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Spain Scraps 2026 Tax-Return Requirement for People Whose Only Income Was Unemployment Benefits

The BOE confirms a reversal that the government attributes to beneficiary attestations and stronger data-sharing with the Tax Agency.

Overview

  • The Official State Gazette published the suppression of the planned obligation for subsidy recipients to file the 2026 income tax return.
  • Unemployed people with no income beyond SEPE benefits will not be required to file, while those who also earned wages or meet standard thresholds must still submit a return.
  • The Finance Ministry had intended to remove income thresholds so that all beneficiaries filed in 2026 under changes enabled by Real Decreto-Ley 2/2024.
  • The government cites prior responsibility declarations signed by beneficiaries and enhanced interoperability with the Tax Agency as reasons the extra filing step is unnecessary.
  • Roughly 2.5 million people are unemployed and about seven in ten receive benefits, a group that had raised concerns that missing a filing could risk SEPE sanctions.