Tax, social and public administration measures for 2004

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1. In personal income taxincome tax The personal income tax (IRPF in Spain): what people pay on what they earn from work, business or savings., public benefits for birth, multiple birth, adoption, maternity and dependent children become exempt, and the scholarship exemption is extended to grants from nonprofit organizations covered by the patronage law.
2. In corporate income tax, research and development incentives are expanded: the additional deduction for qualified researcher staff costs rises from 10 to 20 percent, and the deduction base limit for acquiring advanced technology goes from 500,000 to one million euros.
3. Nonresidents from the European Union receiving royalties from associated Spanish companies may apply a special 10 percent rate if the requirements of the European directive are met.
4. In value added tax, the taxable base may be adjusted for nonpayment in more cases, and the rules are adapted to the new Insolvency Law, which replaces bankruptcy and suspension of payments with the insolvency proceeding.
5. A Council for the promotion of equal treatment and non-discrimination of persons on grounds of racial or ethnic origin is created, and direct and indirect discrimination and harassment are legally defined on grounds of racial or ethnic origin, religion, disability, age or sexual orientation.
6. The employment promotion program for 2004 is approved, with rebates on employer Social Security contributions for companies that hire unemployed people on permanent contracts from groups such as women, people over 45, or people in situations of social exclusion.
7. Civil servants may request reduced working hours to care for a relative up to the second degree who cannot look after themselves, and the age limit of 55 for entering local public employment is removed.
8. In traffic rules, overtaking a cyclist must be done using part or all of the adjacent lane when conditions allow, and penalties for driving without administrative authorization are tightened.

Who it affects

• Personal and corporate income taxpayers: Exemptions, deductions and reductions change starting in 2004.
• Workers and job seekers: New anti-discrimination rules at work and rebates for companies making permanent hires.
• Civil servants and public sector staff: New work-life balance rights, changes to corps and scales, and removal of the age limit for local public employment.
• Drivers and cyclists: New overtaking rules and traffic penalties.
• Companies and self-employed workers: Changes to VAT, insolvency law and research and development incentives.

Words worth knowing

IRPF

Spanish personal income tax, paid on earnings from work and other income.

Base imponible

Taxable base: the amount of money on which the tax is calculated.

Discriminación indirecta

Indirect discrimination: a seemingly neutral rule or decision that disadvantages a group because of origin, religion, disability, age or sexual orientation.

Concurso de acreedores

Insolvency proceeding: a court process for a company or person unable to pay debts, replacing the old bankruptcy and suspension of payments.

Bonificación de cuotas

Rebate a company can apply to its Social Security contributions for its workers.

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