The Generalitat de Catalunya recorded a sharp rise in inheritance tax revenue, with collections from the Impuesto de Sucesiones y Donaciones up 32.1% in the first half of the year compared with the same period last year. The latest budget execution report shows the regional treasury took in €692 million from the tax between January and June, €168 million more than a year earlier. The increase comes as the Catalan government continues to apply stricter tax rules for wealthier heirs, introduced in 2020 and adding to the fiscal pressure on larger inheritances.
June alone brought in €126 million from inheritance and gift taxes, a 66% year-on-year increase for the month. Officials attribute the growth to strong financial markets, with the Ibex reaching record highs, and soaring real estate prices. The upward trend in both sectors has directly benefited the Generalitat's finances, the budget report says.
Catalonia’s Law 19/2010 of 7 June sets the regional tax structure. It also allows a 95% reduction in the taxable base for qualifying transfers of family businesses, provided statutory requirements are met. These cover economic activity and family ownership, while also requiring the beneficiary to meet management and remuneration rules and retain the assets. The reduction applies to business-connected assets, not automatically to everything held by a family company. In its analysis of Catalan case law, Uría Menéndez explains how the distinction between operating assets and investment holdings can affect the value eligible for relief.
That distinction has come under scrutiny in recent administrative and judicial decisions. On 16 June 2026, the Tribunal Superior de Justícia de Catalunya ruled in case rec. 992/2024 on the inheritance of shares in a family-business structure. The tax authority had challenged the 95% reduction for cash and an investment-fund stake it considered insufficiently connected to the company’s economic activity. The TEAR de Cataluña later issued decisions dated 10 December 2025 and 27 April 2026, revising an approach set out in a ruling of 18 November 2024. The Direcció General de Tributs de la Generalitat de Catalunya issued binding consultation V85/bis23 on 15 May 2025, correcting its earlier consultation V85/23, dated 25 October 2024. These proceedings concern how assets are classified, not a blanket change that applies identically to every inheritance.
Despite calls from business groups to cut inheritance taxes in line with regions governed by the Partido Popular, the Catalan administration has kept its current approach. The government initially projected €1.059 billion in inheritance tax revenue for the year; collections could exceed that target if the current pace holds. Regional differences sharpen the policy debate: the Balearic Islands abolished inheritance tax on transfers between close relatives. A report by elDiario.es said the measure had benefited nearly 40,000 families, with claimed savings of up to €1.031 billion over three years. Citing Balearic tax-agency data, the same report said 93 of the wealthiest declarants accounted for €392 million of €460 million in foregone revenue.
Property transaction taxes remain the Generalitat's largest direct source of income. In the first half of the year, the Impuesto de Transmisiones Patrimoniales, which mainly applies to second-hand home sales, generated €1.314 billion, up 9.4% from a year earlier. The Impuesto de Actos Jurídicos Documentados, a tax linked to notarial transactions, rose 17.6% to €849 million. A new tax on financial institutions' interest and commission income added €290 million, nearly 79% of its annual forecast of €366 million.
Spain manages inheritance and gift taxes at the regional level, producing impressive differences in rates and deductions across autonomous communities. Catalonia has traditionally charged higher rates than regions such as Madrid or Andalusia, where tax relief is more generous. The rise in collections reflects both strong local asset markets and regulatory changes. As property values and financial assets rise, these taxes remain an impressive source of revenue for the Catalan budget. Disputes over the treatment of business assets and investment holdings add to calls for lower levies on families and companies.
