Pensioners who are exempt from filing the Income Tax return in Spain

The campaign to present the annual income tax return to the Treasury in 2022 (corresponds to 2021 earnings) began on April 6. And public pensions, which in Spain are considered for tax purposes the same as income from work, are also affected.

However, not all pensioners residing in Spain are required to submit the annual income tax return (IRPF).

The Spanish tax authority (Agencia Tributaria) explains on its website that there are some exceptions to the general mandate to file the annual income statement.

As a general rule, in Spain, people who receive income of less than 22,000 euros do not have to submit the income tax return. But beware, because this rule that exempts you from submitting the tax declaration only applies -both for pensioners and for workers- when the income obtained during the year comes from a single payer.

When taxpayers obtain income from two payers or more (and the income from the second payer exceeds 1,500 euros per year), then the income threshold to be required to file the return drops to 14,000 euros per year.

Exempt pensions

In addition to the above, there are some specific types of pensions that are exempt from filing the 2021-2022 income tax declaration:

• Absolute permanent disability or severe disability. The maximum exempt amount will be the maximum recognized benefit. Income that exceeds that amount will be taxed as income from work.
• Orphan's pension.
• Pensions derived from terrorist acts: these benefits will not have to make the Income Tax declaration either. This rule includes those survivor's pensions that are related to terrorist acts.
• Pensions in favor of family members: pensions in favor of family members who are under 22 years of age are also exempt from taxation.