Foreign entities, branches, permanent establishments and embassies and consulates of foreign countries in Spain
(Art. 10 of Royal Legislative Decree 5/2004, of March 5, approving the Revised Text of the Non-Resident Income Tax Law)
Non-resident entities or entities incorporated abroad will be required to appoint a representative resident in Spain in the following cases:
- When operating through EP
- In the cases of article 24.2 of the consolidated text of the Non-Resident Income Tax Law (provision of services, technical assistance, installation or assembly works derived from engineering contracts and, in general, from activities or economic operations carried out in Spain without the mediation of a PE).
- In the cases of article 38 consolidated text LIRNR (entities under the income attribution regime established abroad with a presence in Spanish territory).
- When, due to the amount and characteristics of the income obtained in Spanish territory by the taxpayer, the tax authorities so require.
If the documents provided are not issued in Spain, for the purposes of their validity and effectiveness before the Spanish public administration and in accordance with articles 15 and 27 of Law 39/2015, of October 1, on the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations, they must be translated into Spanish and their authenticity must be proven.
In this regard, section 5 of article 24 of the RGAT provides that the tax authorities may require a translation into Spanish or another official language in Spain of the documentation provided for the assignment of the tax identification number when it is written in a non-official language.
To do so, a certified copy must be provided, through diplomatic legalization or through the Hague apostille, and an official translation, if applicable, carried out by a sworn translator or through consular or diplomatic representations.
The Hague Apostille, regulated by the Hague Convention of 1961, exempts signatory States from the requirement of diplomatic and consular legalization of public documents originating in their country and intended to take effect in another country.
Therefore, in the case of a document originating in a country that is not a signatory to the Hague Convention, for it to take effect in Spain, diplomatic or consular agents of the country of origin of the document must certify the authenticity of the signature, the capacity in which the signatory of the document acted and, where applicable, the identity of the seal or stamp that the document bears.
More information about the Hague Apostille can be found on the website of the Ministry of Justice .