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Practical Heritage Manual 2020.

8. Business and professional assets.

Normative; Art. 4.Eight.1 Wealth Tax Law. See also arts 1 to 3 of Royal Decree 1704/1999, of November 5, which determines the requirements and conditions of business and professional activities and participations in entities for the application of the corresponding exemptions in the Tax. about Heritage

Business and professional assets are exempt , which includes the assets and rights of natural persons necessary for the development of their economic, business or professional activity, provided that this is carried out on a regular basis, personal and direct by the taxpayer and constitutes his main source of income.

The application of the exemption is conditional on the following requirements being met on the tax accrual date (December 31):

  1. That the assets and rights are subject to the development of an economic, business or professional activity, in the terms of article 29 of the Personal Income Tax Law and 22 of the Regulations of said tax.

    It will be understood that the leasing of real estate constitutes an economic activity when the requirement provided for in article 27.2 Law of Personal Income Tax is met, that is, when at least one person is used to organize it. employed with a full-time employment contract.

    The criteria for assigning assets and rights to the exercise of an economic activity are discussed in Chapter 6 of the Personal Income Tax Manual

  2. That the economic, business or professional activity to which said assets and rights are affected is exercised in a habitual, personal and direct manner by the taxpayer who owns them.

    However, the assets and rights common to both spouses will be exempt when they are used in the development of the business or professional activity of either of them, provided that the rest of the requirements required by the Law are met.

  3. That the economic, business or professional activity constitutes the taxpayer's main source of income.

    It will be understood that the business or professional activity constitutes the main source of income when, at least, 50 percent of the amount of the general tax base and the taxpayer's Personal Income Tax savings, sum of the boxes [0435] and [0460] of the Personal Income Tax declaration comes from net income from the business or professional activities in question.

    For the purposes of calculating the main source of income, remuneration for management functions performed in entities in which, where applicable, shares are held
    exempt from this tax, nor any other remuneration that results from the participation of the taxable person in said entities.

    In cases of lucrative transfers of shares in a family business, to apply the Wealth Tax exemption, it is necessary to compare the remuneration received by the taxpayer with the algebraic sum of all the reduced net income from work and business activities. and professionals.

  4. When the same taxpayer carries out two or more business or professional activities on a regular, personal and direct basis, the exemption will cover all assets and rights attached to them, considering that the main source of income is determined by all business income. or professionals of all of them.

Note: In the case of minors or incapacitated persons who are owners of the affected assets, the requirements set out in numbers 2 and 3 above will be considered met when their legal representatives comply with them.

Example

Don AHC In 2020, he regularly, personally and directly carries out a business activity from which he has obtained net income of 29,000 euros. The general tax base and savings of Personal Income Tax declared by Mr. AHC In said year it amounts to 60,000 euros. The value of all assets and rights affected by the economic activity carried out, for the purposes of the Wealth Tax, is 200,000 euros.

Don AHC During 2020, he received a total of 3,000 euros for the performance of certain management functions entrusted to him by the Board of Directors of an entity in which he has shares exempt from Wealth Tax.

Determine whether the assets and rights of Mr. AHC Affected by the business activity carried out by the same, whether or not they are exempt from the Wealth Tax in 2020.

Solution:

To calculate the main source of income of Mr. AHC The remuneration received for the management functions performed in the entity in which it holds shares exempt from Wealth Tax is not taken into account. Therefore, 50 percent of the taxpayer's general tax base and Personal Income Tax savings amounts to:

50% of (60,000 – 3,000) = 28,500 euros

The net income from the activity for the current year amounts to 29,000 euros, which is greater than 50 percent of the taxpayer's Personal Income Tax tax base. Consequently, the assets and rights related to business activity are exempt from Wealth Tax in fiscal year 2020.

Comment : As it depends on a certain level of income, it may happen that the same taxpayer has the right to the exemption in a certain year and not in the next.