Webinar: “Tax changes in Spain – Opportunities and Challenges in wealth planning for high net worth clients”
On Thursday November 19th, the Official Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Belgium and Luxembourg, in collaboration with its member company The OneLife Company, organised a webinar on “Tax changes in Spain – Opportunities and Challenges in wealth planning for high net worth clients”, which was attended by more than a hundred of professionals focused on wealth management.
Jose Luis Rodríguez Álvarez, Vice-president of the Chamber, introduced the webinar by thanking the collaboration of OneLife and the participation of the keynote speakers.
Then, Antonio Corpas, CEO of OneLife, highlighted the company’s commitment to the Spanish market in the life insurance sector, highlighting the unit-linked solutions. He also took the opportunity to introduce the team that leads the Spanish market, headed by José Manuel Tara, Luis de la Infiesta and Gonzalo García Pérez. This was followed by a virtual round table discussion with three recognised experts in wealth management in Spain, led and moderated by Gonzalo García.
Enrique López de Ceballos, Partner of the Tax Department of Eversheds Sutherland, began the debate by presenting the latest news and tax changes coming up in Spain, analysing their possible impact on high net worth individuals. Among others, he analysed the possible increase in wealth tax or the change in the tax treatment of SOCIMIS and SICAVS.
Afterwards, Carlos Ferrer, Cuatrecasas’ Partner, continued sharing his thoughts on the tax changes mentioned by López de Ceballos. He highlighted the insecurity that these produce in investors and how one of the main qualities sought by international investors is stability and legal security, so that frequent changes can ultimately lead to a relocation of capital.
Javier Seijo, Head of Corporate Tax at EY Law, added the possibility of a great increase in bureaucracy as a result of the new regulations and referred to Luxembourg as an example in terms of channelling investments due to its great stability and creativity in providing solutions for large investors.
The speakers mentioned beneficial products and solutions for wealth planning, such as life insurance or unit-linked solutions.
During the Q&A session, the attendees were able to express their doubts and comments on many issues of interest. Questions such as the special tax deferral transfer regime or whether the new rules will have a transitional regime after their adoption were discussed.
The webinar was organised within the framework of the Spanish Financial Forum, a committee of the Chamber focused on the financial services industry.