Family Office in Spain: Rules, Costs and Tax in 2026

How is a family office licensed in Spain?

No family office licence, registration or exemption was found. The CNMV says investors must contract investment services from authorised entities, namely investment firms (broker-dealers, brokers, portfolio management companies and financial advisory firms), management companies of collective investment schemes (SGIIC) and credit institutions, and it lists discretionary and individual portfolio management and investment advice among the investment services. Law 6/2023 has articles on cases where it does not apply and other exceptions (article 123), on classes of investment firms (article 128) and on the reserve of activity (article 129), but only their titles could be read (in the index on the BOE and Ministry of Finance sites; the fact-check could not open the article text either), so no official text or law firm source was found that says whether an office managing only one family's assets, or investing the family's own money, falls inside the reserve. [1, 16, 17]

What is the minimum wealth for a family office in Spain?

No minimum family wealth in the rules checked: Spain has no family office regime, and the CNMV's description of authorised entities and investment services sets no wealth figure; the text of the exceptions in article 123 of Law 6/2023 could not be read. The fixed amounts found for wealthy families are tax and residence figures, not family office tests: the solidarity tax on net wealth above EUR 3 million and the non-lucrative residence requirement of 400% of the IPREM a month (see personal tax and residency). [1, 4, 14, 15, 16]

Compare: Family Office Minimum Net Worth by Country

Who counts as family?

Not found in official sources: with no family office regime, no official definition of the family an office may serve was found. For gift and inheritance tax, spouses and direct relatives form groups I and II (Junta de Andalucía), which receive the largest regional reliefs. [11, 18]

Can one office serve several families?

No dedicated multi-family office licence was found. An office that manages or advises on other families' investments would need one of the general authorisations the CNMV lists: an investment firm (broker-dealer, broker, portfolio management company or financial advisory firm, EAF), a management company of collective investment schemes (SGIIC) or a credit institution. The CNMV notes that not every authorised firm may carry out every activity, and its registers include a separate search for national financial advisory companies; capital requirements and fees for these licences were not checked. [1, 16]

Which law and courts apply?

Succession is governed by the Civil Code, but Aragon, Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, Navarre, the Basque Country and Galicia have their own succession law, and for Spanish citizens their regional civil citizenship decides which applies (e-Justice Portal). Investment services are regulated by the Securities Markets and Investment Services Law (Law 6/2023 of 17 March, in force since 7 April 2023) and supervised by the CNMV. Taxes are shared between the State and the autonomous communities: each community applies its own income tax scale alongside the state scale (AEAT), and, according to PwC, the communities can change wealth tax and inheritance and gift tax rules. [1, 14, 16, 17, 19, 20]

What substance is required?

Not found in official sources: there is no family office regime, so no office, staff or spending rule for a single family office was found. Requirements for CNMV-authorised investment firms (capital, organisation, managers) were not checked. [1]

Which holding vehicles are available?

The main business forms are the public limited company (SA) and the limited liability company (SL), according to Deloitte (2023), and the law firm Anaford (Chambers Private Wealth 2026) says holding wealth through a holding company may be advisable. Anaford also says Spain recognises only foundations of public interest, so a private (family) foundation cannot be created, and that the trust is not recognised under Spanish civil or tax law. [8, 9]

Reported by the sources named, not confirmed by an official source.

What is the corporate tax rate?

The standard corporate income tax rate is 25% (PwC, last reviewed 30 June 2026), and a family holding company pays it on its taxable income; dividends and gains on shareholdings can qualify for the participation exemption described under family office tax. Deloitte's 2023 summary lists lower rates for some small and newly created companies, but the rates that apply in 2026 were not checked. [8, 21]

Reported by the sources named, not confirmed by an official source.

Are there tax incentives for family offices?

No tax regime for family offices was found. Under the participation exemption, 95% of dividends and capital gains from Spanish or foreign shareholdings of at least 5% held for at least one year is exempt, provided a foreign subsidiary is taxed at a nominal rate of at least 10% and is not in a tax haven; PwC says the dividends are therefore taxed at 1.25% at the 25% rate. The AEAT says Law 11/2020 set the exemption at 95% and removed the alternative test based on an acquisition value above EUR 20 million, with transitional rules for such holdings. Under the ETVE holding regime, dividends paid to non-residents (other than in tax havens) out of foreign income that qualified for the participation exemption are free of withholding tax (Deloitte, 2023). [5, 8, 21]

Reported by the sources named, not confirmed by an official source.

Is there personal income tax?

Residents pay personal income tax. General income is taxed under the state scale, whose top rate is 24.5% above EUR 300,000 (added from 2021, AEAT), plus the scale of the taxpayer's autonomous community. In the AEAT's 2025 manual, Madrid's regional scale tops out at 20.5% above EUR 57,320.40 and Catalonia's at 25.5% above EUR 175,000, so the combined top rate above EUR 300,000 is 45% in Madrid and 50% in Catalonia (our sum; Deloitte 2023 also gives 45% for Madrid, and Anaford gives 18% to 45% for Madrid in 2026). Andalusia's scale and the 2026 regional scales were not checked; PwC's 2026 withholding scale reaches 47% above EUR 300,000. Savings income (dividends, interest, capital gains) is taxed at 19% up to EUR 6,000, then 21%, 23%, 27% and 30% above EUR 300,000 (PwC, 2026). New residents who were not resident in the previous five years and move for a job (including remote work), as a company director (with stake limits in asset-holding companies), for an entrepreneurial activity or as a highly qualified professional for start-ups or R&D can opt for the article 93 regime for the year of the move and the next five years: they are taxed under non-resident income tax rules, at 24% up to EUR 600,000 and 47% above on income other than savings income, and 19% to 30% on dividends, interest and gains (AEAT 2025 manual); a spouse and children under 25 can join under conditions (Iberley copy of article 93). Residents also pay wealth tax on worldwide net assets (state rates 0.2% to 3.5%, EUR 700,000 allowance unless the region sets another, main home exempt up to EUR 300,000, PwC), which Deloitte (2023) says is not levied in Madrid and Andalusia. The solidarity tax on large fortunes (Law 38/2022, article 3) applies to net wealth above EUR 3 million: after a EUR 700,000 exempt amount, the rates are 1.7% on taxable base from EUR 3 million, 2.1% from EUR 5,347,998.03 and 3.5% above EUR 10,695,996.06, and wealth tax paid is deductible. The law set it for its first two years (2022 and 2023); Royal Decree-law 8/2023 extended it until wealth taxation is reviewed as part of the reform of regional financing (BOE consolidated text), and PwC describes it as permanent. [5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 20, 22, 23]

Reported by the sources named, not confirmed by an official source.

Compare: Countries With No Personal Income Tax

Is there inheritance or estate tax?

Inheritance and gift tax applies across Spain, but the autonomous communities can change it substantially. The state scale runs from 7.65% to 34% above EUR 797,555.08, the communities can modify these rates, and the tax also depends on the heir's pre-existing wealth (PwC, 2026). Madrid gives a 99% relief on gift tax for groups I and II (spouses, descendants and ascendants) and, since 1 July 2025 (Law 2/2025), 50% for group III, if the gift is made in a public deed and, for cash, the origin of the funds is justified (Madrid tax directorate ruling); the law firm Anaford says Madrid and Valencia stand out for a 99% reduction of inheritance and gift tax between family members of groups I and II. Andalusia gives 99% on gifts for groups I and II (article 40 of Law 5/2021, quoted by the Junta), and Guía Fiscal, an editorial tax site, says article 39 gives 99% on inheritances and article 28 a EUR 1,000,000 reduction for groups I and II (descendants, spouses and ascendants); in January 2019 the Junta's Council of Government agreed to start the legal change for a 99% relief for spouses and direct relatives and to keep the existing EUR 1,000,000 regional reduction. Catalonia (Barcelona) has its own rules, which were not checked because the Catalan Tax Agency's pages could not be opened. For gifts of movable assets located in Spain, non-resident taxpayers may apply the rules of the community where the assets were located for most days in the previous five years (additional provision two of Law 29/1987, quoted by the Junta), and the AEAT handles non-residents' returns. Spain has inheritance tax treaties only with France, Greece and Sweden (Anaford). [9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 18, 24]

Reported by the sources named, not confirmed by an official source.

Compare: Inheritance Tax by Country

How do wills and succession work?

Under the Civil Code, children and descendants are entitled to two thirds of their parents' estate, one of which may be used to favour some children or descendants, and the remaining third is free; ascendants get half (one third if a spouse also inherits), and a surviving spouse not legally separated gets a usufruct: of one of the two thirds reserved for descendants, of half with only ascendants, or of two thirds otherwise. Aragon, Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, Navarre, the Basque Country and Galicia have their own succession law, and some of them accept joint wills and inheritance agreements, which the Civil Code generally does not. Wills are usually made before a notary, who registers them in the General Register of Wills (Registro General de Actos de Última Voluntad), open after death only to people with a legitimate interest. [19]

Can the family get residence?

The investor residence route (golden visa) of Law 14/2013 was abolished with effect from 3 April 2025: final provision twenty-one of Organic Law 1/2025 on efficiency of the Public Justice Service, published on 3 January 2025, removed articles 63 to 67 (Granada City Council; KPMG), which, KPMG says, covered investments such as EUR 500,000 in real estate, EUR 2 million in Spanish public debt or EUR 1 million in shares, funds or bank deposits. KPMG says applications filed before that date can still be granted under the old rules, existing visas and permits keep their validity, and renewals are decided under the rules in force when the first permit was granted. The main route for people with means who will not work is the non-lucrative residence permit (Organic Law 4/2000 and Royal Decree 1155/2024): monthly means of 400% of the IPREM for the applicant plus 100% for each family member, public or private health insurance, and no work; the first permit lasts one year (Ministry of Inclusion). With the IPREM at EUR 600 a month in 2026 (Spanish Consulate General in Los Angeles; ARC Legal and OCU say the 2023 figure still applies because the budget has been extended), that is EUR 2,400 a month for the applicant and EUR 600 for each family member (our calculation). A spouse or partner, children under 18 (or adult children under legal incapacity) and dependent parents over 65 (or younger for humanitarian reasons) can join (Spanish consulate in Nador). Renewals and the path to long-term residence were not checked. Law 14/2013 still has routes for entrepreneurs and international remote workers, which article 93 LIRPF refers to, but their conditions were not checked. [2, 3, 4, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28]

Reported by the sources named, not confirmed by an official source.

Compare: Residency by Investment by Country

How long does set-up take?

Not found in official sources.

What are the official fees?

Not found in official sources. Commercial registry and notary fees for an SL or SA were not checked; no family office licence fee exists because no family office licence was found, and CNMV fees for investment firm authorisation were not checked.