The second presentation session of the latest research work carried out by Fundación Impuestos y Competitividad, published in November 2021 under the title “Transfer Tax and Stamp Duty: Current situation and proposals for the future” took place on Tuesday at the headquarters of SEOPAN (Spanish Association of Construction Companies and Infrastructure Concessionaires). This session continues with a presentation which, on this occasion, pays special attention to issues related to the real estate sector and companies that provide public services.
Following a brief introduction by Mr Luis Ignacio de Felipe, Tax Director at Ferrovial, as member of the SEOPAN Tax Committee, and Mr Ginés Navarro Fernández, Managing Director of Fundación Impuestos y Competitividad, the following presentations were delivered:
- General considerations, by Mr Gonzalo Rincón, from Garrigues.
- Contentious issues in the taxation of real estate transactions, by Ms Yolanda Cano and Mr Pablo Villar, from PwC.
- • The complex relationship between VAT and Transfer Tax (tax on capital transfers made for valuable consideration); universal transfers, paying special attention to second transfers of property; Judgements of the European Court of Justice, cases Kozuba and Cussens. By Mr Pedro Ruiz Correas, from KPMG.
- Administrative concessions in Transfer Tax, by Mr Ángel Viñas, from Uría Menéndez.
Later, with the moderation of the members of the SEOPAN Tax Committee, Mr Luis Ignacio de Felipe, from Ferrovial, and Mr Daniel Gómez Olano, from FCC, members of the SEOPAN Tax Committee, and with the participation of the speakers, an interesting discussion unfolded in which matters of general interest related to the application of Transfer Tax and Stamp Duty were addressed.
The impact of the new “reference value”, the quantification of the tax base for the tax on transactions evidenced by legal documentation, the effect on competitiveness or level of existing litigation of the disparity between the Autonomous Communities in the regulation and interpretation of the tax were just some of the issues that were debated.
Issues more specific to the real estate sector and concessionaires were also addressed such as: the regime for Equalisation Committees; dation in payment; the various problems with regard to the conceptualisation and treatment of administrative concessions; the current system for transfers of companies whose main assets, under the current Article 314 the Securities Market Law, consist of real estate; or the problems of where the boundary lies between VAT and Transfer Tax in universal transfers of property or second transfers.