Modelo 210 in Alicante: the 1.1% non-resident owners pay in 2026

You own a house on Playa de San Juan, a top-floor flat in the Casco Antiguo or a villa in Albufereta. You live outside Spain most of the year. And every 31 December, without anyone ringing the bell, the Spanish Tax Agency quietly writes a small figure next to your name.

It is called Impuesto sobre la Renta de no Residentes, IRNR for short. It is filed using Modelo 210. And for anyone who owns a home in Alicante without renting it out, the basic rule fits in one sentence: 1.1% of the cadastral value, taxed at 19% or 24%, filed at any point during the following year.

The date the calendar dictates: 31 December

The IRNR accrues on 31 December every year. That is the technical date the Tax Agency uses to photograph your situation: if on that night you own an urban property in Spain and you are not a Spanish tax resident, you owe a declaration for the year.

It does not matter whether you spent the whole of July on the terrace or whether you have not visited for three years. The obligation comes from ownership, not from use.

1.1% (or 2%) of the cadastral value

The taxable base is calculated on the cadastral value of the property, the number that appears on each IBI receipt. Across much of the province, IBI is managed by Suma, the tax body run by the Diputación de Alicante. Two percentages are possible for IRNR:

• 1.1% when the municipality has a cadastral valuation report (ponencia de valores) approved and in force from 1 January 2012 onwards. This is the usual case in practice.
• 2% when the valuation is older and has not been revised within the prescribed period.

You can find the figure on the cadastral notice for the flat or on the Sede Electrónica del Catastro website. Each municipality has its own history: Alicante city, Elche, Torrevieja, Dénia or Calpe have gone through different processes, and a building can be taxed at 1.1% while one in a neighbouring village pays 2%.

A concrete example. A flat on Playa de San Juan with a cadastral value of 90,000 euros and a post-2012 valuation: the imputed base for the year is 990 euros. If the owner lives in France, the tax comes out at 19%: 188.10 euros. If the owner lives in the United Kingdom, post Brexit, it rises to 24%: 237.60 euros.

The rate: 19% if you live in the EU, 24% if you live outside

Here comes the second key number. The Spanish Tax Agency distinguishes two categories:

• 19% for residents in the European Union, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein (European Economic Area).
• 24% for residents in any other country.

Brexit moved thousands of British owners from the first group to the second in January 2021. The British keep buying in Alicante with the same intensity, but their annual IRNR bill is now 26% more expensive than that of a Belgian, German or Dutch owner with an identical flat.

Russians, Swiss, Americans and Moroccans fall in the 24% group by residing outside the EEA. Norwegians, by contrast, sit inside the EEA and pay 19%.

The deadline: a full year of margin

Imputed income is filed during the entire calendar year following the accrual. In other words, what accrued on 31 December 2025 can be filed any day between 1 January 2026 and 31 December 2026. A full year of margin.

The generous window is one of the reasons Modelo 210 is so easily forgotten: when the whole year is open, no month feels urgent. Tax advisors recommend pinning it to a fixed date in February or March, while the previous fiscal year is still fresh.

If the property is rented for part of the year

The picture changes if you rented the home for any stretch, even a week in August. The period the home was at your disposal is taxed as imputed income (the 1.1% pro-rated). The rented period is taxed as real estate rental income, with different rules:

• EU and EEA residents may deduct expenses linked to the rental (proportional IBI, mortgage interest, community fees, insurance, amortisation, repairs) and pay 19% on the net return.
• Non-EU and non-EEA residents pay 24% on gross income, with no deductions.

Since 2024, when there is rental income, filing is annual rather than quarterly. The first twenty calendar days of January following the accrual: that is the window to group all the year's rental income in a single self-assessment. If you wish to set up direct debit, the deadline closes on 15 January.

How Modelo 210 is filed

Filing is electronic, through the Tax Agency's e-Office. Three identification options exist: digital certificate, DNI electrónico or the Cl@ve system. For a British, German or Russian owner who lands in Alicante once or twice a year, the most practical route is usually obtaining an FNMT certificate during a visit and storing it safely.

The common alternative is delegating the filing to a tax advisor (gestor or asesor fiscal). Average fees in the province of Alicante for an imputed income filing range between 80 and 150 euros per home per year, depending on the firm. For rental returns, the price goes up.

Common mistakes that cost

Three slips repeat year after year:

• Not filing because "the house is not used". The obligation does not depend on use, it depends on ownership at 31 December. The Tax Agency can reclaim it for four years, with interest and possibly a fine.
• Applying the 19% rate while resident outside the EU. The error is understandable (the rule changed in 2021 for British owners) but triggers a correction if AEAT detects it.
• Confusing IBI with IRNR. IBI is a municipal tax. IRNR is collected by AEAT. Two different taxes, two different calendars, on the same property.

The good news is that the mechanism, once internalised, is stable. Three numbers: cadastral value, percentage (1.1% or 2%) and rate (19% or 24%). One date: 31 December of the year in question. And a twelve-month window to file.

This article explains how the tax works. For your specific case, especially if you own several properties, mix residencies, or combine personal use with rentals, lean on a registered tax advisor: the difference between 1.1% and 2%, between 19% and 24%, between imputed and actual rental income, matters.

If you are considering a second home on the Costa Blanca or want to understand what owning a non-resident property looks like day to day, you can explore our properties or contact us for a calm conversation.