Tax Advisory in Las Palmas: ZEC and Canary Islands Fiscal Regime Experts

Tax advisory in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria is specialised in the Canary Islands Economic and Fiscal Regime (Régimen Económico y Fiscal de Canarias, REF), a unique set of state-aid-approved incentives applicable in Spain's Canary Islands archipelago. The centrepiece of the REF for international businesses is the Zona Especial Canaria (ZEC), which offers a 4% corporate income tax rate — the lowest available in mainland Spain and competitive with EU low-tax jurisdictions — for registered entities conducting qualifying activities (including ICT, consulting, logistics, and wholesale trade) with genuine economic substance, a minimum investment of EUR 100,000 in Gran Canaria, and at least five local employees; the registration deadline for new ZEC entities under the current European Commission authorisation is 31 December 2026.

Why 2026 is the decisive year for the ZEC and the future of Canary Islands tax planning

The Zona Especial Canaria is, without question, the most favourable fiscal regime in the Spanish tax system and one of the most competitive in the European Union: a 4% corporate tax rate, approved and protected by Brussels, with full access to the EU single market and Spain’s network of over 90 double taxation treaties.

The window of opportunity closes on 31 December 2026. The current ZEC regime was authorised by the European Commission with a registration deadline ending on that date. After it closes, no new entities can register under the current terms. Entities already registered in 2026 will retain the benefits throughout the authorised period (currently through 2026, with a possible extension). Those that are not registered will have permanently missed the opportunity.

Our Las Palmas tax team: Canarian REF and ZEC specialists

From the Las Palmas office we have the most specialised team in the Canary Islands Economic and Fiscal Regime outside the archipelago. We have managed the registration of dozens of ZEC entities, from technology startups to subsidiaries of European and Asian multinational groups that have chosen the Canary Islands as their gateway to Africa and Latin America.

Our work does not end at registration. The greatest risk for ZEC entities is not initial refusal — which rarely occurs if the application is well prepared — but loss of the regime through failure to meet the economic substance requirements during the entity’s life. We continuously monitor ZEC compliance parameters and alert clients when any indicator approaches the threshold.

We complement the ZEC with the rest of the special territories incentive catalogue: the Reserva para Inversiones en Canarias, investment deductions, the special shipping entity regime, and the IGIC particularities compared to mainland VAT.

How much your company could save with the ZEC: the calculation you need to make today

Consider a technology services or consulting company generating €2 million in pre-tax profit:

The saving versus the standard rate is €420,000 annually. Versus the Irish rate, €170,000. And unlike Irish structures, the ZEC does not require specialist staff in Ireland and does not carry the substance risks under OECD/BEPS scrutiny that are currently in Brussels’ sights.

The special taxable base has a cap that varies with the number of employees and investment made, but for most service companies setting up in the Canary Islands, the ceiling is sufficient to capture all or most of the profits.

What our Las Palmas tax advisory service includes

From the Las Palmas office we provide: pre-commitment ZEC eligibility diagnostic, corporate structure and business plan design, registration application to the Consorcio ZEC, continuous regime compliance monitoring, annual IS management (Modelo 200 with ZEC regime), RIC, IGIC and other Canarian tax obligations, international group coordination, and AEAT and Consorcio defence in the event of a regime review.

For companies wishing to use Las Palmas as a hub for African operations — an increasingly common use case given that the archipelago is the geographically closest point to the African continent with full European infrastructure — we analyse the optimal structure and applicable double taxation treaties.

The ZEC registration deadline closes on 31 December 2026. If your company can benefit from the 4% rate, act now: registration takes between two and four months from application.

Book a ZEC eligibility consultation with our team at the Las Palmas office. We assess your position in the meeting itself and tell you whether your company qualifies and how much it would save.

Las Palmas as a tax planning centre

Las Palmas de Gran Canaria occupies a unique position in the Spanish fiscal geography. As the principal city of the Canary Islands — an EU outermost region with a constitutionally recognised distinct economic and fiscal regime (Régimen Económico Fiscal de Canarias, REF) — Las Palmas offers a combination of tax advantages that are unavailable anywhere else in Spain or in most of Europe.

The most significant of these advantages is the Zona Especial Canaria (ZEC): a 4% corporate income tax rate for qualifying entities, valid under EU State Aid authorisation through 31 December 2026. For businesses that can demonstrate genuine economic activity in Las Palmas — management presence, employment, and investment — the ZEC regime offers an IS rate that compares favourably with Ireland’s 12.5% headline rate and is significantly below the EU average.

Beyond ZEC, Las Palmas-based businesses benefit from: IGIC (the local equivalent of VAT) at a general rate of 7% compared to mainland IVA at 21%, RIC (Reserva para Inversiones en Canarias) deductions of up to 90% of undistributed profits for reinvestment in Canary Islands assets, and AIEM protections for certain locally produced goods.

Who benefits most from Las Palmas tax structures

The Las Palmas tax ecosystem is particularly advantageous for:

International trading companies and service businesses: entities with a significant proportion of international income — whether from services exported to non-Spanish clients, trading of goods through the Canary Islands free port infrastructure, or financial and IP structures with an international dimension — can achieve very low effective IS rates through ZEC combined with the REF framework.

Digital economy and remote-work businesses: the Startup Law digital nomad visa and the Ley Beckham regime for remote workers have made the Canary Islands attractive for internationally mobile professionals and founders. The combination of Ley Beckham (24% flat IRNR rate for qualifying individuals) and ZEC (4% IS for qualifying companies) creates a genuinely competitive fiscal environment for digital economy businesses establishing European operations.

Real estate investment vehicles: the Canary Islands real estate market — driven by tourism and international buyer demand — combined with IGIC advantages and REF planning tools creates opportunities for structuring real estate investments tax-efficiently from Las Palmas.

Maritime and logistics businesses: the Canary Islands’ strategic location as a transshipment hub between Europe, Africa, and the Americas, combined with REF incentives for maritime activity, makes Las Palmas attractive for shipping, logistics, and bunkering businesses.

Our Las Palmas team

Our Las Palmas office provides the full advisory service — ZEC registration and compliance, corporate tax planning, international tax structuring, accounting, payroll, and corporate secretarial — with direct coordination with our Madrid, Málaga, and Marbella teams for transactions and structures with a mainland or international dimension.

We also provide Ley Beckham advisory for individuals relocating to Las Palmas, and non-resident tax compliance for international investors with Canary Islands property or business interests.

ZEC deadline: the 2026 urgency

The current ZEC authorisation expires on 31 December 2026. Entities that register before that date will continue to benefit from the 4% rate for the duration of their registration (typically up to 20 years from registration, subject to ongoing compliance). Entities that miss the current window must await the outcome of the extension authorisation process — which, while expected, is not guaranteed and may involve modified conditions.

For businesses considering ZEC registration, acting in 2026 is materially better than deferring. Our ZEC advisory process — from initial feasibility assessment to completed registration — typically takes three to six months.

Contact our Las Palmas office for a ZEC eligibility assessment and REF planning consultation.