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V2527-25 18 December 2025 · SG de Fiscalidad Internacional Criterion in force
IRNR · tráfico internacional

UK residents' employment income not taxable in Spain if work not carried out in Spain

A UK tax resident enquires whether salaries paid by a Spanish agency are taxable in Spain for work aboard a ship. The DGT determines that since neither the employing company nor the UK resident is resident in Spain, there is no international trade under the Double Taxation Convention.

The DGT's ruling

Paragraph 3 of Article 14 of the Spain-United Kingdom Convention is not applicable because the operation of the vessel is not carried out by an enterprise of either of the two Contracting States. As there is no international traffic according to the Convention, paragraph 1 applies, which establishes that remuneration is only taxable in the State of residence if the employment is not exercised in the other State. Therefore, as the work is not performed in Spain, the income cannot be subject to taxation in Spain.

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