Skip to main content
Form 200. Corporate Income Tax Declaration 2018

4.2.9 Codes 01005 and 01006 amortization of intangible assets (Art. 12.2 LIS) and amortization of DT 13ª.1 LIS

The first Final Provision of Law 22/2015, of July 20, on Audit of Accounts, has modified article 39.4 of the Commercial Code, establishing that for the financial statements that correspond to the years that begin on or after 1 January 2016, all elements of intangible assets are considered assets with a defined useful life, becoming amortizable over that useful life. However, in cases where the useful life of these elements of intangible assets cannot be determined reliably, they will be amortized over a period of 10 years, unless a legal or regulatory provision establishes a different period.

Regarding goodwill, article 39.4 of the Commercial Code allows its accounting amortization with effect from January 1, 2016, provided that it is acquired for consideration. Unless proven otherwise, the useful life of goodwill will be presumed to be ten years.

As a consequence of the modifications made in the accounting field, Law 22/2015 has modified article 12.2 of the LIS establishing that for tax periods that begin on or after January 1, 2016, intangible assets will be amortized based on their useful life, and when this cannot be estimated reliably, amortization will be deductible with the maximum annual limit of one twentieth of its amount.

Regarding goodwill, article 12.2 of the LIS establishes the deductibility of the amortization of goodwill with an annual limit of one twentieth of its amount.

As a consequence of these modifications, the accounting allocation of the amortization expense of these intangible assets will be required in order to apply their tax deductibility.

Therefore, for tax periods beginning on or after January 1, 2016, this new regime determines that the elements of intangible assets will be amortized for accounting and tax purposes, taking into account their useful life. When the useful life of these elements cannot be determined reliably, they will be depreciated at 10% per year according to accounting regulations and at a maximum of 5% per year according to tax regulations.

Regarding goodwill, it will be amortized in accounting terms at 10% per year and at a maximum of 5% per year in tax terms.

This difference in criteria from a tax and accounting point of view will generate the need to make adjustments to the corporate tax base, the corrections of which will be included in keys [01005] for increases and [01006] for decreases.

Finally, remember that the thirty-fifth transitional provision of the LIS establishes a transitional regime by which the provisions of article 12.2 of said rule will not be applicable to intangible assets, including goodwill, acquired in tax periods that began previously. As of January 1, 2015, to entities that are part of the same group of companies with the acquirer according to the criteria established in article 42 of the Commercial Code, regardless of residence and the obligation to prepare consolidated annual accounts.

Amortization of DT 13.1 of the LIS

Section 1 of the thirteenth transitional provision of the LIS refers to the transitional regime for the application of the new amortization coefficients to the assets acquired prior to their entry into force, according to which:

  • The assets for which, in tax periods beginning before January 1, 2015, a different amortization coefficient was being applied than the one that would correspond if the amortization table provided for in article 12.1 of the LIS were applied, will be amortized during the remaining tax periods until completing its new useful life, in accordance with the aforementioned table, on the net tax value of the asset existing at the beginning of the first tax period that begins on January 1, 2015.

  • Taxpayers who were applying an amortization method other than the one resulting from applying the linear amortization coefficients in tax periods beginning before January 1, 2015 and, in application of the amortization table provided in the LIS, a amortization period corresponds to them. different, they may choose to apply the straight-line amortization method in the period remaining until the end of their new useful life, on the net tax value existing at the beginning of the first tax period that begins on January 1, 2015.

  • New assets acquired between January 1, 2003 and December 31, 2004 will apply the maximum linear amortization coefficients provided for in the LIS, multiplied by 1.1.

In application of the different criteria established by the thirteenth transitional provision of the LIS, the taxpayer must make adjustments to the tax base of the Corporate Tax, whose corrections will be included in the keys [01005] for increases and [01006] for decreases.