PROPERTY PURCHASE · PRACTICAL GUIDE
The complications that most often stall a non-resident's matter (and how to anticipate them)
By Moisés Vicens i FrancésJune 27, 20268 min read
Buying, selling or inheriting in Spain while living abroad is not difficult, but it is full of small snags that, together, can bring a transaction down. I share the ones I see every week at the firm and, above all, how to anticipate them so that time works in your favour.
What for someone living in Spain is a routine formality can turn into a minefield for a foreign client. Not because it is difficult, but because it is many small pieces that depend on third parties — public authorities, banks, registries, two countries — and which, if not arranged in time, end up colliding at the worst possible moment: with the signing imminent. Here is a summary of the complications I see most and how to defuse them.
The snags I see every week
- The NIE and the bank account: without them you cannot sign, and obtaining them from abroad takes time.
- The power of attorney so you do not have to travel: it has to be granted and apostilled beforehand, not on the day of signing.
- The Catastro's valor de referencia: the tax is calculated on it, not on your price, and sometimes it is worth challenging.
- The 3 % withholding on the sale: an advance payment of the IRNR that is often partly recovered.
- The plusvalía municipal: it depends on each town hall's ordinance, not on a national table.
- The foreign inheritance documentation: apostilles and sworn translations that have to be prepared with time to spare.
- The administration's timescales: permits, certificates and registry searches that take longer than expected.
- The renovation and improvement invoices: the proof that reduces your tax when you sell.
- Your country's double taxation treaty, which changes what you pay depending on where you reside.
Each of these points has its own article where I explain it in depth. What I want you to see here is the pattern: none is serious on its own; what does the damage is when they pile up and appear late.
The common thread: time and information
Almost all of these complications have the same origin and the same solution. The origin: procedures that depend on a third party you do not control and that have their own timescales. The solution: start earlier and know what to ask. Whoever anticipates turns a potential problem into just one more step on the calendar.
The golden rule
- Before signing or accepting an inheritance, identify which procedures depend on third parties (the administration, the bank, the registry, your country).
- Set them in motion as soon as possible, not once a signing date is already committed.
- Put in writing in the contract what happens if a procedure is delayed (this is what conditions precedent and subsequent do).
- Prevention costs a fraction of what it costs to repair a collapsed transaction.
If you are about to buy, sell or inherit on the Costa Blanca and you live outside Spain, write to me before committing to dates. We go over together which pieces depend on third parties, how long they can realistically take, and which ones are worth setting in motion now. That is how I work: first understand your case, then prevent, and only then act.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to travel to Spain to buy, sell or inherit?
In most cases, no. With a power of attorney granted in your country and apostilled, I can represent you before the notary, the Registry, the tax authorities and the banks, and manage the transaction from start to finish without you having to travel.
What is a non-resident's most expensive mistake?
Committing to a signing date without having set in motion the procedures that depend on third parties (NIE, permits, certificates, inheritance documentation). When the procedure is delayed, the transaction wobbles. Anticipating it avoids this.
What should I have ready before starting?
It depends on the matter, but almost always: the NIE and, where applicable, the bank account; the apostilled power of attorney if you are not going to come; and, in inheritances, the documentation from the country of origin apostilled and translated. We pin it down according to your case.
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Property purchase and sale →Taxes are one of those pieces best calculated before signing, not afterwards.
Taxes for non-residents →