Fight Against Fraud Uncovers Large Fortunes Hidden Since Before Economic Crisis

A new edition of the World Wealth Report was published on Thursday which revealed that the number of millionaires in Spain has risen by some 15,000 individuals. Furthermore, this report, published by the consultancy firm Cap Gemini, points to this increase exceeding a total of 65,000 people since the start of the crisis.

The explanation, according to the figures handled by the Spanish Tax Agency, is that the majority of the cases do not affect new personal fortunes amassed during the crisis, but rather are individuals who previously had a high net wealth hidden overseas, meaning that these people could not be controlled by the Spanish Tax Agency and hence did not pay the corresponding taxation.

These fortunes have largely been uncovered as a result of the new information instruments and the campaign for the fight against fraud started up back in 2012 by the Tax Agency; in fact, according to the report, that was the first year of the crisis in which the rise in the number of “new millionaires” began.

In addition, the Spanish government said, it should not be forgotten that the extraordinary tax regularization amnesty implemented by the government in 2012 resulted in almost 30,000 taxpayers regularizing their income and assets for the sum of 40 billion euros that had previously been hidden. Similarly, the obligation to declare assets and rights located overseas through the Tax Form 720 meant that, as from 2013, more than 200,000 taxpayers have declared their assets overseas for a sum of close on 140 billion euros.

Of the total assets declared, according to the information provided by the Tax Agency, taxpayers declared more than 13.7 billion euros in goods and rights overseas for the first time.