With nine days left before Christmas, many still don’t know what to give their close relatives and friends. This time has become a headache for those who are directly bad at hitting a gift that they like and that triumphs. For this reason, as not everyone is willing to cut their brains to find something original, many choose to give money, the famous premieres. As the gunpowder has ignited the rumor in networks during these days that these bonuses, or the expected envelopes of the grandmother filled with bills, have to be declared before the Treasury.
Content that has been viralized on networks such as Twitter, Instagram or TikTok. But the truth is that although the Tax Agency stipulates that it is necessary to declare any delivery of money, there are no reasons for concern. And we tell you why.
In the eyes of the Treasury. To understand all this noise, we must know that, according to the agency, a minimum amount is not established from which a donation must be declared, so it is understood that any amount must pass through the arms of the Tax Agency. That is, if we take it at face value, from the grandmother’s tip to the 50 euros that you get from your second uncle. Since, in legal eyes, it is a transfer of money and goes through the Inheritance and Gift Tax.
Therefore, in principle, it would be convenient to present the tax settlement to the Treasury in a period of 30 business days. Failure to do so, the Tax Agency could impose some type of financial penalty. But beware. The reality is very different. And it is that, being a traditional practice and the amount of these gifts is usually minimal, the Treasury does not resort to it.
I’m not buying it pic.twitter.com/VcvmTGV9NT
– Iván inº (@ivigrad) December 13, 2021
What the law says. The Civil Code establishes in its article 618 that a donation “is an act of liberality by which a person freely disposes of one thing in favor of another, who accepts it.” The agency does not set a minimum amount from which it is necessary to declare the money given. However, the online portal Reclamador.es It explains in reference to wedding gifts – and also applicable to Christmas gifts – that the Tax Agency does not usually pursue these movements of money because their amount is very low.
However, in the event of cash income exceeding 3,000 euros or the entry of 500 euro bills, banks are obliged to inform the Treasury who are the holders of the account that receives the income, as well as the people who do so and the amount of the movement. A claim in which the amount depends on each autonomous community and in which the treasury has up to four years to claim payment.
In practice. We’ll see. Does this mean that of those 20 euros that my grandfather passes me under the table, the Treasury is going to keep part of it? No. According to experts in tax law and the union of workers and finance technicians, in practice, these amounts are not declared or claimed by the administrations. In addition, the Ministry of Finance denies that it has ever made any notice or indication about the taxation of this tax.
In this article by Maldito Bulo, the president of Gestha, Carlos Cruzado, and Rafael Sanz, professor of Financial and Tax Law at UNED, affirm that both civil and tax regulations are designed, in terms of donations, for amounts of certain relevance. These donations are not declared, nor are they pursued by the administrations of the autonomous communities unless they are of significant amounts or gifts of considerable value such as a property, a home or a vehicle. Of course, those 20, 50 or 100 euros that a relative gives us is not being pursued, nor is it going to be done.
Why? For the simple fact that the central administration does not have the capacity to detect all these small gifts since the information does not reach it. Although there are cases (bank through) of large amounts where it is possible to initiate a procedure and request that the origin of the money be justified. And all this occurs even though the statement that any amount given constitutes a donation and is subject to taxation is theoretically correct.
So, you know, the only thing you have to do when you receive the premieres is to thank whoever gives them to you, keep them well, and put on a good smile. Because they deserve it and it’s Christmas.