Self-employed workers will be required to file the income declaration regardless of profits or losses. This is one of the major changes in the 2023 tax season, which opens on April 3 and runs through July 1.
Freelancers must also note that the portion of deduction expenses that are hard to justify rises from 5% to 7%. It’s important to point out that only freelancers who perform professional activities, not commercial ones, and who operate under the direct estimation regime qualify for this change. Those using the simplified regime are excluded, according to Antonio Gallardo, an expert at Banqmi.
Regarding deductions, at the national level deductions can apply to vehicles; training related to the business; profits earned; and the contributions made to the RETA (Régimen Especial para Trabajadores Autónomos), among others. It should also be remembered that certain autonomous communities, such as Madrid, Asturias, or Canarias, offer additional regional deductions.
A key challenge for self-employed individuals when declaring income is that the Tax Agency does not possess all information related to their activity. Although they may receive information about some expenses and revenues, it is often incomplete. This means the taxpayer must always perform proper checks and verifications to avoid errors and the hassle of making rectifications or supplementary declarations, notes the Banqmi expert.
That is why Banco Mediolanum emphasizes that engaging a specialized professional for filing taxes is crucial, since the topic is complex and not knowing how to do it does not exempt the contributor from filing correctly.
Some Aids That Must Be Included in the Declaration
It should be recalled that in 2023 a series of aids were granted. One is known as the 200-euro aid. This measure, approved by the government, targets individuals who earned no more than 27,000 euros annually in income and up to 75,000 euros in assets. Since this aid constitutes a capital gain, it must be included in this year’s income declaration.
Additionally, young people who benefited from the rental subsidy and received this aid during 2023 must include it in the declaration since the aid is not exempt from IRPF.
“It is important to note that the amounts to be included are those actually received in the year, not amounts to which one was entitled,” explains Gallardo. This means that if a beneficiary is eligible for 3,000 euros but only 1,500 was received in 2023, only 1,500 must be declared, i.e., the amount actually paid out.
Ley de Vivienda and Income Declaration
Investors with rental properties should consider the changes enacted by Law 12/2023 of May 24, the Housing Law, regarding the income declaration. This law states that for contracts signed after May 26, 2023, the deduction will be 50% instead of the previous 60%. The deduction can be increased if the area is designated as tense and rent prices are reduced (to 90%), if the property is rented for the first time to young people under 35 (to 70%), if the property is donated to the administration or a non-profit entity (to 70%), or if the property has been rehabilitated in the two years prior (to 60%).
In the investments area, taxpayers should proceed carefully, since the Tax Agency does not have all information. It only reports on withholdingable operations such as dividends or gains from selling fund shares. Even in these cases, thorough checks are necessary, with particular attention to dividends from foreign companies if they are subject to double taxation in Spain and the country of origin, stresses Gallardo.