Fiscal gives relief for buying a flat in Spain
Money from the sale of a property in Poland can be invested in another EU country and thus avoid paying income tax. The tax office confirms that there is no limit to the places in which we pursue our own housing goals. It is possible to have a summer flat in Poland and a winter flat in Spain, plus another one as security for retirement. This means that even the owner of five flats will benefit from the PIT exemption. Experts point out, however, that the position of the tax authorities is inconsistent, writes the Prawo.pl portal
Asked for a comment, Adam Allen, a tax adviser and partner at Thedy & Partners, points out that the housing relief is easiest to benefit a taxpayer who sells one flat and uses the proceeds to buy another one, i.e. de facto exchanges one for another. This also applies if someone sells a property in Poland and moves abroad. However, the matter becomes more complicated if the taxpayer has more properties.
– This is a surprising interpretation, but one that is nevertheless justified by the legislation. Until now, the tax authorities have recognised that, as a rule, one’s own residential purposes can be pursued in one location. And if someone buys a second property, e.g. in a tourist destination, they are fulfilling leisure purposes there, so they will not benefit from the relief. In the case of the interpretation in question, the taxpayer’s argumentation that she intends to pursue her own residential purposes in two countries for climatic and health reasons proved crucial. Such arguments are easier to make for an unmarried person of retirement age who is free to relocate, says Adam Allen.
He adds that, on the other hand, the possibility to take advantage of the relief is not affected by the fact that the taxpayer – apart from the property in which she lives – also owns other properties – as in the interpretation under discussion, the taxpayer owned five flats. The fact that the taxpayer owns other real estate and the use to which it is put should be irrelevant. What is crucial, however, is that it is in the new property that he pursues his own residential purposes.
The entire article can be read at this link: Czy jest ulga na zakup mieszkania w Hiszpanii (prawo.pl)