In short
Dutch and Belgian residents can get a Spanish euro mortgage, typically for 60–70% of the lower of price and valuation. Their income is already in euros, so there is no currency risk on repayments. As EU residents, they pay Spanish non-resident tax at 19%, not 24%, on imputed or rental income from the property.
The short answer
A resident of the Netherlands or Belgium can finance a Spanish home with a Spanish mortgage. Lenders that work with non-residents regularly consider applicants from both countries, and financing is typically 60–70% of the lower of price and valuation. It is never guaranteed.
Two things make these files simpler than most. Your income is already in euros, so there is no currency risk on the monthly payment. And as an EU resident you pay Spanish non-resident tax at 19%, not 24%.
Dutch buyers are among the largest foreign groups in the Spanish market. According to the Spanish Land Registrars, they accounted for 6.31% of all purchases by foreigners in 2025, behind only British and German buyers.
Why euro income makes the file easier
When a buyer earns in pounds, francs or dollars, every monthly payment is a currency conversion. Some lenders apply a buffer to that income when they test affordability, and Law 5/2019 adds specific rules for loans in a currency other than the borrower’s.
None of that applies to a salary paid in Amsterdam or Brussels. The loan, the income and the payments are in the same currency. The lender still assesses your solvency in full, but it does not have to discount your income for exchange-rate risk.
The euro does not remove the other questions. The lender still needs to read documents in Dutch or French, check your commitments at home and understand where the deposit comes from.
Spanish mortgage or equity at home?
Many Dutch and Belgian buyers own a home with substantial equity. That opens a second route: borrow against the home you already have and buy in Spain without a Spanish mortgage. Both routes are legitimate. They carry different risks.
| Spanish mortgage | Loan secured on your home abroad | |
|---|---|---|
| Security | The Spanish property | Your main home |
| Typical amount | 60–70% of the Spanish property | Depends on your equity and home lender |
| Spanish valuation | Required | Not required by a home lender |
| Documents | Translated or explained for a Spanish underwriter | Familiar to your home lender |
| At the notary | Purchase deed and mortgage deed | Purchase deed only, as a cash buyer |
| Main risk | Two sets of payments, two countries | Your main home secures a holiday purchase |
A cash purchase can look simpler at the notary, and it can strengthen a negotiation. But the security is the house you live in, and the terms depend entirely on your home lender. A Spanish mortgage keeps the risk on the Spanish property and lets a Spanish valuation test the price you are paying.
How the interest on either loan is treated for tax in your own country is a question for a Dutch or Belgian tax adviser. Ask before you choose, not after.
The 19% tax on your Spanish home
Spain taxes non-resident owners every year, whether or not the home is let. The Spanish Tax Agency applies 19% to residents of the EU, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein, and 24% to everyone else.
If you keep the home for your own use, the tax is on an imputed income: 1.1% of the cadastral value in municipalities whose values were revised in a general valuation that came into force in the last ten tax periods, 2% otherwise. With a cadastral value of €140,000:
| Imputed income | Tax at 19% |
|---|---|
| 1.1% × €140,000 = €1,540 | €292.60 |
| 2% × €140,000 = €2,800 | €532 |
If you let the property, the tax is on the rent. As residents of an EU member state, Dutch and Belgian owners can deduct expenses directly linked to that income, provided they can prove them. The yearly return is form 210. Our guide to non-resident taxes after buying explains the deadlines, IBI and the tax on a future sale.
The Spain–Netherlands and Spain–Belgium treaties
A double taxation convention decides which country may tax each type of income and how the other country gives relief.
- Netherlands. The convention was signed in Madrid on 16 June 1971 and published in the Spanish Official Gazette on 16 October 1972. The Spanish Ministry of Finance lists a new convention as initialled on 17 December 2021, with no signature recorded, so the 1971 text is still the one that applies.
- Belgium. The convention was signed in Brussels on 14 June 1995, in Spanish, French and Dutch, and published in 2003. It was amended by an additional act signed in Madrid in 2000, published with it in 2003, and since then by protocols signed in 2009 and 2014, both published in 2018.
In both treaties, as in most, income from immovable property may be taxed in the country where the property is. Spain therefore taxes your Spanish imputed or rental income, and a gain on a sale. How the Netherlands or Belgium then treats that income, and whether the property counts in your home return, is for a tax adviser in your country.
A worked example: €350,000 resale in Alicante
Alicante is the Spanish province with the highest share of foreign buyers: 43.29% of home purchases in 2025, according to the Land Registrars. Take a €350,000 resale home there. The Valencian Community charges 9% transfer tax, rising to 11% on the whole value above €1,000,000:
| Item | 60% financing | 70% financing |
|---|---|---|
| Price | €350,000 | €350,000 |
| Mortgage | €210,000 | €245,000 |
| Deposit you fund | €140,000 | €105,000 |
| Transfer tax (9%) | €31,500 | €31,500 |
| Notary, registry, valuation and other costs (~1.5%) | €5,250 | €5,250 |
| Cash needed | €176,750 | €141,750 |
Reduced rates exist for some buyers, but they are generally linked to a main residence and do not help with a holiday home. Try your own figures in the purchase costs calculator, and read our guide to buying in Alicante and the Costa Blanca for the local detail.
Documents a Spanish lender will ask for
The list varies by lender, but prepare:
- passport and, once issued, the NIE, the Spanish foreigner identification number;
- recent payslips and, in the Netherlands, the annual employer statement (jaaropgaaf);
- your latest income tax assessment: the Dutch aanslag inkomstenbelasting or the Belgian aanslagbiljet / avertissement-extrait de rôle;
- for the self-employed or company owners, two years of accounts and tax returns;
- bank statements showing your income, savings and the deposit;
- the statement and terms of the mortgage on your home;
- the reservation or purchase contract.
Documents in Dutch or French may need a sworn translation into Spanish. Some lenders accept them as they are; ask for the exact list before you commission anything. Our guide to foreign income and a Spanish mortgage explains how underwriters read income from abroad.
Where these files lose time
- The home mortgage. A Spanish lender adds its payment to the new one. Bring the current statement from the start.
- Money from several accounts. Savings moved between accounts just before the transfer raise questions. Keep every statement.
- Late NIE. The Spanish identification number is needed to complete. Start early; our guide to the NIE and a Spanish bank account explains how.
- A deposit deadline set before the valuation. Agree completion only once the financing timetable is clear.
How RCG coordinates it
RCG Finance is a real-estate credit intermediary registered with the Bank of Spain under number E760, with an office in Salou. We prepare your file once, help you compare it with the equity route at home, and present it to the Spanish lenders that finance Dutch and Belgian residents. Our team attends the notary signing in person.
Around the mortgage, we coordinate:
- our partner lawyer, for the NIE, the Spanish bank account, a power of attorney if you cannot travel, translations and the review of the contracts;
- a currency exchange partner, if part of your funds is held outside the euro, providing transfer confirmations that form part of the payment trail.
We do not give legal or tax advice.
What to do next
Gather your documents with the non-resident mortgage checklist and size the cash with the purchase costs calculator. If you are still choosing where to buy, the areas guide compares prices and taxes along the coast.
When you are ready, our non-resident mortgage service puts the file in front of the lenders that work with Dutch and Belgian residents.
Sources and review
Prepared by the RCG Finance editorial team (RCG 2026 S.L., Bank of Spain register of credit intermediaries no. E760) and reviewed by Rafael, founder of RCG Finance and former debt and M&A advisor at KPMG and PwC, under our editorial standards. Last source review: 22 September 2026.
- Spanish Tax Agency — Non-resident income tax rates
- Spanish Tax Agency — Imputed income on a home for own use
- Spanish Tax Agency — Income from rented property
- Spanish Official Gazette — Spain–Netherlands double taxation convention of 1971 (BOE-A-1972-1469)
- Spanish Official Gazette — Spain–Belgium double taxation convention of 1995 (BOE-A-2003-13375)
- Spanish Official Gazette — 2009 Protocol to the Spain–Belgium convention (BOE-A-2018-6829)
- Spanish Official Gazette — 2014 Protocol to the Spain–Belgium convention (BOE-A-2018-10992)
- Spanish Official Gazette — Law 5/2019 on real-estate credit, article 20
- Spanish Ministry of Finance — Double taxation conventions in force and in progress
- Spanish Land Registrars — Housing statistics 2025
Frequently asked questions
Can a Dutch or Belgian resident get a mortgage in Spain?
Yes. Spanish lenders that work with non-residents accept residents of the Netherlands and Belgium, subject to affordability, the valuation and a complete file. Financing is typically 60–70% of the lower of price and valuation, never guaranteed.
What rate of Spanish non-resident tax do Dutch and Belgian owners pay?
19%. The Spanish Tax Agency applies that rate to residents of the EU, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein. It is charged on an imputed income if you keep the home for your own use, or on the rent, after deductible expenses, if you let it.
Is it better to borrow against my home in the Netherlands or Belgium?
It depends on your equity, the terms at home and how long you plan to keep both properties. A loan at home can let you buy in Spain without a Spanish mortgage, but it puts your main home at stake. Compare both routes on total cost before deciding.
Is there still a tax treaty between Spain and the Netherlands?
Yes. The convention signed in Madrid in 1971 remains the one in force. The Spanish Ministry of Finance lists a new convention as initialled in December 2021 but not yet signed, so check with a tax adviser whether anything changes before you file.
