Banks asked to pay into two-billion-euro fund to help preference share victims

Spanish banks will be asked to contribute some two billion euros to the deposit guarantee fund (FGD) to help an estimated 300,000 clients recover some of the money they lost by investing in preference shares, Economy Minister Luis de Guindos has announced.

The money will also go to help buy out shareholders who also invested in the now-state-owned NCG Banco and CatalunyaBanc, the minister said after Friday’s Cabinet meeting.

NON RESIDENT TAX SPECIAL OFFER

If you do not live in Spain but you own a property in this country don't forget to submit the non resident tax before the end of the year.

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VP ADVISERS offers you a 40€ IVA included service fee for producing the Non Resident tax model. Check with us about this and any other service you may require.

 

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Government to lower penalty interest rates on home loan defaults

After the European Court of Justice ruled that Spain’s mortgage law breached European regulations on protecting consumers, the government on Friday said it would introduce further amendments to new legislation currently going through Congress.

Speaking after the regular Friday Cabinet meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría said the administration had set up a working group to decide on the changes that are needed to comply with European rules. She said these would include lowering penalty interest rates charged for failing to service mortgages on time, and increasing the default period that can trigger foreclosure action to three months from one month.

VP ADVISERS staff members wish you all a nice Saint Patrick's Day! Enjoy it!

Government may use automatic system to adjust pension qualification criteria and rights

 

The government plans to create a panel of experts to study the introduction of an automatic adjustment mechanism for state pensions on the basis of parameters such as life expectancy and the contributions required for entitlement to a pension in order to ensure the sustainability of the system, Labor Minister Fátima Báñez said Friday.

 

Báñez made the announcement after the Cabinet on Friday approved a decree tightening regulations regarding early and partial retirement. The decree also lowers the costs to companies of labor force adjustment plans that include few employees over the age of 50 and allow workers, with the exception of civil servants, to combine paid employment while collecting pension benefits.

RECOVER VAT OF UNPAID INVOICES

Under the current rules the VAT must be declared when the invoice is issued and not when paid, which may result the payment of VAT on unpaid invoices. In these cases, is there any way to recover the VAT paid? the answer is yes, 2 cases can be distinguished:

-A. The debtor is declared insolvent. The deadline for amending the VAT base is one month from the publication of the bankruptcy in the official state gazette.

-B. The VAT base can also be modified in case on uncollectible bills.

Tax changes give a boost to home sales

Spain’s battered housing market received a welcome boost at the start of this year as home sales shot up to levels last seen at the start of 2011, according to figures released Tuesday by the National Statistics Institute (INE).

The INE said transactions in the housing market rose 18.9 percent in January from the same month a year earlier to 39,670 units, a figure only surpassed in the past two years by the some 45,000 transactions registered in February 2011.

20% TAX REDUCTION FOR NEW SELF- EMPLOYED PEOPLE

Among the measures introduced by the Royal Decree approved last Friday by the government and whose objectives is to support entrepreneurs, economic stimulus and job creation, it states a 20% reduction on the net income for those that are established as autonomous from now.

What does this mean?.. Net income is the difference between income and expenditure, which is the tax base subject to taxation. That tax base will be lowered, thus resulting tax will be lower. If we get 1000 Euros in net income, to apply the reduction will remain in 800, which will result in tax savings for the self.

NEW REDUCED RATE OF CORPORATION TAX

Royal Decree-Law 4/2013 of 22 February introduced a reduction in the tax rate applicable to corporation tax for newly created entities formed from January 1, 2013.

During the first two tax periods in which the tax base is positive, that is, in the first two years in which benefit is obtained, the corporation tax will be calculated according to the following tax rates:

- 15% for taxable income between zero and 300,000 Euros

- 20% for the remaining tax base.

Set up your company with only one euro.

 

The economic crisis plaguing our country forces the closure of thousands of businesses every year and if we add the difficulty of creating new businesses, leads to a situation of continued job losses and reduced living standards in Spain.


To facilitate the formation of new companies, the government is working on a law that among other measures to stimulate economic growth and employment will allow the incorporation of companies with just one euro of capital.