A necessary urgency for the Balearic economy
There are many tourists and foreigners with second residences who wish the situation in Europe to stabilize so that they can travel to their favorite islands, the Balearic Islands. The President of the Balearic Government, has expressed this week that "if the Balearic Islands are not opened to tourism, it is very difficult to endure a certain quality of life". Therefore, she assures that the Government does not give up the tourist season because of the pandemic, and that they continue to work so that the ports and airports can be opened "as soon as possible" and enjoy "safe tourism".
Therefore, after deliberating on how to try to safely resume certain tourism in the Balearic Islands, the Council of the Balearic Government has met to approve a decree law that allows the economic reactivation of the Balearic Islands.
According to the media (Diario de Mallorca), this decree law will allow an increase in the surface area of hotels by 15% of their current state, provided that they do not increase the number of guests or their height. At the ssame time, it will allow the execution of reform and remodelling works on urban land without the need for a municipal construction licence and a simple declaration by the developer will suffice, without prejudice to further verifications. This measure is also valid for catering and leisure establishments, which will be in force until the end of 2021.
What are these measures intended to achieve?
Firstly, it is intended to start the economic recovery of the Balearic Islands, being able to welcome new tourists and investors. It is also estimated that there will be a relaxation of urban planning restrictions, environmental impact and administrative supervision, but without a greater consumption of territory, since this decree only applies to existing buildings on urban land.
Therefore, administrative procedures will be streamlined and the construction sector and reform projects will be strengthened. Last but not least, it is expected that with this decree other tourism businesses can also be expanded, not only hotels, to encourage the need for interpersonal distance both in restaurants and in vacation rentals.
From Bufete Frau, we will keep you up to date with the latest news and the new measures approved by this decree as soon as it becomes more concrete.
How to grant a power of attorney for it to be valid in Spain?
As a result of the impossibility of moving from one country to another, there has been a significant increase in requests for powers of attorney, so that Spanish lawyers or advisors for a foreign client can sign deeds or contracts on their behalf before a Spanish notary. However, for the power of attorney to be valid and for us to be able to effectively intervene on behalf of the client, the power of attorney must comply with Spanish law.
1. It must be a public document.
2. It must be authorized by a Notary Public or other figure performing similar functions.
3. The authorizer must identify the client and judge whether he or she has sufficient capacity to grant power.
4. It should have the same effect in their home countries.
5. It must be accompanied by a sworn translation if the deed does not already come in a double column.
6. And, of course, it must be apostilled and/or legalized.
It is not the same, therefore, to grant a power of attorney, as to legitimize a signature. We find that many times the foreign Notary is limited to legitimizing signatures, which is insufficient and will not allow us to use the power of attorney before a Spanish Notary.
If we see that the above-mentioned requirements cannot be fulfilled, simply because the foreign authority does not have these faculties, the best option is to grant the power of attorney before the Spanish Consulate. In this case, no apostille will be required, as it will already be a Spanish public document.
Loans or donations in the purchase and sale of real estate
One of the warnings that we always do to our clients when they are going to acquire a property, is that the money has to come always from a bank account of which they are holders. If the one who acquires the house is a married couple in equal parts, then the account must be ownership of both, or that each one, from its respective account, pays 50% of the price of sale corresponding to the selling part.
Otherwise, if the entire purchase price comes from an account in the name of one person, but the buyer is someone else, the tax office will presume that it is a donation, and we may be subject to the corresponding tax inspection and finally have to pay the donation tax and the surcharge and/or penalty.
It should be the subject of the investigation who proves whether it is another type of legal business, such as a loan. However, to be able to allege that it is a loan, the contract should have been submitted in due time and form to the Tax Office, so that the date of submission is proven. The parties and the bank accounts must also be clearly identified, and the transfer receipt must be attached. It must also be possible to prove that the loan has been repaid, and both parties must declare this in their respective tax returns.
As you can see, the best thing to do is to be able to prove that the money for a sale comes from the actual buyer. And we must be very careful with this issue and always warn clients, because
often it is something that goes unnoticed, especially in marriages or children, and then come the problems.
The evidentiary effectiveness of emails
Emails have become an indispensable part of our daily lives, so that most conversations between professionals and clients are conducted by this means. It is an agile, simple, and fast tool that allows us to communicate easily and, also, to leave everything in writing.
However, problems can arise when a dispute between two parties ends up in litigation and all we have to prove our claims are emails. Is this valid evidence in a trial? In principle, yes, if the other party does not contest it.
We must remember that e-mails, especially on paper, are easily manipulated, so it is important to keep the file digitally so that, in the event of a dispute, a computer expert can prove its authenticity.
However, there are certain communications (exercising a purchase option, notifications between owners and tenants, etc.) that we recommend always making by bureaucratic means or by certified e-mail, as often the norm requires that communications are reliable, i.e. that they meet the following requirements:
1. Accredit the literal content of the communication.
2. Identity of the sender and recipient.
3. Result and delivery date.
As you can see, Spanish law is very formalistic, and it is important when signing a contract or making notifications to always be well advised by a good lawyer. Whether or not you have proof in a trial will depend on this.
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