This Tuesday, in the first round, the Council of Ministers approved the draft law that enables full transposition of the European directive guaranteeing a global minimum corporate tax rate of 15 percent. It targets multinational groups and large domestic entities operating within Spain’s economy.
The step initiates a public information process and engagement with mandatory bodies, aligning with BEPS recommendations from the OECD. The measure is framed within the section titled “column” and reflects the OECD’s initiative against base erosion and profit shifting.
The Finance Ministry explained that the draft’s aim is to harmonize international taxation practices reached in forums and global bodies such as the G20, OECD, and EU, in order to curb aggressive tax planning by multinational firms.
Spain has already taken a leading role by introducing in 2022 a minimum effective tax level for large business groups, a policy highlighted by the Ministry under María Jesús Montero.
For groups with annual turnover above 750 million euros
The approved text, in particular, seeks to establish a global minimum tax level for local groups, including multinational or large national groups, with net turnover equal to or exceeding €750 million in at least two of the last four financial years, measured by the consolidated statements of the ultimate parent.
This threshold aligns with the criterion used for determining country-by-country reporting by multinational entities, a milestone that marked Spain’s and the international community’s cooperation on tax matters back in 2015.
Exemptions
In all cases, and as provided by the directive, several entity types are excluded from the global minimum tax. This includes public authorities, international organizations, nonprofit entities, and pension funds, among others.
The directive also allows Member States to impose a complementary tax if a multinational group resident on Spanish soil does not reach the 15 percent minimum in that jurisdiction.
The tax structure consists of three complementary configurations
Spain will apply the said complementary tax through three configurations. First, the national complementary tax aims to ensure that units of very large multinational or national groups operating in Spain meet the 15 percent minimum via this tax, without affecting groups already above the threshold.
The Treasury notes that the national complementary tax is compatible with the 15 percent minimum and with domestic legislation enacted in 2022.
The modification lies in the national supplementary rate, which sets the 15 percent minimum on the adjusted accounting result according to the directive’s parameters and is uniform across countries. By contrast, the actual rate may vary depending on the tax base.
Second, the rules address a primary supplementary tax that applies when a multinational parent company based in Spain earns income from foreign subsidiaries taxed below 15 percent. In such cases, the supplementary tax is triggered.
Finally, a secondary supplementary tax is contemplated, acting as a closure mechanism when certain group entities outside Spain earn income that is not taxed at 15 percent. The distinction is that the secondary tax is tied to the parent company’s position rather than the subsidiary level inside Spain.
Following the first-round approval by the Council of Ministers, the draft will move through advisory bodies before a second reading in the Government and submission to Parliament.
Upon completion of this process and finalization of the standard, Spain will adopt a fairer tax framework that the government bills as modern and aligned with international tax policy.
— Attributions follow standard practice for policy updates, drawing on organizational publications from the OECD and EU frameworks. See OECD guidance on BEPS and the EU directive for global minimum tax considerations. —