Modelo 720 Spain: foreign assets declaration and Modelo 721

October 6, 2026

Modelo 720 Spain: key points

Modelo 720 is an annual information return, not a tax: Spanish tax residents report foreign accounts, securities and insurance, and real estate when any one of those three categories exceeds €50,000 at 31 December.
For bank accounts, the €50,000 test applies to the 31 December balances and to the last-quarter average, and exceeding either one means all foreign accounts are reported.
The return is filed online from 1 January to 31 March, and again only if a category rises by more than €20,000 or a reported asset is sold.
A late or missing return costs €20 per datum, minimum €300 and maximum €20,000 (art. 198 of the Ley General Tributaria), because Ley 5/2022 repealed the old €5,000 per item and 150% fine in 2022.
Modelo 721 is a separate return for crypto-assets held with a non-Spanish custodian that keeps the private keys, with the same €50,000 threshold and window, and self-custody wallets are not reportable.
The AEAT says people taxed under the Beckham regime do not file Modelo 720, although tax-resident family members may, and non-residents are outside the obligation.
Rights in a UK pension plan are not reportable before a contingency occurs, according to Spanish tax directorate ruling V0890-24, unless the plan has a life insurance style surrender right.

A return about what you own abroad, with penalties rewritten in 2022

Modelo 720 is the declaration of assets and rights located abroad that Spanish tax residents file with the Agencia Tributaria (AEAT). It reports holdings and calculates no tax. Its basis is additional provision 18 of the Ley General Tributaria, developed by the Reglamento General de gestión e inspección tributaria (RGAT). Modelo 721 is the equivalent return for crypto-assets held abroad.

This post covers Spanish law and the Valencian practice of Delaguía y Luzón. UK or US taxpayers should coordinate their UK or US filings with their home-country adviser, because we do not give UK or US tax advice.

Who must file Modelo 720

The obligation falls on individuals and companies that are tax resident in Spain, and on permanent establishments of non-resident entities, under art. 42 bis.1 RGAT. An individual is resident under art. 9.1 of the personal income tax law (LIRPF) with more than 183 days in Spain in the calendar year, or the main base of activities or economic interests there.

The AEAT assesses residence for the year the return covers. Someone who becomes resident in 2026 tests their assets at 31 December 2026 and files between 1 January and 31 March 2027. See tax residency after a move to Spain.

For accounts the duty also reaches authorised signatories, beneficiaries and people with power of disposal. Where an asset has several holders, each reports the full value and their percentage.

Who is outside the obligation

People who are not tax resident in Spain. The duty is also limited to assets located abroad, so Spanish assets are not reported.
Taxpayers under the Beckham regime. The AEAT’s frequently asked questions answer “No” for a person taxed under art. 93 LIRPF, but the regime does not extend to family members, who may have to file if tax resident. The regime lasts for the year of arrival and five more years (art. 93.1 LIRPF), and the first year after it ends should be confirmed with the firm. See our Beckham Law guide.

The three categories and the €50,000 threshold

Each category is a separate obligation, tested against €50,000 on its own. Once the limit is exceeded, every item in that category is reported. A person with €45,000 in foreign accounts and €60,000 in foreign property reports the property and nothing else.

Category	What is reported	How the €50,000 test works
Bank accounts (art. 42 bis)	Current, savings, term deposit and credit accounts, and any other money account at a bank outside Spain	The 31 December balances and the last-quarter average are each tested. If either exceeds €50,000, all accounts are reported
Securities, funds, insurance and annuities (art. 42 ter)	Shares, debt securities, assets in trusts, units in foreign investment funds, life or disability insurance and annuities	The combined value at 31 December is tested, using wealth tax valuation rules or the market price
Real estate (art. 54 bis)	Property and rights over property abroad, including timeshare, usufruct and bare ownership	The combined acquisition value is tested, and purchase taxes and costs are included

The AEAT also says exchange-traded funds are reported as units in foreign investment institutions, while physical cash, works of art, boats, physical gold, jewellery and share options are not.

When Modelo 720 is filed and when it is filed again

The window runs from 1 January to 31 March of the year after the one the information refers to, under art. 42 bis.5 RGAT and the matching paragraphs of arts. 42 ter and 54 bis. The return for 31 December 2025 was due by 31 March 2026, and the AEAT’s calendar adds four calendar days if a technical problem blocked internet filing. The 2027 window is the same under the RGAT.

After the first return, you file again only if a category exceeds, by more than €20,000, the value that triggered your last return, or if you lose an asset you reported. If your last return reported €80,000 of accounts, a balance of €95,000 needs no new return and €101,000 does. The AEAT applies the rise per category. Our calendar of Spanish tax deadlines shows where the window sits.

Penalties after Ley 5/2022 and the Court of Justice ruling

In Case C-788/19, decided on 27 January 2022, the Court of Justice criticised the unlimited taxation of undeclared assets as unjustified capital gains, the 150% fine and uncapped flat-rate fines. The operative part of the judgment concludes:

the Kingdom of Spain has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 63 TFEU and Article 40 of the Agreement on the European Economic Area.

Ley 5/2022, in force since 11 March 2022, rewrote additional provision 18 of the Ley General Tributaria, which no longer contains the fixed penalties of €5,000 per datum with a €10,000 minimum, and repealed the provisions of Ley 7/2012 that set the 150% fine. Modelo 720 now follows the general penalty rules, which the AEAT applies separately to each of the three obligations:

Late or missing return: art. 198 LGT sets €20 per datum or set of data for one person or entity, with a minimum of €300 and a maximum of €20,000, halved if the return is filed late without a prior request from the tax authority.
Incomplete, inaccurate or false return: art. 199 LGT sets €200 per datum for non-monetary data and up to 2% of the amounts wrongly declared or omitted, with a minimum of €500, for monetary data.

Separately, art. 39 LIRPF, as rewritten by Ley 5/2022, treats assets that do not match your declared income or wealth as unjustified gains in the year they come to light, unless you prove earlier ownership. Which article applies to your case, and how a late voluntary filing is treated, depends on the facts, so contact the firm first. See also how to avoid a tax inspection in Spain.

Modelo 721 for crypto-assets held abroad

Modelo 721 comes from art. 42 quater RGAT and Orden HFP/886/2023, with a first return for 2023. It is due when three conditions are met:

you are tax resident in Spain and hold virtual currencies, or have power of disposal over them, at 31 December;
a person or entity that safeguards private cryptographic keys for third parties, or maintains, stores and transfers virtual currencies, holds the coins;
that custodian is located abroad, meaning it is not subject to the Spanish reporting duty of additional provision 13.6 LIRPF.

The AEAT’s questions on Modelo 721 add that a hot or cold wallet makes no difference: coins in a wallet where you keep the private keys are not counted.

The threshold is €50,000 in total at 31 December, valued in euros at the 31 December price on the main trading platforms or price trackers, or by a reasonable estimate, and the return states the price used. A later return follows only a rise of more than €20,000. The penalty rules above apply in the same way, and crypto gains are taxed in your Modelo 100 whether or not Modelo 721 is due. See our posts on cryptocurrency in Spain and international inheritances.

UK pensions, ISAs and US accounts

UK pension plans

In binding ruling V0890-24, the Spanish tax directorate (DGT) held that rights in a pension plan abroad fall in no Modelo 720 category until a contingency covered by the plan occurs, unless the plan lets the holder exercise a surrender right like a life insurance policy. After a contingency, the beneficiary reports the rights at surrender value or as an annuity.

The AEAT states the same criterion, but the ruling concerned one UK plan, so confirm with the firm how it applies to your SIPP, workplace pension, annuity or lump sum. See British expats in Spain after Brexit.

UK ISAs

Art. 42 bis covers any money account or deposit, whatever its name, and art. 42 ter covers shares, bonds and fund units. We have found no AEAT or DGT statement on the ISA wrapper by name, so we do not say whether a cash or a stocks and shares ISA is reportable. Contact the firm to confirm. See UK ISAs and Spanish tax residency.

US accounts, 401(k) and IRA

A US bank account is a foreign account under art. 42 bis, and securities or funds at a US broker fall under art. 42 ter. A 401(k) or IRA is different: the DGT and AEAT criterion is worded for foreign pension plans generally, and we have found no ruling that classifies a 401(k), traditional IRA or Roth IRA. Contact the firm before deciding whether yours is reported.

Americans may also have US duties: the IRS explains that a US person must file an FBAR when foreign financial accounts exceeded $10,000 in aggregate at any time in the year, a matter for your US adviser. See US funds used to buy property in Spain and owning a US LLC while living in Spain.

Modelo 720 and the Modelo 100 income tax return

Modelo 720 replaces nothing in your Modelo 100, the annual income tax return. Spanish residents are taxed on worldwide income, as the DGT report on Modelo 720 notes, so interest, dividends and gains from foreign assets are declared in the year they arise. Foreign tax paid is deductible under art. 80 LIRPF, up to the lower of the tax paid abroad and the effective average rate applied to that income.

For the UK side, see UK Spain double taxation and declaring UK income as a Spanish resident.

Two examples: a British and an American new resident

A British new resident

A British retiree moves to Valencia in February 2025 and is tax resident for 2025. At 31 December 2025 the retiree has UK accounts of €38,000 (average also below €50,000), a UK flat bought for €190,000 including purchase taxes and costs, and a workplace pension not yet in payment.

Accounts: both tests are below €50,000, so nothing is reported.
Property: €190,000 exceeds €50,000, so the flat is reported between 1 January and 31 March 2026.
Pension: not reported before a contingency, per ruling V0890-24.
Modelo 100: rent from the flat is declared in Spain, and UK treatment is for the UK adviser.

An American new resident

An American moves to Valencia in 2025 and is tax resident for 2025. At 31 December 2025 the US bank accounts hold €48,000, with a last-quarter average of €62,000. The American also has exchange-traded funds worth €35,000 at a US broker, a 401(k) and €20,000 of crypto-assets on a US exchange.

Accounts: the average exceeds €50,000, so all the US accounts are reported although the year-end balance does not.
Funds and crypto-assets: €35,000 and €20,000 are below their €50,000 limits, so nothing is reported and no Modelo 721 is due.
401(k) and FBAR: the 401(k) is a classification point for a case review, and any FBAR is for the US adviser.

What changed in 2025 and 2026

The thresholds, filing window and penalties above are those of the consolidated texts at 6 October 2026. Since 2025:

AEAT answers, updated to February 2025: a new answer says a foreign account reported before and then migrated to a bank established in Spain no longer has to be reported, and if the migration ends your ownership of the original account, that closure is reported.
Savings tax rate: on the scale of arts. 66 and 76 LIRPF, the top rate for savings income rose to 30% on 1 January 2025 under Ley 7/2024.
Crypto controls: Directive (EU) 2023/2226 (DAC8) applies from 1 January 2026, and the AEAT’s 2026 control plan says it will step up checks on crypto holders who have not declared gains, using Modelos 172, 173 and 721.

One change is pending. The AEAT put a draft order to public consultation on 10 March 2026 for a new Modelo 721 on “crypto-assets located abroad”, first applying to 2026 information filed from 2027, with the same 1 January to 31 March window. As at 6 October 2026 we have not found a final order in the BOE, so the current rules remain in force.

Modelo 720 and 721 advice from the Valencia office

Delaguía y Luzón advises on Modelo 720 and 721 from its Valencia office, and has done so since 1960. We can review whether an asset is reportable, check a return before filing, or look at a late filing. For points that depend on your own facts, such as a UK pension, an ISA, a 401(k) or the first year after the Beckham regime, contact Félix Delaguía.

Phone: +34 963 74 16 57

Email: felix.delaguia@delaguialuzon.com

Contact the firm about Modelo 720 or 721

Frequently asked questions about Modelo 720 and 721

Is a UK pension reportable on Modelo 720?

Not before a contingency under the plan occurs, according to ruling V0890-24, unless the plan has a life insurance style surrender right. Contact the firm to confirm how this applies to your scheme.

Are UK ISAs, a 401(k) or an IRA reportable?

We have found no AEAT or DGT statement that classifies an ISA, a 401(k) or an IRA, so we do not state how they are treated. Contact the firm to confirm your case.

Do I have to file again every year?

No. Only if a category has risen by more than €20,000 over the value of your last return, or you have lost a reported asset.

What is the penalty for filing late or not filing?

Art. 198 of the Ley General Tributaria sets €20 per datum, with a minimum of €300 and a maximum of €20,000, halved if you file late without a prior request from the tax authority. Which article applies to you depends on the facts, so contact the firm before filing late.