4.1.3. Collection phase

The Tax Agency carried out a wide range of activities cast leading to the collection of the tax debts and penalties deriving from the application of the state's tax and customs system, in addition to those deriving from the other public resources whose management it assumes pursuant to an Act or Agreement.

In these activities, in both the voluntary and enforcement periods, it is necessary to use all the mechanisms provided by the legal system for enforced collection.

In 2017, the Tax Agency continued to intensify its most effective actions in its fight against fraud during tax collection.

Evolution of outstanding debt

The collection management of tax debts consists in the exercise of administrative functions leading to collection. This includes a series of activities such as wealth investigation, the adoption of precautionary measures, the execution of liability assignment agreements and all those provided for in the General Tax Collection Regulations, subject to the periods established in the tax legislation.

Until the tax debts are extinguished, by payment, compensation or the other legally provided means, they are considered “outstanding.” However, within the outstanding amounts it is necessary to distinguish between those in which there are cases of suspension, deferral or insolvency proceedings, which are not due and payable while they remain in that situation, from all the other outstanding amounts, with regard to which the collection organs deploy all the faculties provided for in the legal system.

The amount outstanding at the end of each year is the result of adding to the amount outstanding at the start of that year the outstanding debts originated in the current year, called “annual debit," and subtracting any cancellations made in the year, either for revenue obtained as a consequence of collection activities or for other legally established causes.

The outstanding amount, on 31 December 2017, was 42.365 billion euros, which represents a 7.6% decrease compared with 31 December 2016.

The following tables in the Annex show, respectively, the evolution of the outstanding debt at the end of each of the years included in the period 1998-2017 and the breakdown of the outstanding debt:

Outstanding debts in the payment period

With regard to debts in proceedings for collection, in 2017, the total amount of debt to be managed in the payment period rose to 35,029.1 million euros. This amount includes the outstanding debt in proceedings for collection at the start of 2017 and the charge or debts in proceedings for collection charged during the fiscal year. The total amount of the debts subject to a late payment surcharge in 2017 rose to 8,939.5 million euros, 10.9% less than in 2016. As part of this amount, debts caused from the application of taxes under the scope of the Tax Agency rose to 6,236.5 million euros, and those of taxes from other bodies to 2,703.1 million euros. Meanwhile, a debt for the amount of 11,065.6 million euros was cancelled.

The principal magnitudes relating to the collection phase are shown in the tables listed below in the Annex:

Debts arising from the application of the taxes which are under the Tax Agency's remit

With respect to the debt subject to a late payment surcharge in 2017, 70% of the total, 6,236.5 million euros, comes from debt caused by the application of taxes under the scope of the Tax Agency. This debt comes both from settlements carried out by the Tax Agency and from self-assessments filed by the taxpayers without admission or with failed deferments. Meanwhile, a debt of 8,427.4 million euros caused by the application of taxes under the scope of the Tax Agency was cancelled.

Furthermore, to prevent and combat asset stripping of debtors, cautionary measures have been developed in recent years (when there are indications that the debt payment could be unfulfilled or severely impeded), along with derivations of responsibility (as a mechanism to transfer the payment obligation from one taxpayer to another), under the circumstances established by Law.

The following table of the Appendix shows the results acquired in 2016 and 2017 and the variation rate:

Management of debt of other entities

In 2017, tax collection in the payment period was made for a total of 168 external entities, including 43 Autonomous Bodies, 16 Autonomous Communities, 37 Local Entities and 41 Public Entities, along with the different Ministerial Departments that have incorporated the public law resources into the legal proceedings for collection, with other public law debts whose income must be accounted for by the State Budget. The Tax Agency has also managed collection of debts from other European Union Member States within the framework of Mutual Assistance, as well as from other countries based on international agreements undertaken (OECD).

The larger proportion of managed debt corresponds with Ministerial Departments and others (55.1%), followed by Autonomous Communities (26%) and Autonomous Bodies (16.7%).

In 2017, the amount of the debt subject to a late payment surcharge increased to 2,703.06 million euros. Furthermore, debt was cancelled for an amount of 2,638.24 million euros.

By origin, external entities with the largest amount of debt managed by the Tax Agency in 2017 were the Autonomous Communities (24%), various Ministerial Departments (23%) and the Autonomous Traffic Administration Authority (10%).

As for the Autonomous communities with the largest amount of managed debt in 2017, we can highlight Cataluña, Andalucía and the Comunitat Valenciana.