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Practical Income Manual 2021.

Personal and family tax-free threshold

Regulations: Art. 56 Law Personal Income Tax

The adaptation of Income Tax to the personal and family circumstances of the taxpayer is specified in the personal and family minimum whose function is to quantify that part of the income which, because it is intended to satisfy the basic personal and family needs of the taxpayer, is not subject to taxation by Personal Income Tax .

To ensure the same reduction in the tax burden for all taxpayers with the same family situation, regardless of their income level, the amount corresponding to the personal and family minimum no longer reduces the income of the tax period to determine the taxable base, but becomes part of the taxable base to be taxed at zero rate. In this way, taxpayers with the same personal and family circumstances achieve the same tax savings, regardless of their income level.

The application of the personal and family minimum in determining the full Personal Income Tax contributions is discussed in more detail in the following Chapter.

The personal and family minimum is the result of adding the amounts corresponding to:

  • Taxpayer minimum.
  • Minimum for descendants.
  • Minimum for ascendants.
  • Minimum for disability of the taxpayer, his ascendants or descendants.

Law 22/2009, of December 18 , which regulates the financing system of the Autonomous Communities of the common regime and Cities with Statute of Autonomy and modifies certain tax regulations ( BOE of 19) has granted the Autonomous Communities regulatory powers over the amount of the personal and family minimum applicable for the calculation of the regional tax .

For these purposes, article 46.1 a) of the aforementioned Law 22/2009 provides that the Autonomous Communities may establish increases or decreases in the amounts corresponding to the taxpayer's minimum and the minimums for descendants, ascendants and disabilities regulated in articles 57, 58 , 59 and 60 of the Personal Income Tax Law , with the limit of 10 percent for each of them. 

However, the Autonomous Communities cannot regulate, in accordance with article 46.2.e) of Law 22/2009, the concepts or personal and family situations included in each of the minimums referred to in articles 57, 58. , 59 and 60, nor the rules for its application provided for in article 61 of the Personal Income Tax Law .

Precisely because the Autonomous Communities cannot regulate the concepts, nor the personal and family situations included in each of the minimums, nor the rules for their application, the Constitutional Court in its Sentence 186/2021, of October 28, has declared null article 88 of the Law of the Parliament of Catalonia 5/2020, of April 29, on fiscal, financial, administrative and public sector measures, and the creation of the tax on facilities that affect the environment, which established the increase in 10 percent of the amount of the personal minimum applicable exclusively to taxpayers whose sum of the general taxable bases and savings does not exceed 12,450 euros, for exceeding the limits that for the autonomous exercise of that transferred competence provided for by the State in article 46 of Law 22/2009.

Using the aforementioned regulatory authority, in 2021 the Autonomous Community of the Balearic Islands, the Community of Madrid and the Autonomous Community of La Rioja have regulated the amount of the personal and family minimum applicable for the calculation of its autonomous tax different from that established in the Personal Income Tax Law .