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VAT 2023 practical manual.

Special rules

The VAT Law establishes the following:

  1. When the consideration does not consist of money the taxable base will be considered to be the amount, expressed in money, that has been agreed between the parties. Unless otherwise proven, the tax base will coincide with the amounts resulting from applying the self-consumption rules.

    If the consideration consists partly of money, the tax base will be the greater of the following two amounts:

    • the one agreed between the parties for the provision;

    • the monetary part of the consideration plus the agreed value of the non-monetary part of said consideration.

  2. When in the same transaction and for single price goods are delivered or services of different nature are provided, even in the case of the transfer of all or part of a business's assets, the taxable base corresponding to each of them will be determined in proportion to the market value of the goods delivered or the services provided.

    This rule will not apply when the goods or services constitute the object of accessory services of another principal service subject to tax. In this case, the accessory benefits follow the regime of the main one.

    Example:

    Part of a company that does not constitute an independent economic unit is transferred for 3,000,000 euros.

    The transferred assets consist of:

    • A building whose market value is 2,000,000 euros
    • Machinery valued at market price at 1,000,000 euros
    • Goods valued at market price at 500,000 euros

    Market value of the entire transferred assets:

    2,000,000 + 1,000,000 + 500,000 = 3,500,000 euros

    The taxable base corresponding to each asset will be:

    • Of the building = (2,000,000 ÷ 3,5000,000) x 3,000,000 = 1,714,285.71 euros

      (The transfer of the building will be exempt if it is a second transfer, except for waiver)

    • From machinery = (1,000,000 ÷ 3,500,000) x 3,000,000 = 857,142.86 euros
    • Of the goods = (500,000 ÷ 3,500,000) x 3,000,000 = 428,571.43 euros

    Total: 3,000,000.00 euros

  3. In the cases of self-consumption and of transfer of goods to another Member State of the European Union that constitute operations similar to delivery of goods , the following rules will apply:

    • If the goods are delivered in the same condition in which they were acquired , the taxable base will coincide with that of the acquisition.

    • If the goods delivered have been subjected to manufacturing or transformation processes by the transferor or on his/her behalf , the taxable base will be the cost of the goods or services used to obtain said goods, including personnel expenses.

    • If the value of the goods delivered has experienced alterations as a result of their use, deterioration, obsolescence, debasement, revaluation or any other cause, the value of the goods at the time of delivery will be considered as the taxable base. It shall be presumed that total deterioration has occurred in the case of assets acquired by non-profit entities defined in accordance with the provisions of Article 2 of Law 49/2002, of December 23, provided that they are used by them for the purposes of general interest that they carry out.

  4. In the case of self-consumption of services, the taxable base will be considered to be the cost of providing the services, including, where applicable, the amortization of the assets transferred.

  5. When there is a connection between the parties involved in a transaction, the tax base will be its normal market value provided that any of the following requirements are met:

    • That the recipient of the operation does not have the right to fully deduct the VATthat is levied on it, and the agreed consideration is lower than the normal market value.

    • That the businessperson or professional who carries out the operations is subject to the pro rata rule, and it is an operation that does not generate the right to the deduction in which the agreed consideration is lower than the normal market value.

    • That the businessman or professional who carries out the operation is subject to the pro rata rule, and it is an operation that generates the right to the deduction in which the agreed consideration is higher than the normal market value.

    normal market value is understood to be the value that would be paid in the TAI under conditions of free competition to an independent supplier for the same goods and services.

    If there is no comparable delivery of goods or provision of services, the market value is understood to be:

      • For deliveries of goods: the purchase price of said goods or similar goods or a higher amount or, failing that, the cost price at the time of delivery.

      • For the service provision: the sum of the costs incurred by the employer or professional for the service.

    The link may be proven by any of the means admitted by law.

    For these purposes, it will be presumed that there is a link:

    • In the event that one of the parties involved is a taxpayer of Corporate Tax, or a taxpayer of IRPF or IRNR , when this can be deduced from the regulations governing said taxes.

    • In operations carried out between taxpayers and persons linked to them by labour or administrative relations.

    • In transactions carried out between the taxpayer and his/her spouse or blood relatives up to the third degree inclusive.

    • In transactions carried out between a non-profit entity and its founders, partners, patrons, statutory representatives, members of the governing bodies, spouses or relatives up to the third degree inclusive of any of them.

    • In operations carried out between an entity that is a businessman or professional and any of its partners, associates, members or participants.

  6. In the transfer of assets between commission agent and principal under sales commission or purchase commission contracts in which the commission agent acts on his own behalf, the taxable base will consist of:

    Sales commission: the consideration agreed upon by the commission agent and the client less the commission.

    Example:

    Sales commission contract that entitles the commission agent to receive a percentage (10 percent) of sales made to third parties plus the amount of certain expenses incurred to carry out the activity. The taxable base of the deliveries made by the principal to the commissioner acting on his own behalf is the difference between the consideration agreed by the commissioner for the sale of the goods to a third party, and the amount of the gross commission obtained by the commissioner for his intervention. The gross commission includes 10 percent of the amount of the sale to third parties and the expenses that, according to the contract, the commission agent passes on to the client, which include those inherent to each operation and the general expenses of the activity.

    Purchase commission: the consideration agreed upon by the commission agent and the supplier plus the commission.

  7. In the provision or acquisition of services carried out on behalf of a third party , when the person providing or acquiring the services acts in their own name, the tax base for VATcorresponding to the operation carried out between the principal and the commission agent will be constituted by:

    • Benefit: the consideration for the service agreed upon by the commission agent less the commission.
    • Acquisition: the consideration for the service agreed upon by the commission agent plus the commission.
  8. When the consideration is set in currency or currency other than Spanish , the selling exchange rate, set by the Bank of Spain, which is in force at the time of accrual, is applied.