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V0026-21 14 January 2021 · SG de Impuestos sobre el Consumo Criterion in force
IVA · subvención vinculada al precio

Grants for general interest research activities without identifiable recipients are not subject to VAT

A self-employed professional enquired whether a grant received from the European Commission for a cancer research project should be subject to VAT. The Directorate-General for Taxes (DGT) ruled that, as there is no relationship of reciprocity and no identifiable recipients, the amount does not constitute consideration for a taxable transaction.

The question raised

Taxation of the subsidy received in Value Added Tax.

The DGT's ruling

Amounts received to finance a research activity of general interest, whose recipients are not identifiable and without any consideration being satisfied, do not form part of the VAT taxable base. It is not considered consideration if there is no legal relationship between the beneficiary and the granting entity in which reciprocal benefits are exchanged. Therefore, the receipt of these amounts is not subject to the tax.

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