For U.S. citizens and other U.S. taxpayers living in Spain, the annual tax compliance process can be considerably more complex than dealing with the tax system of just one country. Taxpayers may have filing and reporting obligations in both Spain and the United States, with different deadlines, different forms and different rules governing what income, assets and financial accounts must be reported. Keeping track of these obligations throughout the year is therefore an important part of effective cross-border tax planning.

To help taxpayers anticipate the principal filing dates and organize their documentation in advance, US Tax Consultants has prepared the following practical annual tax calendar for individuals with tax obligations in both Spain and the United States. The calendar brings together some of the most common annual compliance requirements encountered by U.S. taxpayers residing in Spain and provides a simple reference for planning the tax year.

On the Spanish side, these obligations may include Modelo 720, the information return applicable in certain circumstances to assets and rights held outside Spain, as well as Modelo 100, the Spanish Individual Income Tax Return (IRPF). On the U.S. side, taxpayers may need to prepare Form 1040, the U.S. Federal Individual Income Tax Return, together with other international information returns depending on their individual circumstances. Many taxpayers residing in Spain may also have an FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) filing obligation in relation to financial accounts maintained outside the United States.

One of the most important aspects of planning for these filings is understanding the difference between a statutory filing deadline and a recommended document submission date. The filing deadlines in the calendar are the dates applicable to the corresponding filing, while the document submission dates are practical deadlines recommended by US Tax Consultants. They are intentionally earlier so that sufficient time is available to review the information received, identify missing documents, reconcile information where necessary and consider potential issues arising from the interaction between the Spanish and U.S. tax systems.

Providing information early is particularly important in cross-border cases because the same item may have reporting consequences in both countries. Bank and investment accounts, pensions, investment income, capital gains and foreign assets are examples of areas where information may need to be considered from both a Spanish and a U.S. tax perspective. Coordinating the preparation of the two sets of filings can help identify inconsistencies before returns are submitted.

For the same reason, US Tax Consultants recommends that clients provide their FBAR information together with the documentation for preparation of Form 1040, even though the FBAR may have a later filing deadline. Reviewing the information simultaneously allows foreign financial accounts and the U.S. income tax return to be considered as part of the same annual compliance process.

The calendar below is therefore intended not simply as a list of tax deadlines, but as a practical planning tool. By identifying the relevant obligations early and gathering the necessary documentation well in advance, taxpayers can make the annual Spain-U.S. tax compliance process more orderly and reduce the risk of last-minute issues.

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Form / Authority	Country	Recommended docs submission date	Filing deadline	Tax obligation
Modelo 720 / Spanish Tax Agency AEAT	Spain	By March 1	March 31	Information return for certain assets and rights held outside Spain, if applicable
Modelo 100 / Spanish Tax Agency AEAT	Spain	By May 1	June 30	Spanish Individual Income Tax Return
Form 1040 / IRS	USA	By May 1	June 15	U.S. Federal Individual Income Tax Return for qualifying U.S. citizens living abroad
FBAR / FinCEN Form 114	USA	By May 1, together with the Form 1040 information	October 15	Report of foreign financial accounts. Please provide the maximum annual balance of each non-U.S. financial account together with the information required to prepare Form 1040
Form 1040 / IRS	USA	By September 1	October 15	Extended deadline for Form 1040, when the appropriate extension has been obtained
The recommended document submission dates shown in this workbook are recommended internal deadlines, not statutory filing deadlines. They are intended to allow sufficient time to review the information, request any missing documentation, and prepare the corresponding filings. For Form 1040, we recommend providing the FBAR information at the same time, even though the FBAR has a later filing deadline. This allows the U.S. tax return and foreign account information to be prepared and reviewed together.

For more information, you can contact us US Tax Consultants. Do not hesitate to contact us by phone at +34 915 194 392, by email at info@ustaxconsultans.es , or through a free consultation, which can be booked via the “Book a free appointment” link on our website.

Olga Generalova – COO

US Tax Consultants