Thinking of Gifting a Vehicle?

Vehicle donations are not uncommon, whether as a gift to friends or family, through inheritances, or cases of separations and divorces, for example, and although this is a perfectly acceptable process, there are special conditions when it comes to changing vehicle ownership.

Vehicle Donations

Donating a vehicle to a family member or acquaintance is a special case of selling it at zero cost.

Both the giver and receiver must complete, sign, and date a donation agreement, and although you can create your own, it must contain:

• Giver’s details: Name and surname or company name and your DNI/NIE/CIF.
• Receiver’s details: Name and surname or company name and your DNI/NIE/CIF.
• Vehicle data: Make, model and registration number.
• Date and time the contract is signed.

Inheritance and Gift Tax must be paid, Impuesto de Sucesiones y Donaciones (ISD).

ISD must be paid in the Autonomous Community of the person who will receive the vehicle and who keeps proof of payment, exemption or non-subjection of inheritance tax in which the vehicle is identified (number plate or chassis).

You should check the conditions for settling the Inheritance and Gift Tax (ISD) in your Autonomous Community.

You can then complete the Change of Ownership procedure at the DGT, either by making an appointment or, the easiest way, is online through the DGT website.

You must remember that the vehicle must be insured and have a valid ITV before you drive it.

Inheritances

In the case of a vehicle that comes from an inheritance due to the death of the owner, it will be necessary to change the ownership of the vehicle.

You must first obtain the proof of inheritance. With the prior agreement of all the heirs of the vehicle, you must be designated as the sole heir of the vehicle. Fill out and sign the declaration of responsibility for change of ownership due to the death of the owner of a vehicle certifying this.

The recipient pays the ISD tax and can then carry out the vehicle transfer with the DGT as mentioned above.

Provisional Custodian

In the case of a vehicle whose owner has died, and does not yet have a definitive beneficiary, it is possible to inform a provisional custodian until the inheritance is settled and the vehicle is definitively awarded:

There is a special form for this you can get from the DGT, and along with the responsible declaration, you must submit the application form to be the provisional custodian of the vehicle.

If the Vehicle Registry does not record the death of the owner, you must also provide the death certificate.

Separation, Divorce or Breakup

As a result of a breakup, separation or divorce, the agreement reached, whether by mutual agreement or court order, may include the change of ownership of one of the vehicles owned by the couple.

To change the ownership of the vehicle due to separation, divorce or breakup:

You must be in possession of and provide a document proving the agreement of the break-up, separation or divorce, which includes the details of the vehicle whose owner is changing: Court ruling or regulatory agreement.

You mist then pay the transfer tax. You must justify the payment, exemption or non-subjection of the Property Transfer Tax, Impuesto de Transmisiones Patrimoniales (IPT), modelo 620 or modelo 621 form, as appropriate, in the autonomous community where you have your tax domicile. In almost all Autonomous Communities you can do it easily and electronically.

You can then carry out the transfer with the DGT.