Guide to business in Spain 2023

©Garrigues ©ICEX España Exportación e Inversiones, E.P.E. Pº de la Castellana, 27828046 MadridTel: 902 34 90 00Fax: 914 31 61 28 desarrollo@investinspain.org This work is for information only and its content can not be invoked in support of anyclaim in progress. ICEX does not assume responsibility for the information, opinion or action based onsaid content, regardless of whether it has made every effort to ensure the accuracy ofthe information contained in its pages. Administración General del Estado (AGE)http://administracion.gob.es This guide was researched and written by Garrigues, on behalf of ICEX, on February2023. Catálogo de publicaciones de la AGEhttp://cpage.mpr.gob.es This guide is correct to the best of our knowledge. It is, however, written as a generalguide so it is necessary that specific professional advice be sought before any actionis taken. NIPO (PDF):114230304 Design & LayoutIntelligenia, S.A. Madrid, June 2023 3. 2. Spain: Anattractive countryfor investment Setting up abusiness in Spain The 2023 Guide to Business in Spainisa document that summarizes the mainregulatory aspects governing investmentsin Spain. This publication is useful notonly for investors who are dealing withthe Spanish regulatory system for thefirst time, but also for those who alreadyhave some prior knowledge and wish tolearn more about the most importantaspects of setting up and growing acompany in Spain. 7. 6. Legal frameworkand taximplications ofe-commerce inSpain Investment aidand incentives inSpain AIII. AI. AII. Accounting andaudit issues 1.Spain: An attractive country for investment 1Introduction2The country, its people and quality of life3Spain and the European Union4Infrastructure5Economic structure6Domestic Market7Foreign trade and investment8Legislation on foreign investmentand exchange control9Obligations in relation to anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing Spain is in an outstanding position worldwide in terms ofthe importance of its economy: the 16thlargest economyin the world by GDP, the 13thcountry most attractive for for-eign direct investment (FDI), the 15thlargest issuer of FDIand the 15thlargest exporter of commercial services. There are interesting business opportunities for foreigninvestors in Spain in high value-added and strategic fieldssuch as the ICT, renewable energy, biotechnology, environ-ment, aerospace and automotive sectors, because of theattractive competitive environment. In addition, companies that set up business in Spain can gainaccess not only to the Spanish national market, an attractive-ly large market (over 47 million consumers) with a high pur-chasing power, but also to the markets of the EMEA region(Europe, Middle East and North Africa), and Latin America,given its privileged geostrategic position, prestige and thestrong presence of Spanish companies in these regions. Spain has a modern economy based on knowledge, inwhich services represent over 76% of business activity. Itis an international center for innovation that benefits from ayoung and highly qualified population of a proactive nature,and competitive costs in the context of Western Europe, es-pecially as regards graduate and post-graduate employees. The country has worked hard to equip itself with state-of theart infrastructures capable of fostering the future growth ofthe economy. And this has been done alongside a majorcommitment to R&D. The main characteristics of our country are described inthis Chapter: demographics, political and territorial struc-ture, economy and the foreign trade sector. 1. Spain: An attractivecountry for investment 1Introduction Spain is one of the most important economies in the world,ranking 16thin size and has an immense capacity to attractforeign investment (currently ranked 8thin terms of foreigndirect investment)1. Spain’s appeal for investment lies notonly in its domestic market, but also in the possibility ofoperating with third markets from Spain. This is becauseSpain has a privileged geo-strategic position within the Eu-ropean Union giving access to more than 2,400 million po-tential clients in the EMEA Region (Europe, Middle East andAfrica). Its strong economic, historic and cultural ties alsomake Spain the perfect business gateway to Latin America. Furthermore, Spain is a modern knowledge-based economywith services accounting for over 76%2of economic activi-ty. The country has become a center of innovation support-ed by a young, highly-qualified work force and competitivecosts in the context of Western Europe. This Chapter gives a brief description of Spain’s vital statis-tics: its population, its political and territorial structure andits economy. 1. Spain: An attractivecountry for investment 2The country, its peopleand quality of life 2.2 POPULATION ANDHUMAN RESOURCES The population of Spain in 2022 was over 47 million peo-ple, with a population density of 94 inhabitants per squarekilometer. Spain is a markedly urban so