AEAT 2021 Tax Campaign: Returns Forecast & Crypto Updates

According to the tax office chief executive, the deadline for online submission of the income statement for fiscal year 2021 begins this Wednesday, and the first returns will begin arriving within 48 hours from this Friday. Jesus Gascon directing the presentation of the campaign.

“The start of the campaign was driven by strong data,” Gascón noted, adding that 382,000 income tax returns have already been filed electronically as of 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, about 3.9% higher than the previous year and reaching a pace of 1,300 notifications per minute. “That is encouraging,” he said.

Forecasts for the entire campaign

The Tax Office expects a total of 21,921,000 income tax returns to be filed during the campaign, up 0.9% from the prior cycle. The campaign will conclude on June 30, with about two-thirds of filings resulting in refunds totaling 11.122 billion euros.

The agency anticipates roughly 5,971,000 positive statements, 1.5% below the prior campaign, driven in part by benefits claimed for delays. About 5.97 million refunds are projected for this type of filing.

Additionally, a notable rise in negative statements is expected. These are for cases not earning income or not requiring refunds, with exemptions tied to IPREM limits and IMV eligibility for some buyers who must file. Negative statements are projected to increase by 8.2% to around 1.6 million.

As a result of the balance between income and expected refunds, the AEAT expects a net positive campaign outcome of 2.278 billion euros.

For property tax status, the campaign forecasts 224,438 returns (2.9% year-on-year) and 1.242 million euros in revenue (3.9% rise).

Cryptocurrency notice

The rental campaign generally follows prior years, with dates from April 6 to June 3. Previously, about 1.3 million taxpayers had already reviewed tax data via the app and the AEAT website before the campaign began.

Advance notices were sent regarding the taxation of certain incomes. A total of 233,000 notices were issued about the obligation to pay income tax on virtual currencies, compared with 14,800 notices last year. This campaign will introduce new boxes for virtual currencies. A new code (1626) has been created in the Renta Web filing program to declare capital gains or losses from virtual currency transactions. In the Assets section, a new box (46) defines balances of virtual currencies.

Millions of notices

The AEAT also sent notices to 856,000 taxpayers about income from other countries and 713,000 communications aimed at ensuring accurate real estate rental income declarations (last year 400,000 notices).

Recipients of the minimum vital income (IMV) are being reminded that they must file a personal income tax return, even if their benefits would not be taxed. In some cases, the tax data will reflect Sepe-provided benefits paid in 2021, for which taxes may apply. Around 500,000 ERTE beneficiaries facing corrections from 2020 have the option to request an extra payment in this campaign. In any case, the AEAT states that taxpayers can verify whether they declared the correct amount for last year and request a correction if needed.

News

Regarding rentals, the Renta Web program adds new boxes to claim a deductible expense for reducing building rental costs. The program also includes a new section to declare energy efficiency improvements in housing: 20% credit for measures reducing heating and cooling demand; 40% credit for improvements reducing non-renewable primary energy consumption; and 60% for energy efficiency upgrades in buildings.