Published April 2025 · 10 min read · By International Inheritance Spain
If you are based in San Antonio, Texas and you are a beneficiary — or settlor — of a trust that holds Spanish assets, or if you are inheriting from a trust that included Spanish property, you face a specific set of legal and tax obligations that most US attorneys are not equipped to advise on. Spanish law does not recognise trusts as legal entities, and the Spanish tax authority (AEAT) treats trust assets as if they were owned directly by the settlor or beneficiary.
This guide explains the specific obligations and risks for San Antonio-based trust beneficiaries and what steps to take to protect yourself.
The trust is a cornerstone of common law estate planning — but Spain is a civil law country that does not recognise the trust as a legal institution. Spain has not ratified the 1985 Hague Convention on the Recognition of Trusts. When AEAT encounters a trust structure, it applies a fiscal transparency doctrine:
This applies whether your trust is a UK family discretionary trust, a US Revocable Living Trust, an offshore trust from Jersey or the Cayman Islands, or any other common law trust structure.
The Revocable Living Trust (RLT) is one of the most common estate planning tools used by San Antonio families. Many San Antonio residents who also own property in Spain — or whose parents owned Spanish property — have structured their assets through a US RLT.
DGT Consultation V1948-16 confirmed the AEAT position: a US RLT is completely transparent for Spanish tax purposes. The settlor is treated as the direct owner of all trust assets for all Spanish taxes (IRPF/IRNR, Patrimonio, and ISD on death). The trust structure provides no Spanish tax benefit and creates no legal separation from a Spanish perspective.
On the settlor's death, the Spanish assets held within the US RLT must go through the Spanish inheritance process, with Spanish ISD applying to the beneficiaries. The trust deed does not substitute for a Spanish deed of acceptance of inheritance.
When a trust makes a distribution to a beneficiary with Spanish connections, Spanish ISD applies:
The tax varies significantly by the Spanish region where the assets are located. A distribution of €400,000 in Andalucía (Costa del Sol) attracts near-zero ISD for direct relatives. The same distribution in Cataluña could attract €40,000–€60,000 in Spanish ISD.
As a US person (citizen or green card holder), you have additional IRS reporting obligations when inheriting foreign assets from a trust:
Texas has no state income tax and no inheritance tax, which makes it a popular state for families managing international estates. However, Texas residents who are trust beneficiaries with Spanish connections have the same federal and Spanish tax obligations as residents of any other state. The IRS applies equally regardless of Texas's state-level tax environment.
If you need to deal with Spanish assets inherited through a trust structure, you can grant a power of attorney without travelling to Spain. From San Antonio, you can:
We prepare all documents in advance. Once you sign and return the power of attorney, we manage the entire Spanish process on your behalf.
If the trust distribution is triggered by the settlor's death, Spain's six-month ISD filing deadline runs from the date of death — not from the date the trust makes the actual distribution. For many discretionary trusts, this creates a timing problem: the trustee may take months to value, administer and distribute the estate, while the Spanish clock is already running.
Contact us immediately when a settlor with Spanish assets dies. We can file the ISD return on estimated values within the deadline and correct it once the trust distribution is finalised.
We advise trust beneficiaries and settlors across the United States on their Spanish tax and legal obligations. Initial consultation is always free and confidential.
We advise US residents on Spanish trust law, ISD obligations, and the full inheritance process — entirely in English, entirely remotely. Contact us for a free initial consultation.