– NO WIN NO FEES –

The European High Court has rueld in his seminal judgement of 03/09/2015 that the current Spanish legislation on the taxation of inheritances and donations is not compliant to European law because it discriminates the Non Residents in Spain (as they are forced to pay up to 34% even within direct relatives although residents in the Balearic Island would only pay max. 1% in the same inheritance).

In order to comply with this ruling and to abolish this discrimination, the law was changed with effect from 1st of January 2015 but those people who have paid undue amounts of inheritance and donation tax during the last four years are now entitled to apply for a tax refund with its accrued interests.

Please click here for further information.

During the last years, our practise has been persistently following this matter with great interest and had the opportunity to assist to the hearing before the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg on 8th of January 2014 that finally ended un the above mentioned ruling.

Even prestigious newspapers such as The Sunday Times, The Wall Street Journal, Expansión, Cinco DÍas and Mallorca Zeitung have mentioned DMS Consulting regarding this matter.

Our focus on this issue ensures a highly professional service four our clients applying successfully for the tax refund.

Legal fees will only be payable on a no win no fees basis (we normally charge 15% +VAT of the total amount refunded) so the client, once paid the legal fees, end up recovering about 85% of the taxes paid. Please find calculation examples below.

However, action has to be taken immediately as the right to claim might expire !!!

Please feel free to ask for more information: info@consultingdms.com

Alejandro del Campo Zafra

Lawyer-Fiscal Adviser

 

Examples of reimbursement:

1.-INHERITANCE WITH A VALUE OF 250.000€ = Tax payable 40.560€

For example:

  1. an inheritance in favour of a direct relative (spouse, child, grandchild and both the heir and the bequeather are non – residents in Spain and live in another member-state of the European Union (Germany, UK, etc.), the inherited assets are located in the Balearic Islands (real estate, bank accounts etc.)
  2. or the heir is resident in the Balearic Islands and the bequeather was resident in another EU- member state, the inherited assets are located in the Balearic Island or abroad.

For an inheritance with a value of € 250,000 the heir had to pay 40,560 € for inheritance tax in recent years. After the before mentioned ruling the tax to pay would only be € 2,575, so the heir is entitled to apply for a refund of € 37,985 plus interests. If we assume that the tax payment was made 3 years ago, the interest would be about € 5,000, so the heir will receive a refund of € 42,985 .

In this case DMS Consulting would charge € 7,800 (15 % of the total amount recovered + VAT ) so the heir recovers € 35,185 or almost 87 % of the total amount paid before.

 

2.- INHERITANCE WITH A VALUE OF € 500.000 = Tax payable € 110.484

For an inheritance with a value of € 500,000 the heir had to pay € 110.484 for inheritance tax in recent years. After the before mentioned ruling the tax to pay would only be € 5.150, so the heir is entitled to apply for a refund of € 105.334 plus interests. If we assume that the tax payment was made 2 years ago, the interest would be about € 10.000, so the heir will receive a refund of € 115.334.

In this case DMS Consulting would charge € 20.933 (15 % of the total amount recovered + VAT ) so the heir recovers € 94.401 or almost 85 % of the total amount paid before.