Running a business in Spain
The legal form of business
The most frequently found legal structures are:
- Sole Trader/Sole Proprietor (Empresario Individual or Autónomo)
- Partnership (Sociedad Civil)
- Limited Liability Company (Sociedad Limitada/SL or Sociedad de Responsabilidad Limitada/SRL)
- Public Limited Company (Sociedad Anonima /SA)
- New Enterprise Limited Company (Sociedad Limitada Nueva Empresa/SLNE)
- Co-ownership (Comunidad de Bienes/CB)
For more: https://www.angloinfo.com/how-to/spain/working/starting-a-business/business-structures
Bank account, banking regulations
A bank account must be opened and the capital deposited. The amount that will need to be deposited will depend on the type of company that is to be set up. A deposit certificate will then be issued.
To open a non-resident account, you will need the following: A valid, current passport or national identity card if you're an EU citizen. A document that proves your address in Spain, such as a utility bill that is less than three months old, or a recent bank statement from another Spanish bank.
For more: https://www.terrameridiana.com/9271-bank-accounts-for-non-residents-of-spain.html
Tax rules: Corporation tax
The general CIT rate in Spain is 25%. Other tax rates may apply, depending on the type of company that is taxed and its type of business. Resident companies are taxed on their worldwide income. For permanent establishments (PEs) in Spain of foreign companies, non-resident income tax (NRIT) is chargeable on income that may be allocated to the PE at a 25% tax rate.
For more: https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/spain/corporate/taxes-on-corporate-income
Import/export regulations
Spain as a member of the European Union is also a member of the EU Customs Union. The Spanish customs authority is the Agencia Tributaria (Tax Authority)
The basic rules of the EU Customs Union include no customs duties at internal borders between the EU Member States; common customs duties on imports from outside the EU; common rules for the origin of products from outside the EU; and common definition of a customs value. Spain has adopted the Common Tariff (CCT) of the EU that applies to goods imported from outside Europe. In general, EU external import duties are relatively low, especially for industrial goods (3 – 5% on average).
For more: https://www.trade.gov/knowledge-product/spain-customs-regulations
VAT registration thresholds
Generally, non-resident (no permanent establishment) businesses that must register for VAT in another EU state face a nil registration threshold. A major exception to this rule is eCommerce sellers to consumers, where there is special EU distance selling VAT thresholds.
More: https://www.avalara.com/vatlive/en/eu-vat-rules/eu-vat-number-registration/vat-registration-threshold.html
Customer preferences
Willing to buy from foreign sellers
Many Spaniards also make purchases in online stores abroad, especially Chinese stores. As many as 40 percent state that they shopped online from that country in the past year, which is 11 percentage points higher than the average for Europe.
Most popular countries for import of gods
Germany, France, China, Italy, US.
For more: https://globaledge.msu.edu/countries/spain/tradestats
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