One of the most common worries among our clients under Spain’s special impatriates’ regime — better known as the “Beckham Law” — is losing that tax benefit if their professional situation in Spain changes. A recent ruling from Spain’s Directorate-General for Taxes (DGT) offers reassurance in one of the most frequent scenarios: reducing your working hours.
WHAT THE IMPATRIATES’ REGIME REQUIRES
Article 93 of Spain’s Personal Income Tax Law allows people who move their tax residence to Spain for work to be taxed, in the year of the move and the following five years, under a special regime similar to that of non-residents, with a flat rate far more favourable than the general income tax scale. To qualify for and keep this regime, a number of legal requirements must be met, including some linked to the move itself and the job that triggered it.
This raises a common question: what happens if the terms of the job that brought you to Spain later change?
THE DGT’S POSITION
Under binding ruling V1374-26, of 4 June 2026, the DGT has confirmed that the impatriates’ regime can be kept even if the hours of the job that originally triggered the move to Spain are reduced. Combining that original job with remote work for a foreign company does not, on its own, mean exclusion from the regime. Nor does later becoming a director of another Spanish company, provided the remaining legal requirements of Article 93 continue to be met.
This is a meaningful clarification: it confirms that the impatriates’ regime does not require an unchanging, exclusive dedication to the original role. It allows for a degree of professional flexibility without losing the tax benefit, as long as the legal boundaries are respected.
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR YOU
If you moved to Spain under the Beckham Law and are now considering reducing your hours, combining your role with other remote work, or taking on a director’s position at another Spanish company, this is good news: you won’t automatically lose the special regime. But “provided the legal requirements are met” is not just a formality — each case needs to be reviewed carefully, because a poorly structured change could still put the benefit at risk.
Before making any decisions about your working arrangements in Spain, it’s worth reviewing your specific situation with an advisor who knows the impatriates’ regime in depth. Reducing the hours of your original role while it stays your main job is not the same as effectively replacing it with a different activity altogether — that distinction is what determines whether the regime survives, so it’s worth documenting each change as it happens rather than waiting for a later review by the Spanish tax authorities.
At EBF Consulting we support British and other international professionals throughout their move to Spain and in managing their Beckham Law status. If you’re considering a change to your working arrangements, talk to us before you make the move.
Official reference: Binding ruling from Spain’s Directorate-General for Taxes (DGT) V1374-26, of 4 June 2026.