The Spanish Tax Agency (Agencia Tributaria) has initiated a rigorous strategy aimed at identifying and addressing tax fraud, particularly among affluent individuals who declare minimal income while exhibiting evident signs of wealth.

In its recently published tax control plan for 2025, the agency places a primary focus on taxpayers who maintain extravagant lifestyles without corresponding income declarations.

This initiative responds to growing concerns about potential fiscal evasion and aims to bolster the agency's capacity to tackle sophisticated techniques utilized by some individuals to obscure their actual financial situations.

Among the notable cases under investigation is that of a high-profile Latin music artist who reportedly resides in Spain but claims non-residency status for tax purposes.

This categorization allows her to evade taxes due to a lower tax rate applied to non-residents.

Tax inspectors, such as the fictitious character Sara Santano from the television series _Celeste_, assist in the analysis of social media and lifestyle publications to gather evidence against such individuals, aiming to demonstrate that they reside in Spain for more than 183 days annually.

As part of the new control measures, tax officials will utilize open-source data, including social media activity, to cross-reference lifestyle indicators against declared earnings.

Those living in affluent areas, such as Pozuelo de Alarcón, who declare low incomes while possessing luxury vehicles or expensive real estate linked to corporate entities will be subject to heightened scrutiny.

The plan emphasizes the need to identify discrepancies between an individual's reported income and their apparent living standards.

The tax agency has long recognized signs of wealth as indicators of potential fraud.

However, its latest plan seeks to intensify these efforts.

The focus will be on segments of the population believed to be involved in the concealment of income or the misallocation of personal expenses through shell companies.

The emphasis is on detecting tax offenses that result in significant revenue losses for the state, aiming to recover unpaid taxes by increasing monitoring of higher-risk activities.

The agency has specified several strategies to expose fraudulent activities, including examining structures implemented to mislead tax authorities.

Taxpayers may utilize intricate business arrangements to obscure the real beneficiaries and hide personal expenses under corporate deductions.

Inspections will target individuals who show a pattern of using corporate resources for personal benefit, thereby evading tax obligations.

Another key aspect of the control plan includes investigating cases of individuals who falsely simulate living outside of Spain, thereby attempting to qualify for reduced tax liabilities.

This practice has been observed among individuals who maintain their primary residence in Spain but incorrectly classify their status to benefit from the lower tax regime reserved for non-residents.

Further measures will concentrate on sectors exhibiting high risks of undeclared earnings, such as cash-intensive businesses that refuse card payments or rely excessively on cash.

These efforts will be amplified by focusing on businesses that utilize software potentially designed to conceal sales figures as part of prohibitive tax practices.

Additionally, the control plan extends to digital platforms and the growing use of neobanks and cryptocurrency systems.

The tax agency is ramping up efforts to monitor payment systems that might avoid regulatory frameworks, ensuring correct tax compliance in digital transactions.

Projects related to Artificial Intelligence (AI) will also be explored to improve efficiency in detecting tax irregularities, with the assurance that human oversight will govern all automated processes.

The Spanish Tax Agency aims to create a comprehensive framework to revitalize its tax control mechanisms, bolstering its ability to combat various dimensions of tax evasion among high-profile citizens and ensuring tax compliance across diverse sectors.