VAT and Stamp Duty on new builds in Alicante: 11.4% in 2026

You walk into the notary with the developer. You sign. The price of the flat is one number. The cheque you hand over that morning is another. The gap has a name, and it is two taxes: VAT and AJD. On the Costa Blanca, from June 1, 2026, they add 11.4% to the deeded price, not to the brochure price.

Not a surprise if you know. A cold shower if you do not.

The 10% VAT: what counts

Reduced VAT at 10% applies to the first transmission of a finished home, the moment the developer hands the keys to the person signing the deed. It sits in article 91.Uno.1.7 of the Spanish VAT Law. For an open-market home in Alicante (any new-build flat in Gran Vía, San Juan, Playa Muchavista, or La Florida that has never had a previous owner), that is the rate.

There is one exception at 4%: officially protected housing (VPO) under the special regime or public promotion, with a definitive qualification certificate. The developer has to prove it in writing.

The garage space and storage room come in at 10% if you buy them with the home, on the same deed, inside the same building or complex, and as long as you do not exceed two garage spaces per home. That is the Tax Office position: linked annexes, not standalone purchases. If you later buy a third space from a neighbour in the same building, that one is taxed at 21%.

AJD drops from 1.5% to 1.4% on June 1, 2026

The Stamp Duty tax (AJD in Spanish) falls on the formalisation of the public deed. It is the notary seal, translated into a percentage of the deeded value.

Until May 31, 2026, AJD on new builds in the Valencian Community was 1.5%. Law 5/2025 of May 30, published in the regional gazette (DOGV) on May 31, 2025, lowered it to 1.4% with effect from June 1, 2026. Four days before you read this.

It means one tenth less on the deeded price. For a 280,000 € home, that is 280 € saved on the settlement. Nothing that flips a purchase decision, something to enjoy if your closing is in these weeks.

The same reform introduces a 50% AJD reduction for deeds linked to projects declared of regional strategic interest (groupings, segregations, divisions of plots with that qualification). Marginal for the average buyer, useful for developers of large schemes.

A cold calculation on a 280,000 € flat

Not to stay in theory. Picture a new-build duplex in Playa San Juan with a parking space and storage room, deeded at 280,000 €:

• VAT 10%: 28,000 €
• AJD 1.4%: 3,920 €
• Tax total: 31,920 €

Had you signed on May 30, 2026, with AJD still at 1.5%, you would have paid 4,200 € instead of 3,920 €. A 280 € saving for waiting until June. If your closing slips a few weeks because of notary paperwork or pending mortgage formalities, you quietly thank the delay.

When and to whom you pay

VAT is paid by the buyer to the developer on the day of handover, usually as part of the final cheque signed at the notary. The developer then reports it to the Tax Office in the quarterly return.

AJD is paid by the buyer directly to the Valencian regional government using form 600, within 30 working days after the deed. Whoever runs your administrative side (the bank processing agent if you finance with a mortgage, or an independent agent if you pay cash) usually handles the filing. But the money leaves your account.

Add notary fees (0.3% to 0.5%), land registry (0.1% to 0.3%), and processing agent (300 to 500 €). The usual total, taxes plus admin, lands around 12% on top of the flat price.

What the 10% does not cover

Reduced VAT does not cover everything the developer puts on the contract.

• Commercial premises on the ground floor are taxed at 21%.
• Standalone garage spaces (beyond two per home, or bought without the home) are taxed at 21%.
• Furniture that the developer adds as an extra on the price can be taxed at 21% if it is invoiced separately as a movable-goods supply. Check how the invoice is split.
• Renovations you commission after handover (enclosing a terrace, changing floors) are no longer new builds: they take the rate matching the work, usually 10% if it qualifies as renovation and 21% otherwise.

Compared with resale: a 2.4-point gap

From June 1, 2026, a resale home on the Costa Blanca is taxed at 9% ITP (it used to be 10%), as long as the deeded value does not exceed 1,000,000 €. Above a million, it stays at 11%.

New builds, adding VAT and AJD, total 11.4%. That is 2.4 points more than the general resale ITP. For a 280,000 € purchase, the fiscal gap is 6,720 € in favour of resale.

It does not mean resale is always the right choice. New builds come with Law 38/1999 guarantees, A-rated energy efficiency, factory-installed smart systems, and ten years of structural insurance. Resale has its price and its small print: potential outstanding IBI, community debts of up to three years, deferred works. The decision is not settled by the tax percentage alone.

What this article is not

This is a journalistic explanation of how new-build taxation lands in Alicante today. It is not fiscal or legal advice. Every transaction has nuances that only a tax adviser or a tax lawyer based in the province can close for you: reductions for age, large family, habitual residence, disability. If you sign in the coming weeks, get the simulation closed by a professional before the cheque at the notary.

At ESYS VIP we help you read the tax side of every transaction before you sign. You can explore our properties or contact us for a no-strings call.