Under the Beckham Law you are tax resident in Spain and you remain a Personal Income Tax (IRPF) taxpayer, even though your tax is calculated under the rules of the Non-Resident Income Tax. But, according to the DGT, that does not make you resident for the purposes of the double taxation treaties with the United Kingdom and with Sweden, because their article 4.1 excludes anyone who is taxed only on income from sources in that State. You can ask the Tax Agency for a certificate of tax residence in Spain, "but not for the purposes of the provisions of the Treaty" (V2919-17).
Key points
- You are an IRPF taxpayer. Anyone who opts for the regime "will retain their status as an IRPF taxpayer" and does not have non-resident status (V0717-13).
- For the treaty, you are not resident. The DGT concludes this for the Treaty with the United Kingdom (V2919-17 and V2195-22) and for the Treaty with Sweden (V2606-17). This covers two treaties, not all of them: you need to check yours.
- Tax residence certificate: you can request it (article 120 of the IRPF Regulation), but it cannot be used for the purposes of the provisions of the Treaty.
- Wealth Tax: you are taxed on a limited tax liability basis, only on assets and rights located, exercisable or to be performed in Spain, and you can only deduct the charges, encumbrances and debts for invested capital that relate to those assets and rights.
- Your home country: none of the rulings says how it will treat you, or whether you will pay tax twice or not.
Tax resident in Spain and an IRPF taxpayer
Article 93.1 of the Personal Income Tax Law, in the wording in force since 1 January 2023 that ruling V1953-25 of 16 October 2025 transcribes, begins as follows: "Individuals who acquire their tax residence in Spain as a result of their move to Spanish territory may opt to be taxed under the Non-Resident Income Tax, with the special rules provided for in section 2 of this article, while retaining the status of taxpayers for Personal Income Tax". In other words, to qualify for the regime you first have to be tax resident in Spain, and you are under article 9.1 of the Personal Income Tax Law: by staying in Spain for more than 183 days in the calendar year, or because the main centre or base of your economic activities or interests is located here.
Ruling V0717-13 of 6 March 2013 addressed this head-on. A Portuguese national who was a shareholder in a Spanish company and had a job offer in Spain asked whether by opting for the regime he acquired tax residence in Spain and the status of IRPF taxpayer. The DGT answers that he may opt to be taxed under the Non-Resident Income Tax "but will retain his status as an IRPF taxpayer", and that he will not have "the status of non-resident in Spanish territory". In his case, that prevented him from applying a rule of the 2004 consolidated text of the Corporate Income Tax Law intended for non-resident recipients. That conclusion is tied to that rule and that case, and we do not extend it to other income. The ruling transcribes the 2013 wording of article 93, which had different requirements from the current ones, but the sentence that matters here, the one about retaining the status of IRPF taxpayer, remains in the wording in force.
But you are taxed only on what is treated as obtained in Spain
Being resident does not mean being taxed like any other resident. In V2919-17 of 14 November 2017, the DGT explains that those under the regime "are taxed in accordance with the rules of the Non-Resident Income Tax" on the income treated as obtained in Spain, "income, consequently, from Spanish sources". The only exception to that source rule, in the wording of article 93.2.b) that the ruling applies, is income from work, because paragraph (b) treats all income from work obtained during the regime as obtained in Spain. And from the literal wording of that provision, the DGT adds, "it cannot be inferred that there is taxation on worldwide income".
We explain which foreign income is taxed in Spain and which is not, covering shares, crypto and pensions, in the article on foreign shares, crypto and pensions. Here we focus on the consequence for the treaties.
For the treaty, you are not resident: United Kingdom and Sweden
A double taxation treaty applies to persons who are residents of one or both States, and it is the treaty itself that says who is resident for its purposes, starting from whoever has that status under domestic law. Article 4.1 of the Treaty between Spain and the United Kingdom, done in London on 14 March 2013, treats as resident anyone who is liable to tax in a State by reason of their domicile, residence or any other similar criterion, but adds: "This term, however, does not include any person who is liable to tax in that State in respect only of income or capital gains from sources in that State or capital situated therein".
The DGT connects that clause with the regime. If Spanish law treats all income from work as originating in Spain, anyone under the regime is still taxed "only on income generated in that State", and that is why they fall within the exclusion. V2919-17 states the conclusion in so many words: the person submitting the query, under the regime, "cannot be considered resident for the purposes of the Treaty". The case was that of a British national coming from Switzerland to work as an employee of a Spanish real estate company, who received a pension from the United Kingdom. V2195-22 of 21 October 2022 repeats the same conclusion on the same Treaty for a taxpayer under the regime who expected to obtain gains from his investment in shares of a United Kingdom company.
V2606-17 of 13 October 2017 reaches the same result with another treaty. A Swedish national was going to work as an employee of a newly created Spanish company engaged mainly in the real estate business, and asked precisely whether article 4.1 of the Treaty between Spain and Sweden prevented him from applying it if he opted for the regime. That article says that the term resident "does not include any person who is liable to tax in that Contracting State only in respect of income from sources therein or capital situated in that State". The DGT reasons in the same way and concludes that the person submitting the query "cannot be considered resident for the purposes of the Treaty".
What cannot be generalised
- Only two treaties are covered. In these rulings the DGT has analysed article 4.1 of the Treaty with the United Kingdom and that of the Treaty with Sweden, which have an equivalent exclusion clause. We do not cite any ruling on other treaties. If your country is a different one, you need to read article 4 of your specific treaty.
- The three rulings apply pre-2023 versions of article 93. The DGT's reasoning rests on article 93.2.b), and article 93 was amended with effect from 1 January 2023 by Law 28/2022. We do not cite any ruling that repeats this conclusion under the wording in force.
- Each ruling answers a specific case, with its own facts.
The tax residence certificate: yes, but not for the purposes of the treaty
Article 120 of the IRPF Regulation, transcribed in the three rulings on the treaty, says that those who opt for the regime "may request the certificate of tax residence in Spain regulated in the second additional provision of Order HAC/3626/2003, of 23 December, which appears in annex 9 of that order". The DGT concludes as follows: you may request a certificate of tax residence in Spain, "but not for the purposes of the provisions of the Treaty". In V2606-17 the wording is broader: "of a Treaty".
So the certificate exists and you can request it. What it does not do is prove that you are resident for the purpose of applying the provisions of the treaty. The rulings say nothing more about what it is for, nor do they deal with certificates issued by the authorities of other countries.
And what about your home country?
None of the rulings we cite says how your home country will treat you, whether it will continue to consider you resident or whether you will end up paying tax on the same income in both countries. Nor do they say whether, under the regime, you can apply the deduction for international double taxation in Spain. We do not draw those conclusions ourselves. The only thing they state is what we have told you: you are not resident for the purposes of those two treaties, and the Spanish certificate cannot be used for the purposes of their provisions.
Wealth Tax: limited tax liability (obligación real)
Article 93.1, also in its current wording, says that anyone who opts for the regime "shall be subject to Wealth Tax on a limited tax liability basis (obligación real)", the form of liability that does not extend to all your assets. V0717-13 explains what that entails, under articles 5.Uno.b) and 9.Cuatro of Law 19/1991: you are taxed exclusively on the assets and rights you own "when they are located, can be exercised or must be performed in Spanish territory", and "only the charges, encumbrances and debts for invested capital that relate to those assets and rights shall be deductible". Both halves count: what you hold abroad is not included, but nor can you subtract charges, encumbrances or debts that do not relate to what you hold in Spain.
The ruling does not go into amounts, tax-free allowances or information returns, and neither do we.
Summary
| Question | Answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Am I tax resident in Spain? | Yes. The regime is for those who acquire tax residence in Spain as a result of their move, and you retain the status of IRPF taxpayer | Article 93.1 LIRPF, transcribed in V1953-25; V0717-13 |
| Am I taxed on my worldwide income? | No, according to the rulings, which apply the pre-2023 wording: on income from Spanish sources, and on all your income from work during the regime | V2919-17, V2606-17 |
| Am I resident for the purposes of the treaty? | No, under the treaties with the United Kingdom and with Sweden. Other treaties, no ruling cited | V2919-17, V2195-22, V2606-17 |
| Can I request a tax residence certificate? | Yes, but not for the purposes of the provisions of the treaty | Article 120 RIRPF, transcribed in the three rulings on the treaty |
| What happens in my home country? | None of the rulings cited resolves it | No source |
| Do I pay Wealth Tax on what I hold abroad? | No: only on assets and rights located, exercisable or to be performed in Spain, deducting only the charges, encumbrances and debts for invested capital that relate to them | V0717-13 |
Frequently asked questions
Under the Beckham Law, am I tax resident in Spain?
Yes. Article 93.1 of the Personal Income Tax Law, in the wording in force that ruling V1953-25 transcribes, is addressed to individuals who acquire their tax residence in Spain as a result of their move, and says that they opt to be taxed under the Non-Resident Income Tax while retaining the status of IRPF taxpayers. In ruling V0717-13, the DGT adds that anyone who opts for the regime does not have the status of non-resident in Spanish territory.
Can I apply the double taxation treaty between Spain and my country?
It depends on the treaty, and you need to read it. For the Treaty with the United Kingdom (rulings V2919-17 and V2195-22) and for the Treaty with Sweden (V2606-17), the DGT concludes that anyone under the regime cannot be considered resident for the purposes of the Treaty, because its article 4.1 excludes anyone who is taxed only on income from sources in that State. We do not cite any ruling on other treaties, and all three apply pre-2023 versions of article 93.
Can I ask the Tax Agency for a tax residence certificate?
Yes. Article 120 of the Personal Income Tax Regulation allows those who opt for the regime to request the certificate of tax residence in Spain regulated in the second additional provision of Order HAC/3626/2003, which appears in its annex 9. But, according to rulings V2919-17, V2606-17 and V2195-22, not for the purposes of the provisions of the Treaty.
Do I have to pay Wealth Tax on what I hold outside Spain?
Not on what you hold abroad. Anyone who opts for the regime is subject to Wealth Tax on a limited tax liability basis (obligación real). According to ruling V0717-13, that means being taxed exclusively on the assets and rights located, exercisable or to be performed in Spanish territory, and only the charges, encumbrances and debts for invested capital that relate to those assets and rights are deductible.
Will I pay tax twice, in Spain and in my home country?
None of the rulings we cite answers that question. They do not say how your home country will treat you or whether, under the regime, you can apply the deduction for international double taxation in Spain, and we do not draw that conclusion ourselves. What they do say is that, for the treaties with the United Kingdom and with Sweden, you are not resident for the purposes of the Treaty.
Before asking your country or the Tax Agency for anything
What these rulings resolve is what you are for Spain and for two specific treaties. If you have not arrived yet, check when the regime starts to apply in the article on your first year under the Beckham Law; if you have dual nationality, in the one on ruling V2460-25; and for the procedure, in the step-by-step guide. If you want us to review your treaty and your situation, DPLL Tax & Legal, an AEAT Social Collaborator firm based in Barcelona, will look at it with you. Start with a free 10-minute call.