Spain's 2012 state budget: spending, pay, pensions and taxes

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1. The State's General Budgets for 2012 are approved. Spending credits total 311,776,637.58 thousand euros and are financed with expected revenues and new borrowing.
2. Pay for public sector staff cannot rise in 2012 compared with the amounts in force on December 31, 2011. Contributions to employment pension plans covering retirement are also banned.
3. In 2012 no new staff may be hired in the public sector, except under a 10 percent replacement rate in areas such as education, health, security, the Armed Forces, fraud control, firefighters and research. Temporary hiring is only allowed in exceptional, urgent cases.
4. Contributory Social Security pensions and Clases PasivasClases Pasivas The pension scheme for former civil servants, before the current Social Security system. pensions rise 1 percent in 2012. There are maximum payment limits and minimum amounts are set for each type of pension.
5. The State is authorized to increase its debt by up to 35,325,404.19 thousand euros above the balance on January 1, 2012, and the total limit for public guarantees is set at 217,043,560 thousand euros.
6. For personal income taxincome tax The personal income tax (IRPF in Spain): what people pay on what they earn from work, business or savings. (IRPF), a complementary levy is added for 2012 and 2013, with rates from 0.75 to 7 percent on the general taxable base and from 2 to 6 percent on the savings base. Acquisition value coefficients for real estate are also updated to 1 percent.
7. Fixed-amount state fees rise by applying the 1.01 coefficient to the 2011 amounts, except for fees created or updated in 2011. Traffic fees are rounded to the nearest multiple of 20 euro cents.
8. 2012 Social Security contribution bases and rates are set: the maximum base is 3,262.50 euros per month and the general rate for common contingencies is 28.30 percent, with 23.60 paid by the employer and 4.70 by the worker.

Who it affects

• Public employees and public sector workers: Their pay is frozen for 2012 and there are strict limits on hiring or appointing new staff.
• Pensioners: Their pensions rise only 1 percent and there are maximum payment limits.
• Taxpayers under IRPF and corporate income tax: They pay an additional complementary levy in 2012 and 2013, and withholding rates go up.
• Municipalities and Autonomous Communities: Their shares of state taxes, settlements and conditions for receiving funds are regulated.
• Workers and companies paying into Social Security: 2012 contribution bases and rates are set, with a maximum base of 3,262.50 euros per month.

Words worth knowing

Clases Pasivas

The pension scheme for former civil servants, before the current Social Security system.

Aval

A guarantee by which the State commits to pay a debt if the debtor cannot.

Saldo vivo de la deuda

The total money the State owes at a given time, not counting what has been repaid.

Tasa de reposición

The maximum percentage of positions that can be filled when someone retires or leaves.

Complemento de productividad

An extra payment rewarding special performance in a public employee's work.

income tax

The personal income tax (IRPF in Spain): what people pay on what they earn from work, business or savings.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries