Sanción from Hacienda in English: A Spanish Tax Penalty

A sanción is a tax penalty. It comes in a procedure of its own, after the tax itself was corrected — within six months of a liquidación — or after a return was filed late following a requerimiento. Two letters are common: the propuesta de sanción (the proposal, with 15 days to object) and the acuerdo de imposición de sanción (the decision, with the amount to pay).

Typical penalties

• A return not filed on time, with no tax lost: a fixed €200 — halved to €100 when you filed late on your own, before any letter came. (Filed late on your own with tax to pay, there is no penalty but a surcharge instead.)
• Tax left unpaid: 50% of the unpaid amount in minor cases, up to 100% or 150% when income was hidden or false documents were used.
• An incomplete or wrong return with no tax lost: €150.

The reductions

• 30% when you agreed with the correction of the tax (conformidad) — for penalties on unpaid tax only, and lost if you later appeal the tax.
• 40% of what remains when you pay the whole penalty within its period and appeal neither the tax nor the penalty.

The date to pay

The decision follows the rule for tax bills: notified between the 1st and the 15th → pay by the 20th of the next month; between the 16th and the end → by the 5th of the second month after. Enter the day you received it on this page and the site counts the date. Unpaid, the penalty goes to enforcement with a surcharge.

Appealing

You can appeal within one month — a recurso de reposición or a claim to the Tribunal Económico-Administrativo. An appeal made in time suspends the penalty automatically, without a guarantee, until it is decided, but the 40% reduction is lost. A penalty needs fault, not just a wrong figure: a reasonable reading of an unclear rule, or letters that went to an old address, are common grounds. A tax lawyer or adviser can weigh an appeal against the discount.