The returns campaign of Personal Income Tax (IRPF) for the year 2024 It's entering its final stretch with the vast majority of payments already processed, but a small group of taxpayers are still waiting for the funds to be deposited into their accounts. The provisional data from the Tax Agency provides a fairly clear picture of the situation. How much money has the Tax Office refunded, to how many people, and what percentage is still pending?.
In general, the outlook is positive for those entitled to a refund, because the Administration has once again accelerated the deadlines and strengthened the digital and support channels to manage the returns. However, there is also a slight decrease in the total number of refunds and in the average amount paid, in addition to some tension in the cases that remain under review and which, when the legal deadline arrives, may give rise to the payment of late payment interest in favor of the taxpayer.
How much has the Treasury refunded and to how many taxpayers?
According to the latest data released by the Tax Agency, refunds have already been issued. 13.094 billion euros to approximately 15,6 million taxpayers of the 2024 Personal Income Tax. This means that by December 30th, approximately 95,5% of the requested amount and they had closed the 97,5% of requested returnsThat is, practically all of the cases with a result in favor of the taxpayer.
A total of [numbers] have been presented in the campaign 24,72 million income tax returns2,4% more than the previous year. Of these, around 65% resulted in refundsApproximately 16 million tax returns were filed, although this figure represents a slight decrease of over 1,7% compared to the previous tax year. On the other hand, tax returns resulting in a payment due have increased significantly in both number and amount.
There are also differences at the territorial level. For example, in some provinces like Ávila, slightly more applications have been submitted. 42 million euros in refundsOf which nearly 95% has already been paid. A similar pattern is repeated in other parts of Spain: almost all refunds are being processed, but with slight decreases in total volume paid compared to past campaigns.
This combination of more declarations filed, Fewer returns and more revenue This reinforces the idea that economic behavior and withholdings have changed, and that the group of taxpayers whose tax return results in a payment due or a balance in favor of the Public Treasury is gaining increasing weight.
Outstanding declarations and entitlement to late payment interest
Despite the high degree of completion, a small percentage still remains to be done. returns with pending refundIn global terms, this represents approximately 2,5% of refund requests, which equates to several hundred thousand taxpayers in Spain who still had not received their refunds at the beginning of the year, even though the vast majority filed their returns within the official deadline.
The Tax Agency usually review in more detail These pending refunds often correspond to files with some particularity: less common deductionsDiscrepancies between the taxpayer's data and that held by the tax authorities, or complex situations such as those involving certain professionals and the self-employed, can sometimes lead to additional checks before issuing a payment.
It is worth remembering that the Personal Income Tax Law gives the Administration a maximum term of six months from the end of the tax return filing period when the return is in favor of the taxpayer. For a filing period that ends in late June, that period extends, in practice, until early January of the following yearIf, after that limit, the payment has not been made and the delay is due to the Administration itself, the taxpayer has the right to default interest.
Currently, these interests are centered around 4% per year These interest payments are automatically calculated on the amount the Tax Agency has not yet refunded, for the time elapsed from the end of the legal deadline until the payment is made. Even so, it is recommended to review the calculation because these interest payments are considered a capital gain subject to personal income taxTherefore, they will have to be declared in the income tax return for the year in which they are received, according to the recent doctrine established by the Supreme Court.
To follow the process, taxpayers can consult the status of your return You can submit your refund through the Tax Agency's website, either with a digital certificate, using the Cl@ve system, or with your tax return reference number. The processing section will indicate whether the refund is being processed, under review, or has already been sent to the bank.
Increased use of digital services and support channels
This year's tax return campaign has consolidated a change in habits: almost nine out of ten statements They have already been submitted online, mainly through the service of Rent WebWithin this set, the methods described by the Agency as the most agile, which allow the declaration to be prepared and submitted without having to go to an office, take on special prominence.
In total, more than 2,9 million declarations have been processed through the new modality of Direct Incomethe mobile app and the telephone assistance plan "We'll Call You" telephone assistance planThese three options have seen an increase of more than one million returns compared to the previous year, showing a clear preference among taxpayers for quick solutions without travel.
The Direct Income has added up to nearly 1,03 million returns filedoffering an interface designed for large screens, with a visual summary of data and a very brief confirmation process. In parallel, the aplicación móvil It has continued to gain ground, with some 704.000 declarations, more than 50.000 additional compared to the previous campaign, of which more than half a million have been validated literally in a single click.
The plan “We called him” It continues to be the go-to service for those needing personalized assistance. During this campaign, applications have been submitted through this system. more than 1,18 million declarations, some 60.000 more than last year, despite an increase in in-person branch visits. Adding both channels together, telephone and physical service, more than 2 million declarations have been prepared with the direct support of Agency staff.
Added to all this is the increasingly widespread use of digital assistants and help tools Available on the electronic portal. These resources have answered more than 1,2 million queries related to personal income tax throughout the tax season, facilitating the resolution of frequently asked questions without the need to make a phone call or schedule an appointment.
Preventive notices and the rise of rectifications
One of the new developments that has taken hold in recent campaigns is the strategy of preventive care by the Tax Agency. The aim is to reduce errors and omissions in tax returns that could later lead to audits, requests for information, surcharges, and even penalties.
In this context, the Agency has continued to send Information letters and electronic notices Taxpayers who file their tax return with significantly altered information held by the tax authorities receive these notices by mail and electronically. Rent Web and from the app itself, in the section where the processing status of the declaration is checked.
When a taxpayer receives one of these notices, they are encouraged to carefully review whether the filed return accurately reflects their actual situation. If they detect a potential error, they can file an appeal. amended statement, correcting the necessary fields. The Renta Web system, in fact, offers a proposal with updated data to facilitate this process.
Thanks to this more preventative approach, the campaign has already registered more than 47.000 amended tax returns submitted after these warnings. Those who have decided to correct their declaration have, in many cases, avoided the Agency opening a formal verification procedure later, with the consequent risk of late payment interest and penalties if it is proven that there were undeclared or incorrectly recorded amounts.
If a person believes their original declaration was correct, they are not obligated to amend it simply because they receive a letter or notice. However, the general recommendation is review the information in detail that the Tax Office claims to have and compare it with your own documentation: payslips, bank statements, withholding certificates or any other data relevant to the Personal Income Tax.
The snapshot left by the 2024 personal income tax refund campaign is that of an administration that has already paid almost everything it committed to, with Billions of euros refunded to millions of taxpayers, a massive use of digital channels and increasingly diversified assistance, but also with a small core of complex cases pending review in which legal deadlines, late payment interest and, ultimately, the desirability of each citizen closely monitoring both the status of their refund and the accuracy of the data they declare year after year come into play.
