Modelo 210 for UK residents: what you owe Spain on your property

What the Modelo 210 is

The Modelo 210 is Spain's non-resident income tax return (IRNR) for people who aren't tax resident in Spain and have no business base there. If you live in the UK and own a flat or house in Spain, you file it whether you rent the property out or not.

If you rent it out

Since Brexit, UK residents are treated like any other non-EU owner: the Spanish tax agency (AEAT) charges 24% on the gross rent, with no costs deducted. Owners resident in the EU or EEA pay 19% on the rent after costs.

Example: €9,600 of rent in a year means €2,304 of Spanish tax for a UK owner, even if IBI, community fees and repairs cost €2,400.

If it isn't let for part of the year

Spain taxes an 'imputed income' for every day the property isn't let: days you use it, days family use it, and days it sits empty. There's none for a property under construction or one planning rules don't let you use.

The imputed income is a percentage of the cadastral value (valor catastral, on your IBI bill): 1.1% if your town's values were revised in a general valuation, otherwise 2%. For 2023–2025 that means a revision that took effect from 1 January 2012; Real Decreto-ley 29/2026 extends this to 2026, pending approval by Congress. From 2027 the normal rule returns: the revision must have taken effect in that year or the ten before.

If the property has no cadastral value, or it was never notified to you, it's 1.1% of 50% of the higher of the purchase price and any value the tax authority has checked. The result is pro-rated by days and by your ownership share, then taxed at 24% for UK residents.

The 2025 court ruling on costs

In July 2025 Spain's National Court (Audiencia Nacional) ruled that refusing non-EU owners the same deductions as EU owners breaches EU rules on free movement of capital. In July 2026 the Supreme Court admitted an appeal against that ruling, so the outcome is pending and may go to the EU Court of Justice.

Until it's settled, the AEAT still applies 24% on gross rent. If the ruling stands, UK owners who paid tax on gross rent may be able to claim back the difference for years still open. Keep records of your costs and talk to an adviser before claiming.

Deadlines and late filing

From 2026 income, the rental return moves from January to 1–20 April of the next year, and the imputed-income return can be filed from 1 April to 31 December. See the deadlines guide for the full dates.

Filing late before the AEAT asks costs a surcharge of 1% plus 1% for each full month late, reaching 15% plus interest after 12 months. If the AEAT finds an unfiled return first, penalties are higher.