Buying property in Spain as a foreigner: NIE, taxes and the full process

Spain records close to 100,000 home purchases by foreign buyers every year (some 97,500 in 2025, 13.8% of the total), according to data from the Colegio de Registradores (Spain's association of land registrars). The most active buyers are British, German, French, Belgian, Romanian and Latin American (Venezuelan, Colombian, Argentinian, Mexican). The Spanish market has a particular appeal for foreign buyers: the climate, the quality of life, first-rate infrastructure and prices that are still reasonable compared with other countries on Europe's Mediterranean rim.

But buying as a foreigner comes with particularities that a Spanish resident doesn't face. This guide explains the full process from the start.

The NIE: the essential first step

The Número de Identificación de Extranjero (NIE, the foreigner identification number) is the tax number that every foreign national needs to carry out any financial transaction in Spain. Without an NIE you can't sign a deed before a notary, open a bank account in Spain or pay tax. The NIE comes before anything else.

How to get it:

• From Spain: Apply at the Oficina de Extranjería (the foreigners' office) of the province or at an authorised Policía Nacional station. You submit form EX-15, your original passport, a copy of it and proof of why you need the NIE (in this case, the intention to buy or, if already signed, the contrato de arras, the deposit contract). Processing takes 1-4 weeks depending on the province.
• From abroad: At the Spanish consulate in the applicant's country of residence. The process can be slower (weeks or months depending on the consulate and demand). For urgent purchases, it's better to do it from Spain.
• Through a representative with a notarised power of attorney: The buyer can grant a power of attorney before a notary in their own country (apostilled so that it's valid in Spain) to a gestor (an administrative agent) or a lawyer in Spain, who applies for the NIE on their behalf.

A Spanish bank account: needed for the purchase

To pay the purchase price and the associated taxes and costs by bank transfer to Spanish accounts, it's highly advisable (and in some cases almost compulsory in practice) to have a bank account in Spain. Spanish banks can open accounts for non-residents with a passport and an NIE, although the verification process and the time it takes vary: some banks are more flexible with foreign customers than others. The banks with the most experience with international customers are BBVA, Sabadell and CaixaBank, which have dedicated international departments.

Mortgages for non-residents in Spain: the real conditions

Spanish banks do grant mortgages to non-residents, but on stricter terms than for residents:

• Maximum financing: Usually 60-70% of the appraised value for non-residents, compared with the usual 80% for residents. That means a non-resident needs to put in 30-40% of the purchase price plus costs (ITP, the property transfer tax, or IVA, the VAT on new homes; notary; land registry; gestoría).
• Additional documents: Banks ask for documents from the country of origin to prove income: tax returns from that country, payslips for the last 12 months, employment contracts. Everything has to be translated and, in some cases, apostilled.
• Interest rates: Non-residents can access both fixed and variable rates on terms similar to residents, although with a slightly higher margin at some banks.
• The banks most active with mortgages for non-residents: Sabadell, BBVA, CaixaBank and Banco Santander have specific products for foreign buyers. Some regional savings banks also have experience with this profile if the buyer is purchasing in their area.

Tax for non-resident property owners in Spain: the IRNR

A foreign buyer who is not tax-resident in Spain and buys property there is subject to the Impuesto sobre la Renta de No Residentes (IRNR, non-resident income tax), managed by the Spanish tax agency (Agencia Tributaria), instead of the IRPF (the income tax paid by residents).

• If you let the property: Rental income is taxed under the IRNR at 19% for residents of the EU/EEA and at 24% for residents of the rest of the world. EU residents can deduct the expenses related to letting (IBI, the local property tax; interest; community fees; depreciation). Residents outside the EU are taxed on gross income with no deductions.
• If you don't let it and the property is empty: The non-resident still pays IRNR on deemed property income (in a similar way to the IRPF), calculated on 1.1% or 2% of the cadastral value, depending on whether the cadastral value has been revised recently.
• Obligation to file a return: The non-resident must file form 210 (IRNR) with the Spanish tax agency, generally quarterly (if there is rental income) or annually.

The withholding on a sale: the compulsory 3%

When a non-resident sells a property in Spain, the buyer must withhold 3% of the sale price and pay it to the tax agency on behalf of the non-resident seller (form 211). That withholding is a payment on account of the IRNR due on the capital gain. If the final tax comes out lower than the withholding, the non-resident is entitled to a refund of the difference (form 210). If it's higher, they have to pay the difference.

The IRNR rate on the capital gain from selling a property is 19% for all non-residents, whether or not they live in the EU, the same as the first savings-income band of the IRPF for residents.

The admin to hand over to a local professional

For a non-resident foreign buyer, it's highly advisable to appoint a lawyer or a gestoría in Spain to act as their tax representative before the tax agency. A tax representative is only compulsory in specific cases: for example, if the owner lives in a non-cooperative jurisdiction (a tax haven) or if the tax agency requires one because of the amount of income or because they own a property in Spain. They also handle the IRNR returns, the notices from the AEAT (the tax agency) and the tax deadlines.

Related resources: For the Spanish markets most in demand among foreign buyers (Costa del Sol, the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands, Costa Blanca, Costa Brava), the article on the Costa del Sol has the market analysis. For the map of ITP by region, which applies equally to residents and non-residents, the article on ITP by region has every rate.