It is estimated that approximately 40% of companies incorporated in Spain do not carry out economic activity, meaning they do not incur expenses or generate income.
This situation has led the tax agency to take action. Between 2022 and 2024, the Tax Agency revoked the NIF (Tax Identification Number) of more than 900,000 companies in this situation of inactivity. Every year, almost 50,000 new companies are discovered that do not carry out any activity.
The Treasury considers a company to be inactive when it does not earn income or incur expenses for three consecutive fiscal years and does not comply with its obligations, specifically, does not file corporate tax or deposit its annual accounts with the Commercial Registry.
The figure may even be higher, as there are many companies that do not carry out any activity but do comply with their tax obligations. In these cases, the tax agency does not revoke the NIF (Tax Identification Number) of these companies that comply with their obligations.
The General Council of Economists states that 23.61% of corporate tax self-assessments filed correspond to companies that are inactive, but even if they are not active, they still file their corporate tax return.
Therefore, as mentioned above, the number of inactive companies may be higher, considering companies that are inactive but comply with their obligations. However, for now, the AEAT only revokes the NIF (Tax Identification Number) of companies that do not operate or comply with their tax obligations for three consecutive years.
Although the Treasury does not provide official data by autonomous community, some studies indicate the following approximate distribution of inactive companies:
- Community of Madrid: 25% of inactive companies.
- Community of Catalonia: 17% of inactive companies.
- Community of Valencia: 10% of inactive companies.
To avoid the withdrawal of the NIF (Tax Identification Number) by the AEAT (Spanish Tax Agency), companies without activity must comply with the following obligations:
- Filing of Corporate Income Tax, even when the profit for the year is zero or negative.
- Filing of the annual accounts with the Commercial Registry.
Failure to comply with these obligations may lead to the revocation of the NIF (Tax Identification Number), in addition to legal consequences that we will discuss later.
The withdrawal of the NIF is a significant problem since, without it, the company cannot carry out transactions or carry out any procedures, and may even be dissolved. In order to liquidate the company, the NIF must be reapplied for.
Furthermore, the revocation of the NIF (Tax Identification Number) carries significant legal consequences. Inactive companies that fail to comply with their tax obligations for three consecutive years may be subject to financial penalties. Specifically, failure to file annual accounts may be penalized with fines ranging from €1,200 to €60,000, depending on the company’s share capital.
Furthermore, failure to file corporate tax returns, even if the result is zero or negative, carries a penalty of €100 for each unfiled return.
This policy is part of a strategy to control tax fraud. By cleaning up the business register, the Treasury aims to detect and eliminate so-called “ghost” companies, created solely for tax evasion purposes and which carry out no real economic activity.
