# País Vasco / Euskadi, Spain: taxes, residence and cost of living

Source: https://domicile.wiki/places/spain/pais-vasco-euskadi/ (domicile.wiki, researched 2026-10-16). Data licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Research, not tax or legal advice.

## At a glance

For an EU-citizen family of five living off a EUR 30M portfolio (the guide's default reader).

- Score for a wealthy family: 67 / 100
- Can EU citizens live here?: free: register as an EU citizen
- Can US citizens live here?: income of €28,800 a year · Non-lucrative residence visa
- Other passports: income of €28,800 a year · Non-lucrative residence visa
- Tax on a €30M portfolio: €451,817 a year
- Wealth tax: yes
- Children inherit: low tax
- Living costs, family of five: €164,860 a year
- EU member: yes
- Currency: EUR

## Tax on investments, inheritance and wealth

Basque Country (foral regime, three territories with own taxes; numbers modelled on Bizkaia): savings income 19-28%; wealth tax from EUR 800,000 at 0.2%-2%, foral ITSGF only at the top; children's inheritances: EUR 400,000 allowance then a flat 1.5% (Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa), gifts 1.5% from the first euro. Foral rules apply to arrivals from abroad at once, but not if the deceased/donee spent more of the last 5 years in common-regime Spain. The state Beckham regime does not apply.

- **Ordinary tax residence (state rules)**: Resident individual taxed on worldwide income and wealth; state rules shown (regional variations in the subnational file).
- **Family holding company (S.L., sociedad patrimonial) taxed at 25%**: The family holds its listed shares through a Spanish S.L. (corporate income tax 25%, art. 29.1 LIS). A company whose assets are mostly securities is an 'entidad patrimonial' (art. 5.2 LIS): it gets no reduced CIT rate (art. 29.1 LIS) and its shares get no wealth-tax or inheritance-tax business exemption (art. 4.Ocho.Dos.a LIP). The 95% participation exemption (art. 21 LIS) needs a stake of at least 5% held for a year, which a diversified listed portfolio never reaches (the old EUR 20 million cost alternative was removed from 1 January 2021 by art. 65 Ley 11/2020), so dividends and gains are taxed at 25%; foreign withholding on dividends is credited (art. 31 LIS). Distributions to the family are dividends in the savings base, taxed at up to 30% (arts. 25, 66, 76 LIRPF). Wealth tax and inheritance tax fall on the family's shares as for direct holding, so the regional rules apply.

## Income tax

Resident income tax is the sum of a state and a regional scale. For Madrid the combined marginal rates on the general base run 18% to 45% (43% from EUR 60,000, 45% above EUR 300,000). Employee social security is 6.5% (capped at the maximum monthly base EUR 5,101.20, EUR 61,214.40 a year); autonomos pay 31.5% on a chosen base within the same maximum. The recorded personal allowance is the EUR 5,550 personal minimum; strictly it is taxed at the lowest rates rather than deducted, and employees also get a EUR 2,000 expenses deduction (not modelled).

## How to get residence

EU citizens only register. Non-EU citizens (US and others) can use the non-lucrative visa (EUR 28,800 a year of passive income, no work), the digital nomad visa (about EUR 34,000 a year of foreign remote income), or an entrepreneur or work permit. The golden visa ended on 3 April 2025.

- **EU/EEA free movement (certificado de registro)** (Free movement; EU citizens; open): EU citizens enter freely and register in Spain after 3 months.
- **Non-lucrative residence visa** (Passive income / retirement; US citizens, other passports; open): Residence for people who live on savings or passive income and do not work in Spain. Income of 400% of IPREM, EUR 28,800 a year in 2026.
- **Digital nomad visa (teleworker, Ley 28/2022)** (Digital nomad; US citizens, other passports; open): For remote workers employed by or serving clients outside Spain; income of EUR 2,849 a month (about EUR 34,188 a year) in 2026 per one source.
- **Entrepreneur visa (Ley 14/2013, arts. 70-75)** (Entrepreneur; US citizens, other passports; open): For founders of a business activity of innovative character and special economic interest, approved by ENISA.
- **Investor visa / golden visa (Ley 14/2013, art. 63)** (Investor residence; US citizens, other passports; closed to new applicants): The EUR 500,000 property route (and other investment routes) no longer exists for new applicants.
- **Work permits (employee, highly qualified professional)** (Work; US citizens, other passports; open): Non-EU workers generally need a job offer and an employer-filed permit; highly qualified professionals have a faster route under Ley 14/2013.

Citizenship: General rule: 10 years of legal, continuous residence immediately before applying, a Spanish A2 language certificate (DELE) and the CCSE civics test; shorter periods for refugees (5 years) and, per general knowledge not re-sourced, 2 years for Ibero-American nationals, Andorra, Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal and Sephardic descendants.

## Inheritance law and trusts

Under the common law, children are guaranteed two thirds of the estate and a will cannot remove it. A foreign national resident can choose their national law under the EU Succession Regulation. Foral regions differ, and Spain has no trust law and no private family foundation.

## Daily life (0-100, higher is better)

- Safety and personal security: 75
- Political and institutional stability: 61
- Corruption and government integrity: 58
- Legal system and property rights: 69
- Healthcare quality and access: 89
- Education quality: 55
- Human development and quality of life: 84
- Infrastructure and connectivity: 91
- Cost of living and housing: 94
- Business opportunities and economy: 70
- Cultural fit and lifestyle: 52

## Residence and succession sources

- [Non-Lucrative Visa Spain 2026: income requirement](https://www.costaluzlawyers.com/non-lucrative-visa-spain-income-requirement-2026/) — CostaLuz Lawyers
- [Spain Digital Nomad Visa 2026](https://remoteworkeurope.eu/insights/spain-digital-nomad-visa-2026/) — Remote Work Europe
- [End of the golden visa in Spain: new criteria for investors](https://www.arc-legal.es/en/end-of-the-golden-visa-in-spain-new-criteria-for-investors/) — ARC Legal
- [Your Europe: Residence rights in another EU country](https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/residence/residence-rights/index_en.htm) — European Union
- [Application for Spanish nationality by residence](https://entretramites.com/en/immigration/spanish-nationality-by-residence) — Entre Tramites
- [Ley 14/2013 de apoyo a los emprendedores (consolidated)](https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2013-10074) — BOE
- [Spain to stop granting golden visas to foreigners from 3 April](https://barcelona.cat/internationalwelcome/en/news/spain-to-stop-granting-golden-visas-to-foreigners-from-3-april-1490680) — Barcelona City Council
- [Spanish Civil Code (BOE)](https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-1889-4763) — Boletin Oficial del Estado
- [Forced Heirship in Spain: The Legitima and Its Regional Map](https://www.recordinglaw.com/spain/inheritance-law/forced-heirship/) — Recording Law
- [European e-Justice: Successions, Spain](https://e-justice.europa.eu/topics/family-matters-inheritance/inheritance/succession/es_en) — European Commission
- [HCCH status table: 1985 Trusts Convention](https://www.hcch.net/en/instruments/conventions/status-table/?cid=59) — Hague Conference on Private International Law
- [Regulation (EU) 650/2012 on succession](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2012/650/oj) — European Union