid monthly in arrears and can be paid in the currency of your choice, by telegraphic transfer or foreign draft.

If you would like to make your clients aware of our services we will be happy to provide flyers/leaflets for any mailshots you may be sending. We can also send an e-mail link that can be sent to your client base or included on your website.

Foreign Payments believe that everyone benefits from this system. We gain additional business, your clients gain a personal, professional foreign exchange service (and save time and money) and your company gains an additional income stream, requiring no work on your part.

We will be happy to send this direct to those clients you think might benefit from our services.

In the meantime, if you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me immediately.

Finance for Properties Abroad

Foreign Payments Ltd can offer you:

* NO COMMISSION ON YOUR MONEY TRANSFERS
* BETTER CURRENCY EXCHANGE RATES than High Street Banks
* A PERSONAL, FRIENDLY & COST EFFECTIVE SERVICE
* YOUR OWN PERSONAL ADVISER who will represent you throughout your property purchase
* A FREE DAILY EMAIL SERVICE keeping you informed of currency fluctuations

If you have any further queries or if I can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact me. Contact details available on request.