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The short answer
Spain taxes by calendar year, so if you spent more than 183 days in Spain in the year you leave, or your economic interests stayed here, you are resident for that whole year and declare worldwide income for it in the next Renta. Update your tax address with the AEAT census, and use the treaty to avoid double tax.
Your residence in the year you leave
We found no rule in the IRPF articles we read that splits a year in two when you leave. The tax period is the calendar year (Article 12 of the Ley del IRPF), and Article 9 asks whether you spent more than 183 days in Spain during that calendar year, or whether your main base of economic interests was in Spain. If either is true, you are Spanish resident for the whole year you leave, and Spain taxes your worldwide income for that year, including Nigerian salary earned after you land in Lagos.
| Departure date (example, non-leap year) | Days in Spain that year | Resident on the days test? |
|---|---|---|
| 30 June | 181 | No, but check the economic test and the absence rule |
| 3 July | 184 | Yes |
| 31 August | 243 | Yes |
Leaving before July is not enough on its own. Article 9 counts sporadic absences as days in Spain unless you prove tax residence in another country, and Spain can still treat you as resident if your main economic interests (job, business, property, investments) stay in Spain. If your spouse and minor children stay behind, the family presumption also points to Spain.
If both countries claim you that year
Once you are back, Nigeria will usually treat you as resident too: PwC's summary of the Nigeria Tax Act 2025 lists a permanent home available in Nigeria, a habitual abode, 183 days in any 12-month period or substantial family ties as tests. Where both countries claim you, Article 4 of the Spain–Nigeria treaty decides treaty residence (permanent home, centre of vital interests, habitual abode, nationality). The treaty then shapes who taxes each item. For example, salary for work done in Nigeria after your return is taxed in Nigeria, and if Spain also taxes it because you were Spanish resident for the year, the treaty's relief rules apply. This is the area where a short session with an asesor fiscal saves the most money.
Telling the AEAT you have left
The AEAT keeps a census of taxpayers, and your tax address should be updated when you move abroad. Readers will often see this done on the individuals' census form referred to as Modelo 030. We could not open the AEAT page for that procedure, so check the form and channel on the AEAT Sede before you file. Updating your address keeps notifications reaching you, which matters because the AEAT can still write about your last Spanish year after you leave.
The Manual práctico de Renta also covers the loss of taxpayer status on a change of residence ("pérdida de la condición de contribuyente por cambio de residencia"). That section deals with income earned in Spain but not yet taxed when you stop being a taxpayer, which may have to be brought into your last Spanish return. If you have deferred income, instalment sales or significant investments, read it or ask an adviser before you go.
Your last Renta
- Work out whether you are resident for the year of departure.
- If resident, file Modelo 100 in the following year's Renta campaign, declaring worldwide income for the whole calendar year, including Nigerian income after your return.
- Claim the deduction for international double taxation for any Nigerian tax on that Nigerian income (see claiming credit for Nigerian tax).
- If you are not resident for that year, Spanish-source income (Spanish salary before you left, Spanish rent) falls under the non-resident regime instead, with the treaty limits.
- Keep a Spanish way to sign in to the AEAT Sede (digital certificate or Cl@ve) before you leave; it is far harder to set up from Lagos.
Example (illustrative)
Bola leaves Madrid on 31 August after 243 days in Spain that year and starts a job in Lagos on 1 September. She is Spanish resident for the whole year. Her next Renta includes her Spanish salary to August and her Lagos salary for September to December, with a credit for Nigerian PAYE on the Lagos pay, capped at the Spanish tax on it. In Nigeria she is resident from her return, and Nigeria taxes her Lagos salary.
Loose ends before you fly
- Ask your employer for your final pay and withholding certificate.
- Decide what to do with your Spanish bank account; banks treat residents and non-residents differently.
- If you keep a Spanish flat and let it out, Spain keeps the right to tax that rent under Article 6.
- On the Nigerian side, register with NRS and get a Tax ID if you will earn there.
- If a Spanish payer will keep paying you, you may need a Nigerian certificate of residence: see our guide.
Where Pryme fits
Moving back means money in two currencies for a while: a final Spanish salary, a deposit refund, then naira pay. A Pryme account holds euros and naira together, and Swap converts when you choose, with the rate and the fee shown before you approve. Back home, Savings Boxes are available for naira held in Nigeria.
Questions people ask
If I leave Spain in July, am I still Spanish tax resident that year?
Probably. By early July you will usually have more than 183 days in Spain that calendar year, which makes you resident for the whole year.
Do I declare my Nigerian salary in my last Spanish Renta?
If you are Spanish resident for the year you leave, yes, with a credit for Nigerian tax paid on it.
How do I tell Hacienda I have moved to Nigeria?
Update your tax address through the AEAT census procedure. Check the current form and channel on the AEAT Sede.
Can I file my last Renta from Nigeria?
Yes, online, if you keep a working digital certificate or Cl@ve access. Set it up before you leave.
Sources
- BOE: Ley 35/2006 del Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Físicas, consolidated text (last updated 7 Oct 2026), arts 2, 8, 9 and 12 · accessed Oct 2026
- Agencia Tributaria: Manual práctico de Renta 2025, Parte 1 (index) · accessed Oct 2026
- Spain–Nigeria Convention for the avoidance of double taxation and Protocol (English text published by the Ministerio de Hacienda) · accessed Oct 2026
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Nigeria, individual residence (reviewed 29 May 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.