Five countries · selling
Selling a property as a non-resident: tax in France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the UK
What a non-resident pays and files when selling a home in France, Germany, Spain, Italy or the UK: rates, holding periods, withholding and deadlines, checked 28 October 2026.
Updated · Yann Lephay
Direct answer
Our reading: how long you held the property matters more than the rate. Germany does not tax a private sale after ten years, Italy after five (ten if Superbonus works ended within that time), and France exempts the gain from income tax after 22 years and from social charges after 30. Spain and the UK tax the gain whatever the holding period (Spain keeps only a transitional reduction for property bought before 1995; the UK taxes non-residents on residential gains since April 2015), and both expect a filing within weeks of the sale: 60 days in the UK, one month plus three in Spain. Your country of residence may tax the same gain too.
Tax on a non-resident individual's sale of a home (checked 28 October 2026)
| Country | When a gain is taxed | Rate | Filing and payment | Watch out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | Always, with holding-period allowances: 6% a year from year 6 to 21 and 4% in year 22 for income tax (exempt after 22 years); 1.65% a year from year 6 to 21, 1.60% in year 22 and 9% a year after for social charges (exempt after 30 years) | 19% plus social charges of 17.2%, or a 7.5% solidarity levy if you are covered by an EEA, Swiss or UK social security scheme; plus a surcharge of 2% to 6% of the whole gain when the taxable gain exceeds €50,000 (CGI art. 1609 nonies G) | Form 2048-IMM-SD, through the notary at the sale | A fiscal representative is required unless you live in the EU, Iceland or Norway, the price is €150,000 or less per seller, or the gain is fully exempt by holding period |
| Germany | Only if sold within ten years of acquisition (private sale, § 23 EStG); never if used only as your own home, or as your home in the year of sale and the two years before | Added to your German taxable income for non-residents (§ 49 EStG) and taxed on the scale | German return for non-residents (ESt 1 C) | After ten years the sale is outside German income tax |
| Spain | Always; transitional reduction only for property bought before 31 December 1994 | 19% | The buyer withholds 3% of the price and pays it with Modelo 211 within one month; you file Modelo 210 within three months after that month, whatever the result | The 3% is a payment on account: if it exceeds the tax, you claim the excess back |
| Italy | If sold within five years of purchase or construction; also, since 2024, if Superbonus works (art. 119 DL 34/2020) on the property ended no more than ten years before the sale. Never for inherited property or a home that was the main residence of you or your family for most of the relevant period | Taxed as other income (redditi diversi) in your Italian return | Redditi PF for non-residents | We did not verify the current rate of the optional substitute tax collected by the notary: ask before signing |
| United Kingdom | Non-residents pay on UK land and property; for homes, gains since April 2015 (rebasing) | 18% within the basic rate band, 24% above, after a £3,000 allowance (2026-27) | Report through a Capital Gains Tax on UK property account within 60 days of completion | Report even when there is no tax to pay |
Who this page is for
For: an individual who lives abroad and sells a home they own directly in one of these five countries. Not for: companies, trusts, sellers whose tax residence is disputed, builders and dealers, and land with development value. Those cases need a local adviser before the deed is signed.
Example: the same gain in five countries
Our illustration, not a calculation of your tax. A seller living in Switzerland realises a gain of €100,000 on a flat bought seven years ago. In Germany and Italy the timing alone decides: inside ten years Germany taxes it, while Italy, past five years, does not. In France the seller gets 12% of income-tax allowance (two years beyond the fifth) and pays 19% on the remaining €88,000, plus the 2% surcharge on gains above €50,000 (€1,760), plus the 7.5% solidarity levy (no CSG or CRDS) if covered by a Swiss scheme. In Spain the buyer keeps 3% of the price at completion and the seller settles 19% of the gain with Modelo 210. A UK flat would need a report within 60 days.
Spain: use the dedicated desk
Spain's sale workflow (Modelo 211 withholding, Modelo 210 on the gain, refund of excess withholding) is covered in Spanish by Modelo 210 Desk, including what its calculator does not handle. The Atlas does not duplicate it.
Your home country
Most residence countries also tax a gain made abroad and give a credit for the foreign tax, under their own rules and any tax treaty. Check how your country of residence treats the sale before you rely on a figure from this table.
Hard stop
Stop if the seller is a company or trust, if residence is uncertain, if the property was partly your main home or partly let, if you are selling a share inherited with others, or if a fiscal representative or a substitute-tax election is needed at the notary. Those choices are made before signing and need a local professional.
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