Spain is pushing ahead with plans to hit British people with a 100% tax on holiday homes in a bid to tackle the country’s growing housing crisis. On Thursday, prime minister Pedro Sanchéz proposed a draft bill to the Spanish parliament, requiring non-EU residents to pay double for properties in the country.
According to draft legislation, seen by Bloomberg, the bill aims to promote “measures that enable access to housing, since we are facing one of the largest problems our society is currently confronted with”. EU citizens, who make up a significant proportion of foreign buyers in Spain, would be exempt.
The Bill comes amidst a wider backlash against rising property prices, which many Spaniards blame on wealthy foreign buyers snapping up homes. Spain has been battling a housing shortage as construction has failed to keep up with soaring demand.
Figures provided by Mr Sánchez showed that 27,000 non-EU residents bought properties in Spain in 2023. British nationals are the biggest foreign buyers of Spanish property after locals, accounting for 8.2% of all purchases.
A 100% tax on a property worth €200,000 would mean non-EU non-resident buyers would have to pay €400,000 for it. But expat workers could potentially be shielded from the tax as the proposed Bill outlines that the tax will not affect foreign businessmen or professional workers based in Spain. People are classed as non-residents if they live in Spain for less than 183 days in a year.
In total, foreigners make up 15% of the housing market, with UK citizens leading the way in coastal areas such as the Costa del Sol, Valencia and the Balearic Islands.
It is not yet clear whether Sánchez can get the law through parliament, where he has faced significant opposition since forming his current government in 2023. Critics, including the centre-right party Partido Popular, have condemned the bill as discriminatory.
The new measures follow a wave of anti-tourism protests in the Canary Islands earlier this week.
