Spanish transfer tax (ITPAJD): paying with bitcoin

Paying with bitcoin has a counterintuitive consequence: for Spanish tax law, whoever pays with bitcoin hands over an asset rather than money, so the transaction is characterised as a barter. When the deal is closed between private individuals, that characterisation leads to Spanish transfer tax (ITPAJD) and splits the transaction in two: two taxed transfers instead of a single sale, each with its own taxable base and its own taxpayer.

The analyses in this section develop this scheme and its variants: the purchase of real estate paid for in cryptocurrency, differences in value between the two sides and the border with VAT when one of the parties is a business.