Americans in Spain typically need to file two sets of tax declarations – one in the US and one in Spain. They may also have to declare any foreign bank accounts.
If you are an American living in Spain, you must still file tax declarations in the US as taxation is based in citizenship rather than residency.
Spain also requires residents to complete its annual Spanish income tax declaration (declaración de la renta), if they meet certain requirements. This typically means earning over €22,000 annually from a single employer or being self employed, among other factors. Read our article to find out all the requirements.
For this reason, almost all Americans living in Spain will end up completing two tax declarations each year.
One important thing to keep in mind is that you are also required to declare foreign bank accounts.
US tax declaration
One of the most common issues for Americans outside the US involves the FBAR (Foreign Bank Account Report), a US requirement designed to prevent the use of overseas accounts for illicit financial activity.
Under US rules, individuals must file an FBAR if the combined value of their foreign accounts – including bank accounts in Spain – exceeds $10,000 at any point during the year, regardless of how many accounts they hold.
This obligation goes beyond standard bank accounts too. It can also include brokerage accounts, certain private pensions, mutual funds, trusts and joint accounts. Find more details here.
For each account abroad over this amount you must report:
- Name on the account
- Account number
- Name and address of the foreign bank
- Type of account
- Maximum value during the year
READ ALSO: Do I have to pay taxes in Spain if I don’t work?
If you have forgotten to do this or this was a rule that you weren’t aware of, there are several things you can do to rectify the situation.
Streamlined procedure – The streamlined filing compliance procedures are designed for non-wilful conduct. This means in situations where your failure to report was due to a lack of awareness rather than intentional wrongdoing.
Under this procedure, you typically need to submit three years of amended federal tax returns and six years of FBARs.
FBAR delinquency procedures – Another option is the FBAR delinquency procedures, where you file the missing reports for the past six years. Even for non-wilful situations, there may be penalties, but these programmes offer a structured way to come back into compliance.
The IRS website states: “The IRS will not impose a penalty for the failure to file the delinquent FBARs if you properly reported on your US tax returns, and paid all tax on, the income from the foreign financial accounts reported on the delinquent FBAR”.
The FBAR has a standard deadline of April 15th each year, but there’s an automatic extension to October 15th if you live abroad. You will not suffer penalties for lateness.
It’s important to be aware, however, that failure to declare your foreign accounts can still be costly. Non-wilful violations may result in civil penalties of up to $10,000 per breach, while wilful violations can trigger far steeper penalties of $100,000 or 50 percent of the account balance.
READ ALSO: What digital nomads need to know about Spain’s annual income tax declaration
What about Spanish tax obligations?
Americans living in Spain are also required to declare foreign accounts – including those held in the US.
If the total amount of assets you hold abroad, including in bank savings and deposit accounts, exceeds €50,000 you must declare this to the Spanish tax authorities.
To do this you will need to complete the Modelo 720.
The form must be filed online between January 1st and March 31st relating to the assets held abroad in the last calendar year, so the deadline for 2026 has already passed.
You are not required to complete the Modelo 720 every year, but you will need to complete it again if your assets have changed during the course of the last calendar year, for example if they have increased by more than €20,000 or you sold or purchased property abroad.
If you fail to declare them, you could be fined. It’s €20 for each item of information that should have been included in the declaration but wasn’t, with a minimum penalty of €300 and a maximum of €20,000.
READ ALSO: Do I need to declare foreign assets to Spain by March 31st 2026?
What about on the annual income tax return?
On your yearly declaración de la renta (income tax return), you must declare the interest you earned on money held in your US or other foreign bank accounts, as well as other income earned that went straight into your US or foreign accounts that you haven’t yet declared here.
This could be rent for a property you own abroad for example or dividends from a foreign company.
The deadline for this is June 30th 2026.
With additional reporting by Esme Fox.
Our reporters at The Local are not tax experts, so if you’re unsure about anything regarding filing your returns or foreign accounts either in Spain or the US, it’s important that you contact a gestor, accountant or tax professional.
