Anthony Piovesan
The super rich trying to hide luxury assets such as superyachts and mansions in company shells could soon have a bumper tax bill in the Balearics.
The regional government has passed a proposal to ask the Spanish government to create a specific ‘luxury asset’ tax for the islands.
Joana Aina Campomar of the Mes political party argued that wealthy individuals ‘hide’ assets such as superyachts, mansions, sports cars and pieces of art in the name of companies so they do not have to pay taxes on them.
“These are assets that are not necessary for business production purposes,” she said.
It was acknowledged at the meeting that there is no detailed list of how many hidden assets exist in the Balearics.
But Campomar said the figures could be compiled by cross-checking tax data.
In her view, the Balearic islands are ‘most likely’ to have the most amount of hidden assets in Spain and the Mediterranean.
“Individuals devise formulas to camouflage assets and not pay taxes,” she said.
“These are tax avoidance practices.”
The opposition’s Partido Popular spokesperson attacked the left’s ‘tax maelstrom’, while Ciudadanos suggested it was an initiative that would ‘criminalise businesspeople’.
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