How to make your tax identification number application at Notary
After an agreement signed between the Spanish General Council of Notaries and the AEAT several months ago, the possibility to make the tax identification number application for natural persons at a Notary has been opened, in an agile and simple way.
As it is known, all foreigners, whether they are European or not, or those Spanish citizens who do not have a Spanish DNI (ID) and wish to carry out an operation of economic importance in Spain, are obliged to pay the corresponding taxes. For this, they must have a Tax Identification Number, which will allow you to identify yourself before the tax administration for these purposes in accordance with the legal operation granted.
What is the NIF or Tax Identification Number?
Know what is the NIF before you make any tax identification number application at Notary: the NIF is an alphanumeric code (made up of numbers and letters in the case of Spaniards; and of letters, numbers and letters in the case of foreigners) that the AEAT assigns to a person, and identifies them before the Tax Administration. With that, the person, whether natural or legal, can comply with the tax obligations that he is going to incur in accordance with the legal act subject or not to said obligation.
In this sense, and in accordance with the provisions of the Spanish General Tax Law and other provisions in this regard, any natural or legal person, as well as entities lacking legal personality will be considered taxpayers and, therefore, must have a NIF for their relationships of tax significance.
That is why, on many occasions, from the Notary’s Office we request and guide clients to request a NIF number if they don’t have it when they wish to buy a property, establish a commercial company, accept an inheritance, request a loan or carry out any other legal act subject to tax obligation.
If this is your case, read our article about buying a property in Spain.
Who can request a NIF at a Notary?
As we have previously stated, a NIF can be requested by both natural or legal persons, as well as those entities lacking legal personality.
Types of NIF
There are several types or classes of NIF, and they depend on certain personal circumstances of the applicant. NIF with the letter K is granted to Spaniards under 14 years of age residing in Spain who do not have a DNI; those with the letter L, to non-resident Spaniards of any age who do not have a DNI; and finally, those with the letter M are granted to foreigners who do not have a NIE because they are not obliged to do so because they are not going to reside in Spain.
A NIF with letter M can also be requested on a transitory basis for foreigners who, being obliged to obtain the NIE, have requested it, but it has not yet been granted by the corresponding Immigration Office (this being a very frequent case that has happened to us at the Notary). A NIF with letter M will be granted to a non-Spanish national who wishes to invest in Spain, in the purchase of a property that will constitute his habitual residence while he is waiting for the Immigration Office to grant him residence in Spain or not, as a matter of urgency and in order not to lose his opportunity to buy the said property, has obtained his NIF and has granted the contract while awaiting the Resolution of granting or not of his NIE.
What is the difference between the NIF and the NIE?
It is very important to highlight, especially in order not to get confused, that the NIF and NIE of non-Spanish individuals are not the same thing.
The NIF, as we have already mentioned, is assigned to the person by the Spanish Tax Agency so that they can comply with the tax obligations that they are going to contract in the near future, since they will grant a legal act subject to said obligation.
On the contrary, the NIE (Foreigner Identity Number) is only granted by the Spanish General Directorate of the Police (Immigration Office) to all foreigners who are going to stay in Spanish territory for more than three months. (for example, either because they will remain in Spain for a study stay or they will directly reside or remain in a stable manner.)
In what situations is it required to be the holder of the NIF?
As you will have already read in previous questions, having a NIF is the obligation of any natural person who does not have a NIF and who is subject by Law to comply with the tax obligations contracted, to have one, and to do so, request it from the AEAT.
Depending on your personal circumstances, a distinction is made between NIF K, formed by the letter K + 7 numbers + control digit; NIF L, formed by the letter L + 7 numbers + control digit; and NIF M, formed by the letter K + 7 alphanumeric characters + control digit.
On the contrary, there are two cases in which the natural person already has their NIF, and that is when the person already has their DNI and when they already have their NIE.
The tax identification number application at Notary: documentation to provide
Indeed, after the agreement signed between the CGN and the AEAT several months ago, this possibility of requesting the NIF from the Notary has been opened.
The documentation to be provided will vary depending on the different cases that may occur.
1- The interested party appears alone and in person.
To carry out the procedure, you must appear in person at the Notary with your identification document in which your photograph and signature appear (Passport, identity card, identification card or any other document that in your country of origin is your identification document, but never the driver’s license).
At the Notary, you will be provided with a “Responsible Declaration” form that the applicant must fill out and in which he is responsible for declaring that he does not have a NIE or a Spanish NIF and that he knows the regulations on the matter. If he has applied for a NIE and has not obtained it, he must declare that when he obtains it, he will notify the tax administration within two months. The Notary must ask him in what situation he is and determine what is the declaration that he must make. Likewise, he must provide the Notary with his contact information (address, telephone and email). If an address in Spain is provided, which will be the most common, the cadastral reference of the property must be included.
In the case of residents abroad, they must also designate an address in Spain for the purposes of notifications, since it will be at that address where the assigned NIF will be received by certified letter.
The case of NIF for Spaniards under 14 years of age who do not have a DNI deserves special attention, since at least one of the two parents must appear, provided with their National Identity Document, a Birth Certificate of the minor or Family Book that allows prove parentage.
Once the Notary has verified compliance with all the requirements and verified the identity of the applicant, the corresponding NIF application will be sent electronically through SIGNO system, which will automatically generate the following documents:
- The proof of presentation that will contain the documents that were attached, with the corresponding CSV.
- Automatically generates the 030 model and submits it to the corresponding Tax Agency.
- The proof of registration of the NIF (it can be received the same day, or the next business day after the request has been formalized)
As anticipated, the NIF will be received at the address indicated by the interested party in their application, after a few days have elapsed since the procedure is carried out.
2 – The request is made through an attorney.
The NIF request can be made through a representative, either legal as we have already expressed (in the case of minors or people declared legally disabled) or through a voluntary representative. In the second case, in order to prove voluntary representation, the AEAT accepts that it can be accredited either by means of a public document (Power of Attorney at a Notary Public, which is the most common) or that, by means of a simple authorization signed by the applicant at his representative, whether or not the signature of the first is legitimized, the representative can appear at a Notary and apply for the NIF.
In the case of people with disabilities, it will be mandatory to accredit the representation.
In this sense, it is striking that the planned system does not seem to take into account the new regulation on disability, which does not mean that the application of Law 8/2021 should be ignored. Therefore, if the person with disability can understand the process with the appropriate support, it will not be necessary to state the representation.
In the case of voluntary representation, in addition to the Power of Attorney or Authorization in a private document duly signed (with a legitimate signature or not), a certified photocopy of the passport, letter or identity card (of the identification page where the photograph and signature and not of the entirety of it).
How much will it cost me to get a NIF at a Notary?
The approximate fee for a tax identification number application at Notary will be between 95 and 105 euros.
Benefits of a tax identification number application at Notary
We believe that it may be more beneficial for people to apply for a NIF at a Notary due to the speed and agility of the procedures at the Notary, especially since face-to-face appointments at the Notary do not usually take long compared to previous face-to-face appointments offered by the Tax agency. Of course, the procedures at the Notary generate fees that must be paid by the applicant.
Get a NIF in Barcelona
Remember that, from our Notary Barcelona, we can manage the NIF request so that you can carry out your procedures as quickly as possible. Our Notaries in Barcelona will be happy to assist you and for this, we inform you of the various channels available to contact us. You can get your appointment through our email bcn@jlanotarios.com, the contact form on our website or by calling 93 159 17 62.
We hope this article has been helpful to you.
