Caixabank economic activity requests

Hi everyone. 

I need your help. 

We have received a letter from our bank over in Spain Caixabank requesting information to satisfy money laundering requirements. It asks for our economic activity and business operations. What does this mean? I can't get through to them to ask. Is it tax returns as my wife is self employed. I have recently gone self employed too so I don't have any tax returns yet. What is a Form 036 (tax register declaration)  

Is there an email address you can provide so we can send these over.

Many thanks

Ben

Hello Ben

The whole thing of disclosure is becoming a nonsense. What terrorist is going to reply saying they are a money launderer and live in cave no 9. Or I am a tax dodger and my money is hidden in xyz bank.

The truth is that we are just shuffling paper around that’s made to fit. The cost of all this to the bank is added to your bank charges but your time is for nothing. I am not against filling in a single simple annual income tax return, but as usual Billy Bureaucrat has made himself a job for life with a system he cannot even understand. Get anything wrong and you are fined and treated as a criminal.    

Hello Ben

I think this fom is for Non_residents. A Gestor in Spain should be able to provide more infomation . Maybe your own Bank will explain. See websites attached.

https://www.agenciatributaria.gob.es/AEAT.sede/en_gb/procedimientoini/G322.shtml

https://www1.caixabank.es/apl/formularios/atencionalcliente/particulares.index_en.html

Good Luck

I heard that whatever you tell your bank will be passed on to the Hacienda (Spanish Inland Revenue) who allegedly are building up files on all foreign nationals.  I'm guessing but I imagine that this might be used as evidence against you if you later opt for Spanish residency and be under the Spanish taxation system.   

The banks's will tell you it's all about money laundering, but it might be a bit more than that.  A while ago I advised my Spanish bank of a change of my UK address by email.  I had one back acknowledging and asking that I call into the branch to verify the details when next in Spain etc listing a few pieces of paper they wanted to see, the last of which was "proof of income" - the relevance/connection of that to a COA is not immediately obvious to me!

Hermano Mayor is watching you    !

Ben

This was the form I was presented with in 2015 to complete for my wife, myself and my son.  We are joint holders of an account with Cajamar.

I told them I required a legal reason why I was obliged to provide the info.

They backed down and said I need to supply the info.

Hi guys, 

Thanks for all your replies. Our Spanish solicitors have told us that it is only relevant to people who have a business in Spain. 

Thanks again

Ben

Not that it is all that important but i meant to post 

They backed down and said I need to NOT supply the info.

it was the question about the Political activity that I objected to and why I was refusing to supply the info

Ben, the comment from your solicitors is untrue.   As an aside, you never want to rely on what a solicitor tells you, or doesn't tell you in Spain, their professional standards are appalling. 

Spanish laws are ten a penny and often not to be taken too seriously as any Spanish national will tell you.  They have a saying in Spain "for every law, there's a way to avoid it".  The laws are often ignored anyway - the Spanish police tend to have a more pragmatic approach.  It's often the Brits that take them too seriously.

The fact is that over the last few years there have been international agreements and understandings that countries will pass back financial information of expats to their country of origin and where they are registered for tax purposes.  This is now a global situation.  Almost where ever you open a bank account you are obliged to provide your passport details together with home address.  The "cover" for this is "money laundering" - the truth is that the principal objective is to ensure that national governments obtain all information possible to maximise their taxation.