News

“Whistleblowing” describes the uncovering of abuses, such as corruption, money laundering, and environmental hazards, by whistleblowers who have acquired insider knowledge due to their professional activity. Whistleblowers must usually accept serious personal or professional disadvantages as a result of their reports.

To protect whistleblowers, the EU already issued the Whistleblowing Directive in 2019. This directive stipulates that enterprises have the obligation to establish channels and procedures to enable reports of abuses and breaches of the law.

On 12 January 2023 the Regulation (EU) 2022/2560 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2022 on foreign subsidies distorting the internal market (hereinafter: the “FSR Regulation”) has entered into force.

The FSR Regulation, which will apply from 12 July 2023, equips the European Commission (hereinafter: the “Commission”) with new tools preventing distortion in competition of the internal (EU) market resulting from “foreign subsidies” meaning subsidies granted by the non-EU states to the entities operating on the internal market.

With a judgment from 2019, the ECJ had clearly set the direction: From the Working Hours Directive in conjunction with Art. 31 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (CFR), there is the obligation of the Member States to ensure that employers introduce an “objective, reliable and accessible system that can be used to measure the daily working hours worked by employees”; this follows from the right of employees to effective health protection and compliance with the legally prescribed (weekly and daily) maximum working hours. However, the ECJ had not set a specific deadline for the Member States.

Over three full years, the requirements of the ECJ then remained without any significant practical consequences, with a few exceptions that we will present below on a country-specific basis. And it was probably generally assumed that legislative intervention would be required for the practical implementation of the judgment. However, the German Federal Labour Court has now taken the ball directly and formulated directly from existing law specific obligations incumbent on the employer even without legislative measures.

Law 31/2022, of 23 December, on the General State Budget for 2023 introduced, among many other measures, modifications in the area of taxation.

The changes affect various taxes in the Spanish tax system.

Law 38/2022 of 27 December 2002 introduced in Spain a new temporary solidarity tax on large fortunes.

This is a complementary tax to wealth Tax that applies to taxpayers with a net wealth of more than 3 million euros, although it will only have practical effects in those communities that have decided not to levy wealth Tax.

Congress has passed the Startup Ecosystem Promotion Act, commonly known as the Startup Act, which specifically targets young, emerging, and technology-based companies known as startups. The law contains many new regulations that provide tax benefits, aims to eliminate bureaucratic obstacles by making procedures more flexible, and thus encourages the creation of and investment in startups.

The applicable e-commerce policy is over 20 years old. That is why the European Union launched a regulatory package for online platforms a few years ago.

Spain has adopted Law 18/2022 of 28 September on the incorporation and growth of companies (so-called "Ley Crea y Crece"), which aims to facilitate the incorporation of companies, reduce regulatory obstacles, combat late payments and promote company growth and expansion. The law will come into force on 19 October 2022.

Spain finally transposed the Whistleblowing Directive by Law 2/2023 of 20 February on the protection of persons reporting breaches of the law and the fight against corruption. The law will enter into force on 13 March 2023.
The deadline set by the European Commission for the transposition of the directive by the Member States already expired on 17 December 2021. Like most other Member States, Spain also did not transpose the directive by the deadline. In order to transpose the directive into national law, a working group of the Ministry of Justice began drafting a bill in mid-2020.

Working from home, New Work, flexibility, self-organisation, trust-based working hours. These (and other) terms describe what is no longer a vision of the future or a mere phenomenon. Day-to-day working life has fundamentally changed in the last two and a half years at the latest since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, which acted as a catalyst in this respect.

The Government of Andalusia has decided to abolish the Wealth Tax in its Autonomous Community.

In this way, Andalusia will be, after Madrid, the second Spanish region to fully release this tax.

The development and commercialisation of drones is making relentless progress. Due to the wide range of applications and the rapid technical advances, unmanned aircraft – or “UAS” (=Unmanned Aircraft System) for short – are predicted to be a promising future.

In Spanien besteht besteht seit dem 12.5.2019 die Verpflichtung für alle Unternehmen, täglich die Arbeitszeit der gesamten Belegschaft zu erfassen. Es müssen zwingend die genauen Zeiten von Arbeitsantritt und Arbeitsende aller Mitarbeiter registriert werden. Rechtsgrundlage hierfür ist der neu eingeführte Absatz Art. 34.9 des Arbeitnehmergesetzes (Ley del Estatuto de los Trabajadores).

As of 26 July 2022, Royal Legislative Decree 13/2020 changed the contribution system for self-employed persons to the social security system. Under the new system, self-employed persons now pay their contributions according to their net income.

On 30 June 2022, the suspension of the insolvency filing requirement in Spain, which was introduced under the COVID-19 pandemic by Royal Decree-Law 8/2020 of 17 March and subsequently extended, ended.

In case of a hacking attack, unauthorised attackers attempt to access external PCs, notebooks, smartphones, tablets or even entire corporate networks. Since the frequency of such attacks has increased massively in Europe over the past year, in this article we look at the successful hacker attack from the outside, which encrypts the affected systems in such a way that the company can no longer access its system at all.

The European Commission’s Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (“VBER”), which was previously potentially applicable to distribution, whereby agreements between manufacturers or suppliers and retailers are exempt from the ban on cartels, ceased to be in force on 31/05/2022, because the original period of validity of 12 years was reached.
These new versions bring some changes which relax requirements compared to the previous legal situation, but also tighten requirements, which primarily take into account the area of tension between online/offline sales.

The student Ioana Galán Carreño from the German School of Valencia has received the scholarship Lozano Schindhelm 2022.

Cryptocurrency, big data, artificial intelligence, data theft, cloud, virtual, augmented, or mixed reality, cyber warfare, telemedicine, social media, autonomous driving, Industry 4.0, Criminal Law 4.0, NFTs – these are not the only issues that are bringing about the era of the fourth so-called digital revolution. Each of these digital changes is bringing new challenges to all facets of society – the link between law and technology is one of the biggest. An example that illustrates the special relationship between legal and digital technologies very well are NFTs (non-fungible tokens).

The "current turning point" in connection with the Russian war of aggression on Ukraine has not only a political but also perhaps an even greater economic dimension. The sharp rise in the price of raw materials and energy has led to a dramatic increase in costs for companies. The interruption of supply chains often causes production downtimes in industry. Despite all the harmonisation of laws that has taken place in the last 20 to 30 years, especially in the European legal sphere, this issue has remained untouched by efforts at legal standardisation. The reason for this was apparently a lack of topicality. Therefore, with this article, we provide an overview of how this topic is handled legally with regard to three key questions in the respective countries of our partner law firms.

The income and wealth tax campaign for the 2021 tax year begins today, and taxpayers can now file their tax returns. The deadline for filing is 30 June, although the deadline for direct debit tax returns is 25 June.

Until the new EU regulation was issued in early 2021, which adapted the regulations for the operation of UAS (drones) across Europe, the Royal Legislative Decree 1036/2017 applied in Spain. However, this is largely no longer applicable since its regulations do not comply with EU law. During the year, a new law is to be enacted that implements the provisions of the EU regulation.

Already in 2020, the European Commission presented the draft for a new EU regulation on a single market for digital services, through which the latest developments in the field of digital services are to be incorporated and regulated at EU level. The proposal aims at better protection of consumer rights in the digital environment and at the joint internal market-related enforcement potential of the EU Member States.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has declared the regulation of the penalty regime of model 720 to be contrary to EU law.

The High Court considers that the consequences of not complying are totally disproportionate in relation to the pursued objective of controlling and combating tax fraud.

At the end of the year, the labour market in Spain was reformed on various points through Royal Decree-Law 21/2021 (RDL), on urgent measures to reform the labour market, ensure employment stability and transform the labour market. In assessing the reform, it has already been agreed after a few days that the most important changes have been made in the area of fixed-term contracts.

After months of negotiations with employers and trade unions, the Spanish government reached an agreement on 23 December 2021 on a far-reaching reform of the labour market. It has been implemented through Royal Decree-Law 21/2021 (RDL), published on 30 December 2021, on urgent measures to reform the labour market, guarantee employment stability and transform the labour market.

Spain has transposed Directive (EU) 2019/790 into national law by Royal Legislative Decree 24/2021, which came into force on 4 November 2021. This missed the implementation deadline by a few months. As part of the implementation, the current text of the Copyright Act was changed on a point-by-point basis. The goal is to adapt the applicable copyright to the development of new technologies. A specific legal framework against computer piracy does not exist in Spain.

Franchising is one of the most widely used legal instruments worldwide as a way to expand a business used by companies of all sizes to integrate into national and foreign markets.

Withdrawal or adjustment of the contractual relationship is conceivable on the basis of the principle of "rebus sic stantibus". The application of this principle requires that the circumstances under which the contract was concluded have changed significantly and that the parties would not have concluded the contract had they known of these new, unforeseeable circumstances. The decisive factor is that these circumstances occur after the conclusion of the contract. Furthermore, there must be a gross disproportion between the benefits that leads to an imbalance between the parties which cannot be remedied by other means.

In the case of promotional gifts, taxes play an important role since personal contributions can be considered a form of “enrich-ment” for the recipient and thus fall under the tax liability.

The Constitutional Court has declared the unconstitutionality and nullity of articles 107.1 second paragraph, 107.2 a) and 107.4 of RDL 2/2004, which approves the revised text of the Law regulating the Local Treasury, that refer to the determination of the taxable base of the Tax on the Increase in the Value of Urban Land (commonly known as land value increment tax).

We are pleased to announce that for the sixth consecutive season Atlético Baleares has entrusted Lozano Schindhelm as its official law and tax advisor. At Lozano Schindhelm we are also proud to be sponsors of the Club and to appear as such on the banner of the Estadi Balear and Son Malferit.

Article thirteen of Law 11/2021, of July 9, on measures for the prevention and fight against tax fraud introduces a series of changes to Law 58/2003, of December 17, 2003, General Tax Law (LGT).

The regulation includes important new aspects regarding the voluntary regularization of the tax situation, making it much more advantageous for taxpayers.

Until now, foreign companies operating in Spain through a permanent establishment were obliged to appoint a tax representative resident in Spanish territory for the purposes of Non-Resident Income Tax (NRIT). Law 11/2021, of 9 July, on measures to prevent and combat tax fraud, which came into force on 11th July 2021, has removed this obligation for companies resident in the European Union or in a European Economic Area country with which mutual assistance regulations exist.

The student Lucía García Crespo from the German School of Valencia has received the scholarship Lozano Schindhelm 2021.

On 3 May 2021, Law 5/2021 of 12 April, which partially amends the Spanish Law on Capital Companies (LSC), came into force. With it, Spain transposes the Second Shareholder Rights Directive (SRD II), passed by the European Union on 17 May 2017, with the aim of strengthening investor rights and improving communication between the company and its investors.

The Central Economic-Administrative Court upholds the deductibility of compulsory health insurance and long-term care insurance for German pensions as a deductible expense in personal income tax (IRPF).

The corona pandemic has accelerated the trend towards working from home, the digitalisation of the work environment is advancing. In this process, Spain has become more attractive due to its excellent quality of life, which is why many are toying with the idea of relocating to warmer climes without giving up their jobs or activity.

The income tax campaign for the 2020 tax year starts today, and Personal Income Tax (IRPF) taxpayers can now file their tax returns. The deadline for its presentation ends on June 30, although in the case of direct debit, the deadline ends on June 25.

Until the Court of Justice of the European Union (TJEU) has resolved the preliminary question raised by the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community, it is advisable to request the correction of tax returns and the refund of undue income by the IVPEE, in order to avoid the prescription of the right to claim its refund.

On 1 January 2021, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (hereinafter "United Kingdom") definitively separated from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community (hereinafter "EU"), the transitional period set out in the Withdrawal Agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom having ended. In which situations may UK nationals in Spain find themselves from the date?

The new version of the Insolvency Law strengthens the alternatives to insolvency proceedings provided for. The focus is on the insolvency settlement, which allows the insolvency debtor to reach individual agreements with his creditors.

What types of employment agreements are there in Spain? What is the official minimum wage? What special features must be taken into account in the event of termination of an employment agreement? Which Social Security contributions must be paid? We examine these questions for you hereinafter.

Within insolvency proceedings, the classification of claims phase is among the most important, as creditors can more or less easily claim the amounts owed to them depending on their rank.

Part of a functioning compliance system is the so-called whistleblowing channel. Article 31.2. 4 of the Criminal Code requires companies to report possible risks and non-compliance to the competent oversight body.

The recent jurisprudence of the Supreme Court opens the way for the review procedure of acts that are null and void in their own right for the self-settlements and settlements of Inheritance and Gift Tax in administrative proceedings that are contrary to the STJUE of September 3, 2014, which declared the discrimination in ISD of taxpayers who are not tax residents in Spain to be contrary to Community law.

We are pleased to announce that SCWP Schindhelm Services SE, alliance of European business law firms, has opened a new office in Paris. Our 230 lawyers at 29 locations in 14 countries will thus support you with international  competence, commitment and valuable local experience in every one of your projects.

The new Insolvency Act came into force on September 1, 2020. This clarifies, harmonizes and systematizes a matter that was the subject of countless and unsystematic partial reforms under its predecessor law.

The fight against the gender pay gap has been stepped up in recent years. On 14 October, two key Royal Legislative Decrees (RDL) were published which further develop the principle of wage transparency introduced by RDL 6/2019.

On 22 September 2020 the Royal Decree-Law 28/2020 (RDL) was passed, which for the first time regulates the legal framework of working in homeoffice.

The Schindhelm Alliance opens a new office in Gliwice.

The criminal liability of companies in Spain was introduced in broad outline as early as 2010, but the issue has only become more present in everyday business life since the introduction of Art. 31bis in the Criminal Code.

The student Clara Montero from the German School of Valencia has received the scholarship Lozano Schindhelm 2020.

The student Clara Montero from the German School of Valencia has received the scholarship Lozano Schindhelm 2020.

The Royal Decree-Law 244/2019 brought about a radical change in the regulation of domestic consumption of electronic energy in Spain. This regulation abolished the so-called "solar tax", introduced a simplified compensation system for surpluses, lifted the power limitation and made it easier to manage the own consumption. This leads to a promotion of the development of photovoltaic systems in many areas.

On April 1, the submission deadline for the 2019 fiscal year began, and taxpayers of Personal Income Tax can now file their tax returns. Despite the current state of alarm, the deadline for filing has not been modified, ending on 30 June 2020, although in the case of direct debit the deadline is 25 June.

Many legal questions arise in relation to the current events surrounding the outbreak and spread of the corona virus. We have edited a newsletter with the most important information and created a Lozano Schindhelm COVID-19-Unit consisting of our experts on the most affected legal areas.

Our activity will continue via home office until further notice

In November 2019, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved a new decree that lowers the value of the return applicable to facilities producing electricity from renewable sources, cogeneration and waste.

According to Sec. 1118 ABGB (Austrian Civil Code), the lessor can terminate a lease unilaterally prematurely if the lessee makes a “considerably detrimental use” of the leased object. The scope and content of these legal provisions is a constant source of discussion. The mere performance of structural alterations by the lessee without the consent of the lessor does not in itself justify a good cause for the termination of the lease.

State and corporate compliance obligations to combat money laundering and terrorist financing remain an utmost priority for EU member states. Companies (“legal entities”) have therefore been obliged to disclose their “beneficial owners”, among other things, for quite some time. In Austria, a separate database - the “Beneficial Owners Register” - was set up for this purpose. In course of the implementation of the 5th EU Money Laundering Directive, further tightening measures have now been adopted.

The new “Law on Trade Secrets” now implements the so-called “EU Trade Secrets Directive”. This adopts the European legal requirements for the protection of confidential know-how and secret business information. Moreover, the new legal provisions contain limitation periods and important procedural provisions for the protection of trade secrets in court proceedings.

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) recently ruled on the long-discussed question of whether and how website operators can integrate the Facebook Like button (so-called “social plug-in”) in accordance with data protection requirements.Th ECJ’s investigation results from a legal dispute between the Consumer Association of North Rhine-Westphalia and a subsidiary of Peek & Cloppenburg KG.

A new law on company crises has significantly changed the rules applicable to limited liability companies in this respect Among other things, the liability of the company’s management was tightened. Furthermore, the tasks of the supervisory body were expanded. The reform’s true impact remains to be seen: Will there be a change in corporate culture or will there be an increase in corporate crises?

“Whistleblower” - people who point out violations of the law - will be protected even more in the future. This is the aim of a new law that came into force a few months ago. The new regulation adds to already existing provisions on the protection of whistleblowers in the employment relationship.

State aid is granted on the basis of various criteria. The region or the economic sector in which the investment is made is decisive, but also the strategic importance of the investment and the level of the investment volume. Investments in structurally weak regions receive higher subsidies than investments in industrial areas. For the award of grants, a distinction is made between six different regions.

Schindhelm expands the network and presents Turkey as the newest member of a total of 13 countries.

The law 11/2018 dated 28 December has been in force since the beginning of the year. This selectively modifies the Commercial Code, the Stock Corporation Act and the Law on Auditing.

Justified by the goal of solving legal disputes in a fast and economical manner without filing lawsuits and thus relieving the overloaded Turkish courts, a mediation procedure is implemented as a mandatory pre-condition for filing a lawsuit according to Turkish labour and commercial law.

The Directorate General for Registrars and Notaries, in a brief decision, has recognised the validity of the so-called “pactum marcianum”, an exploitation clause, on the basis of which the creditor can directly exploit the object himself/herself and/or can assign it to himself/herself.

Lecture by Lotta Hilgers and Dr. Moritz Tauschwitz with legal and tax information for real estate owners on the Costa Blanca

According to information from the Commission, there are currently approx. 16 million “cross-border” marriages and registered civil partnerships in the EU. With the so-called EU Property Regime Regulations (Regulations (EU) 2016/1103 and 2016/1104) that became effective on 29 January 2019 in the context of the so-called strengthened collaboration among the current 19 member states, the EU has set the goal for the creation of a uniform legal framework.

The tax regulations governing the establishment of permanent establishments are amended

With the German and Spanish the firm strengthens its international team of professionals and its presence in Barcelona.

Companies invest in know-how, from which there are important competitive advantages. Valuable information is the currency of the knowledge-based company. Maintaining confidentiality of business secrets is therefore a management instrument for competitiveness and research innovations. The loss of secrets can result in serious consequences, in particular, and generally can no longer be reversed.

Adaptation according to the GDPR.

The residual debt discharge (RDD) was introduced in 2015 as an exception from the princip-le of general asset liability of the debtor in the insolvency code.

The electronic transmission of tenders in the award procedure is nothing new and was already standardised in the Federal Procurement Act 2006 both for the classical area and for the area of sector contractors.

As in the past, in the case of company sales, the seller has repeatedly neither paid salaries due nor paid social security contributions due for employees, the Bulgarian Commercial Code was amended accordingly by three successive amendments in December 2017, February and March 2018.

Posting in the framework of transnational provision of services

As of 25 May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) introduces harsh sanctions for data breaches with extended scope of applicability.Companies and other data processing entities become potential subjects not only to the data subjects’ claims for damages, the enforceability of which has been enhanced, but also to increased administrative fines to be imposed by supervisory authorities.

Today starts the 2017 Income Tax Campaign. In this regard, taxpayers of the Personal Income Tax can summit, from this day on, their income tax return. The deadline for its presentation has been extended until July 2, 2017. However, when paid through direct debit, the term ends on June 27.

The General Regulation on Data Protection (GDPR) which will apply from 25th May 2018, introduces the position of the Data Protection Officer (DPO).The DPO shall be the contact person for and shall be involved in all data protection related issues of the given entity. The DPO is an organ within the company which liaises with the authority, the company and the data subjects.

Obligation of the holders of tourist establishments to inform the Police about the travellers they are hosting

New office and amplification of our team

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) adopted by the EU Parliament in 2016 provides a higher standard of protection of personal data for EU citizens. The GDPR will have direct effect in all member states as of May 25, 2018 and it will affect businesses all around the world that are engaged in activities with individuals in the EU.

She joins as new partner and head of the office in Palma de Mallorca.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) adopted by the EU Parliament in 2016 provides a higher standard of protection of personal data for EU citizens. The GDPR will have direct effect in all member states as of May 25, 2018 and it will affect businesses all around the world that are engaged in activities with individuals in the EU.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the EU will come into force on 25 May 2018 and it will affect organisations worldwide working with or within the EU. The GDPR promotes accountability and governance. Organisations are required to put into place comprehensive governance measures to ensure compliance. Non-compliance can lead to heavy fines up to EUR 20 million or 4 % of the global annual turnover, whichever is higher.

The town hall must prove an increase in value

The current issue of the Schindhelm Allianz Newsletter International is available online

Organized by Dr. Isabell Büschel, Of Counsel at Lozano Schindhelm

Fernando Lozano and Unai Mieza gave a seminar in Bilbao

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) adopted by the EU Parliament in 2016 provides a higher standard of protection of personal data for EU citizens. The GDPR will have direct effect in all member states as of May 25, 2018 and it will affect businesses all around the world that are engaged in activities with individuals in the EU.

New sentence strengthens freedom of establishment

He supports the office in Valencia.

She supports the office in Valencia.

She supports the office in Madrid.

Binding statement from the tax administration

Lozano Schindhelm opens a new office in Madrid

Presentation in the stadium Son Malferit

She supports the new office in Madrid.

Contribution of the colleagues Carlos Fernández, Dr. Moritz Tauschwitz and José Tornero in the current issue of the journal IWRZ

The ECJ strengthens consumer protection - banks have to pay back billions

Lozano Schindhelm is in 2017 proud sponsor of the 100th anniversary of the German-Spanish Chamber of Commerce.

Guest speaker at the presentation of a guidebook for Germans in Spain

Measures against tax evasion in Spain

Spanish theme evening, Hannover, 20.10.2016 17:00 h

The new government plans to reform the gift tax

Real estate investments in Spain

Opening of a second office in Taicang

Introduction of the director of our office in Palma de Majorca

We informed about our consulting services on Yachting Law

Since spring 2016 we appear on an international scale as “Lozano Schindhelm”.

Lozano Schindhelm has been elected Best Tax Firm Spain 2016 by the Acquisition International (AI) Magazine.

We are glad to introduce you our new colleague, Carlos Fernández, as a member of L&L Schindhelm, who will be integrated in the Valencia office in the litigation, tax law and commercial law departments.

In order to get closer to our clients from the province of Castellón and the south of Tarragona and provide them a better service, we have set up a new office in the main northernmost town of the Valencian Community. Thus, we complete our presence in all provinces within this Community.

Fernando Lozano and Dr. Moritz Tauschwitz have participated in the Austria Connect Iberian Peninsula 2015, which took place the 1st and 2nd of Octobre 2015 in Madrid.

The new Law on international judicial cooperation on civil matters sets the preclusive period for the enforcement of foreign judgements in Spain at five years

After an increasing number of clients in Majorca have turned to our offices on the Spanish mainland wishing to be represented by us, we are now opening an office in the heart of Palma. Like that we are present directly at your disposal on the Germans’ favourite island and can better offer our services to all our clientes on the Balearic Islands, form Ibiza and Formentera to Menorca.

José Tornero gives a lecture within the IV. annual congress of the Spanish-Austrian Lawyers Association in Graz, the 10th of July 2015, about compliance.

Dr Burckhardt Löber, founding partner of our law-firm, has been elected the 6th of june 2015 honorary member of the the German-Spanish Lawyers Association.

We are a member of the Schindhelm alliance since 01.06.2015.