{"id":9471,"date":"2025-03-26T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T23:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gentile.law\/sociedades-holding-espa%c3%b1a\/"},"modified":"2025-04-20T23:11:33","modified_gmt":"2025-04-20T21:11:33","slug":"holding-companies-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: initial;\">Publicado: 26-03-2025<\/span><\/p>\n<section>\n<p>In recent months, the creation of holding companies for the reorganization of family assets has come to a significant halt. These structures, traditionally used by companies to optimize tax burdens, facilitate generational succession, and centralize business control, are now under scrutiny by the Spanish Tax Administration.<\/p>\n<p>A series of recent rulings by the Central Economic-Administrative Court (TEAC) has introduced a new interpretative approach, generating legal uncertainty and placing many corporate restructuring operations on hold.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What is a holding company and why was it used?<\/strong><br \/>A holding company is an entity whose main function is to own and manage shares in other companies. It acts as the &#8220;&#8221;parent&#8221;&#8221; of a group of subsidiaries and has been a key tool for business groups, particularly family businesses, for the following reasons:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Centralizes asset control<\/li>\n<li>Facilitates wealth transfer<\/li>\n<li>Allows tax optimization under the special tax regime for mergers and reorganizations (the &#8220;&#8221;FEAC Regime&#8221;&#8221;), which enables the deferral of tax payments on non-monetary contributions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>However, this regime requires that the transaction has valid economic reasons beyond merely obtaining a tax advantage.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>The TEAC`s new approach: A disruptive shift<\/strong><br \/>Since spring 2024, the TEAC has issued several rulings on the taxation of contributions of shares and participations to holding companies and the application of the FEAC Regime. The two main arguments behind this new approach are:<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Deferral of income<\/strong><br \/>The TEAC considers that if the primary purpose of the transaction is to defer taxation, this constitutes an undue tax benefit. Consequently, such deferral must be invalidated.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Regularization based on dividends<\/strong><br \/>The current criterion states that the regularization of contributions must occur as the dividends related to the operation are received.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Practical implications: A halt in family reorganizations<\/strong><br \/>These decisions have had a strong impact on family business groups, where the creation of holding companies was a common practice. Now, many restructuring operations are being postponed or canceled due to fears of penalties and tax reassessments.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Appeals before the National Court: Prolonged uncertainty<\/strong><br \/>Several of the TEAC`s rulings have already been appealed before the National Court, opening the door to a lengthy judicial process. Even if decisions are eventually favorable to the taxpayer or the administration, it is likely that the matter will reach the Supreme Court, further extending the uncertainty.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>What does the future hold for holding companies?<\/strong><br \/>The use of family holding companies for asset reorganization is currently on hold until greater legal clarity is achieved. In the meantime, it is recommended to carefully document the valid economic reasons behind each transaction, seek prior consultation with the Directorate General for Taxation, and avoid purely tax-motivated operations that could be challenged by the Tax Authority.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><br \/>The TEAC\u0092s new interpretation marks a turning point in the use of holding companies. The resulting legal uncertainty is placing many family and business groups in a difficult position, showing how interpretative changes can significantly impact the business ecosystem.<\/p>\n<p>At Gentile Law, we have a team specialized in taxation, corporate reorganizations, and complex holding structures. We guide our clients through the entire process\u0097from legal and tax assessment of the transaction to drafting documentation, negotiating with the tax authorities, and, if necessary, defending their interests in court. If you are considering a corporate or asset restructuring, we can help you make informed decisions, minimize risks, and protect your assets.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n\n<!-- wp:themify-builder\/canvas \/-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Publicado: 26-03-2025 En los \u00faltimos meses, la creaci\u00f3n de sociedades holding para reorganizar el patrimonio familiar se ha visto seriamente frenada. Estas estructuras, tradicionalmente utilizadas por empresas para optimizar la&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":12148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[42,77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9471","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mercantil","category-mercantil-en","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>What is happening with holding companies in Spain?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The TEAC&#039;s new approach halts the creation of holding companies and creates legal uncertainty in corporate restructuring processes.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The TEAC&#039;s new approach halts the creation of holding companies and creates legal uncertainty in corporate restructuring processes.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Gentile Law\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-25T23:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-04-20T21:11:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"735\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Marta Batalla Eguidazu\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Marta Batalla Eguidazu\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/\",\"name\":\"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-25T23:00:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-04-20T21:11:33+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/575def81b54511f80268591f549bb409\"},\"description\":\"The TEAC's new approach halts the creation of holding companies and creates legal uncertainty in corporate restructuring processes.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp\",\"width\":1300,\"height\":735},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Portada\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/\",\"name\":\"Gentile Law\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/575def81b54511f80268591f549bb409\",\"name\":\"Marta Batalla Eguidazu\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ba5913caf1c05fe59336dec8d92222f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ba5913caf1c05fe59336dec8d92222f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Marta Batalla Eguidazu\"},\"sameAs\":[\"www.linkedin.com\/in\/marta-batalla-eguidazu-bb1455a4\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/author\/marta\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?","description":"The TEAC's new approach halts the creation of holding companies and creates legal uncertainty in corporate restructuring processes.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?","og_description":"The TEAC's new approach halts the creation of holding companies and creates legal uncertainty in corporate restructuring processes.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/","og_site_name":"Gentile Law","article_published_time":"2025-03-25T23:00:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-04-20T21:11:33+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1300,"height":735,"url":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Marta Batalla Eguidazu","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Marta Batalla Eguidazu","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/","url":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/","name":"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp","datePublished":"2025-03-25T23:00:00+00:00","dateModified":"2025-04-20T21:11:33+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/575def81b54511f80268591f549bb409"},"description":"The TEAC's new approach halts the creation of holding companies and creates legal uncertainty in corporate restructuring processes.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/qu___est___pasando_con_las_sociedades_holding_en_espa__a_.webp","width":1300,"height":735},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/holding-companies-spain\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Portada","item":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"What is happening with holding companies in Spain?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/","name":"Gentile Law","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/575def81b54511f80268591f549bb409","name":"Marta Batalla Eguidazu","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ba5913caf1c05fe59336dec8d92222f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4ba5913caf1c05fe59336dec8d92222f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Marta Batalla Eguidazu"},"sameAs":["www.linkedin.com\/in\/marta-batalla-eguidazu-bb1455a4"],"url":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/author\/marta\/"}]}},"builder_content":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9471","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9471"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9471\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12171,"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9471\/revisions\/12171"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9471"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9471"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.gentile.law\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9471"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}