What taxes and expenses are involved in selling a property on the Costa Brava in 2026?

When selling a property on the Costa Brava in 2026, you pay two taxes: personal income tax (IRPF) on the capital gain obtained (from 19% to 30%) and the municipal capital gains tax (plusvàlua municipal) to the city council. If you do not reside in Spain, the buyer also withholds 3% of the price on account for the tax authorities. To this, you must add the selling expenses: habitability certificate, energy certificate, mortgage cancellation, and agency fees. We explain how everything is calculated, when it is not paid, and what your net amount will be, with an example in Sant Feliu de Guíxols.

The seller pays two: the personal income tax (IRPF) for the capital gain, that is, for the difference between what you paid and what you receive now, and the municipal capital gains tax (the tax on the increase in value of urban land), which is collected by the city council where the property is located. The property transfer tax (ITP), which in Catalonia ranges from 10% to 13% since June 27, 2025, is paid by the buyer, not you.

The gain is the transmission value minus the acquisition value. To the purchase price you add the ITP or VAT you paid, the notary, the registry, and improvements with an invoice; from the sale price you subtract the expenses you assume as the seller (agency fees, municipal capital gains tax, certificates, mortgage cancellation). Since 2015 there are no updating coefficients for inflation.

The current savings scale for the 2025 and 2026 income tax applies to this gain (AEAT 2025 Income Tax manual):

The scale is progressive: each bracket is taxed at its own rate, not the entire gain at the highest rate. It is declared in the income tax return for the year following the sale.

There are two exit doors, and both have to do with the primary residence. If you sell the house where you live and reinvest the amount in another primary residence within a two-year period, the gain is exempt; if you only reinvest part of it, the exemption is proportional.

If you are over 65 and sell your primary residence, the gain is exempt without any condition. If you sell a second home, it is also exempt if you allocate the amount, within six months, to an insured life annuity, up to €240,000 per taxpayer (AEAT, Renda 2025, majors de 65). Outside of these cases, the beach apartment is taxed according to the scale.

Municipal capital gains tax taxes the increase in the value of the land (not the construction) during the years you have owned the property. You can choose the calculation that works out lowest for you: the objective method (cadastral value of the land multiplied by a coefficient based on the years of ownership) or the actual gain. If you sell at a loss and prove it with the purchase and sale deeds, you do not pay.

The coefficients went up and down during 2026, but right now the ones from 2024 apply: for those who have owned the property for twenty years or more, 0.40. Royal Decree-Law 29/2026, in force since October 8th but pending validation, sets a new table starting December 1, 2026: it goes up for most holding periods of less than fifteen years and goes down for long ones (0.30 for twenty years or more). If you are about to sell, the signing date can change the bill.

What rules, however, is the rate set by each city council, with a legal maximum of 30%. In Sant Feliu de Guíxols it is 30% regardless of the holding period (tax ordinance no. 5). In Calonge i Sant Antoni it decreases over the years: 28% up to 5, 26% up to 10, 18% up to 15, and 12% from 16 onwards (tax ordinance no. 7). You have 30 business days from the signing to self-assess it.

If you are not a tax resident in Spain, the buyer is obliged to withhold 3% of the price and pay it over to the Spanish Tax Agency using form 211 within a period of one month. This is not an additional tax: it is an advance payment on your non-resident income tax, which taxes the gain at a fixed rate of 19% (AEAT, non-resident taxation manual).

You then have four months to file form 210 with the actual gain; if 19% of the gain is less than the 3% withheld, the Tax Agency will refund the difference. If you reside in the European Union or the European Economic Area and you are selling what was your habitual residence in Spain, you can also apply the reinvestment exemption.

What selling expenses should you anticipate?

In addition to taxes, there are minor expenses that are worth keeping track of so there are no surprises on the day of the notary signing:

• Certificate of occupancy (cèdula d'habitabilitat): mandatory for selling; the second-occupancy one is valid for 15 years (Gencat procedures). If it has expired, a technician and the Generalitat fee are required, between 70 and 120€. 
• Energy performance certificate: valid for 10 years; ICAEN fee of 12.90€ plus the technician's fees, between 70 and 120€. 
• Registry cancellation of the mortgage: if it is still registered, even if it has been paid off, it must be cancelled: between 700 and 1,000€ on average. 
• Community certificate: the administrator must certify that you are up to date with your payments.
• Real estate agency fees: these are deducted from the capital gain for personal income tax (IRPF) purposes. 
• Year's IBI (property tax) and notary: the IBI is paid by whoever is the owner on January 1st, although it is common to agree on a prorated split; the master copy of the deed is borne by the seller unless agreed otherwise.

Imagine an apartment in Sant Feliu de Guíxols bought in 2005 for €220,000 and sold in 2026 for €380,000 as a second home, by owners resident in Spain under 65 years of age. To put things into perspective: in Sant Feliu the average sale price was €3,315/m² in September 2026, 6.9% more than a year earlier.

If the same owners were non-residents, the buyer would withhold €11,400 (3% of the price) and the tax would be €26,125 (19% of the gain): within four months they would have to pay the difference using form 210. And if they were over 65 and it was their primary residence, the gain would be exempt. Agency fees and mortgage cancellation, if any, would reduce the gain and the tax.

How do we help you know what your net proceeds will be before putting your apartment up for sale?

Before listing a property, at Helena Jornet Finques, a real estate agency in Sant Feliu de Guíxols and Sant Antoni de Calonge (Costa Brava), we do two things: we appraise it using real closing prices in the area and we prepare an estimate of the net amount you will have left after taxes and expenses. This way you can make a calm decision, rather than on the day of signing at the notary. We explain this at Do you want to sell? and at valuations and other real estate services; here you can also see what is currently for sale on the Costa Brava.

If you have any questions, please contact us: we believe that a meeting or a visit is the best way to listen to your needs and be able to help you. We will tell you how much your property is worth, what your net proceeds will be, and how we would sell it: request a no-obligation valuation visit or contact us. Your peace of mind is our priority.