For example, wedding lists. Giving the spouses a tableware, electrical appliances, pictures, lamps or even an envelope with money is part of a social custom in which the treasury is entitled to intervene. According to current legislation, a gift of this type can be considered as a “free acquisition” or, in other words, a donation, that is, a transfer of ownership, usufruct or real right over a person’s property. towards another without there being a consideration in return.
As such a transfer of ownership, it is subject to inheritance and gift tax. The rate to be applied will depend on the amount of the gift, the degree of affiliation or kinship between the giver and the gifted , the patrimony of the recipient and the area of Spain where they reside – it ranges between 7.65% and 34% -, since this tax is transferred to the Autonomous Communities.
In the case of an envelope with money, it is difficult to track the amount. But if a guest makes a deposit in the current account of the newlyweds, the financial institution is obliged to notify the corresponding Tax Administration of any movement that exceeds the amount of 3,000 euros. If it does, and the Tax Agency considers it appropriate, it will open a file and the spouses will have to justify that movement.
Let’s leave the weddings and analyze another assumption: it is possible that a bank offers someone a tablet, a computer or a watch for directing the payroll or to hire one of its products. These baits have their dark side, because this remuneration in kind, for tax purposes, has the same consideration as a cash delivery.
Therefore, in the income statement, it must be notified as if it were cash. And what is the value of that gift? Simply, the one that the financial institution determines and to which the corresponding personal income tax withholding will have to be applied , as if it were the benefits of a deposit.
