Your local partner in Spain for Mexican companies
Last updated 2 November 2026
The short answer
Spain does not require a Mexican company to have a Spanish partner or resident directors: it can be the sole shareholder of its subsidiary or open a branch. What Spain does require is a presence: a tax identification number (NIF), a filing with the Investment Register (Registro de Inversiones), the beneficial owner, permits for your staff and, with a branch, a tax representative. Your documents in Spanish need no translation: the apostille is enough. We are your law firm and gestoría (administrative services firm) in Spain: we file and sign on your behalf, with a fixed quote in writing.
Mexico and Spain in figures
| Indicator | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Direct productive investment 2023-2025, by country of ultimate origin | €3,173.7 million (€1,142.9 million in 2025): the leading Latin American investor and the fourth from outside the EU, after the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada | DataInvex, consulted on 2 November 2026, provisional data |
| Investment position at the end of 2022 | €28,370 million, 5.1% of the total: the sixth investor country | Secretariat of State for Trade (Secretaría de Estado de Comercio), Position 2022, consulted on 2 November 2026 |
| Subsidiaries of Mexican groups, 2024 | 157, employing 91,640 people, with a turnover of €13,348 million | Spanish National Statistics Institute (INE), FILINT, table 59943, consulted on 2 November 2026 |
What Spain requires of a Mexican company
| Obligation | Does it apply to you? | Specifically |
|---|---|---|
| Prior authorisation of the investment | In sensitive sectors, or if a State controls your company | Acquiring 10% or control in critical infrastructure or technologies, energy, raw materials, sensitive data or the media requires authorisation, save for exemptions (maximum period of three months); without it, the investment is not valid. Binding prior consultation: 30 working days. |
| Investment Register | Yes | Form D-1A within one month of incorporating, opening a branch or receiving more than €1 million from the group at a term of more than one year; if a Spanish notary is involved, the notary files it. Annual report D-4 if capital or net equity exceeds €3 million. |
| NIF | Yes | A NIF with the letter N for the parent company before signing, one with the letter W for the branch, and a foreigner identity number (NIE) for whoever signs. |
| Tax representative | With a branch, or if the Spanish Tax Agency (Agencia Tributaria, AEAT) requires it | A resident tax representative, appointed before the first return falls due and notified within two months; the representative is jointly and severally liable. Failure to appoint one carries a penalty of €2,000. |
| VAT representative | Only if the parent company must declare VAT in Spain without being established here | Appointed before the first transaction; Mexico is not exempt (only Norway is), unless the EU VAT one-stop shops are used. |
| Beneficial owner | Yes | The subsidiary or branch identifies the natural persons who control more than 25%; the subsidiary declares this every year at the Commercial Registry (Registro Mercantil). |
| Staff | If someone from outside the EU comes over or is hired | Residence and work permit, see below. |
| Apostille and translation | Apostille, yes; translation, no | Mexico has applied the Apostille Convention since 1995; anything drafted in Spanish is not translated. |
| Electronic dealings with the authorities | Yes | Every company deals with the authorities and receives their notifications electronically. |
| Data protection representative in the EU | Only in one case | If the parent company, from Mexico, offers goods or services to people in the EU or monitors their behaviour. |
What changes when you come from Mexico
- Double taxation treaty (1992, with the 2015 Protocol): dividends are exempt in Spain if the parent company holds at least 10% directly for a period of 365 days that includes the day of payment; interest and royalties, at a maximum of 10%.
- Investment protection (the 2006 bilateral investment agreement, Acuerdo de Promoción y Protección Recíproca de Inversiones, APPRI, in force since 2008): treatment no less favourable than that given to Spanish investors, free transfer of dividends, compensation at market value in the event of expropriation, and international arbitration.
- Documents in Spanish: the deed (or policy) of incorporation registered with the Public Registry of Commerce (Registro Público de Comercio) and the powers of attorney are not translated; they are apostilled by the Ministry of the Interior (Secretaría de Gobernación) if they are federal, or by the state Ministry of Government (Secretaría de Gobierno) if they are state documents.
- No visa for short trips: 90 days in any 180-day period, with ETIAS travel authorisation once it is in operation. This covers meetings and signings; working requires a permit.
- Social Security: the 1994 agreement, which covers pensions, keeps a Mexican employee temporarily posted to Spain under Mexican legislation for up to two years, extendable if the work runs longer for unforeseen reasons (certificate ESP/MEX.1), and aggregates contributions paid in both countries.
- Nationality: Mexicans by origin may apply for Spanish nationality after two years of lawful and continuous residence, without renouncing their own before the Spanish authorities and without a language exam, although they must pass the constitutional and sociocultural knowledge test.
- Language: the State General Administration (Administración General del Estado) conducts its procedures in Spanish; your team reads and signs every document without translations.
Without the correct apostille, a foreign document cannot be registered: before you sign in Mexico, we tell you what is needed and which authority apostilles it.
Step by step, from Mexico to an operating subsidiary in Spain
- 1
Review and fixed quote
We review the project (subsidiary or branch, sector, people, timetable), identify the beneficial owners of your group, as the anti-money laundering law requires of us, and send you a fixed quote in writing before we start.
- 2
Resolution and power of attorney in Mexico
We tell you what your governing body needs to resolve and prepare the power of attorney for whoever will sign here; both are executed before a public attesting officer in Mexico and apostilled together with the deed of incorporation.
- 3
NIF and NIE
We apply for the parent company's NIF and prepare the signatory's NIE application; the Spanish notary requires both.
- 4
Incorporation or branch
We obtain the certificate that the company name is not already registered, prepare the articles of association and the documentation for the limited company and, once the deed has been signed before a notary, file it with the Commercial Registry. The branch is registered with the parent company's apostilled documents. Notary, registry and official fees are separate and payable by you.
- 5
Bank account
The bank opens it under its own requirements, and it is the bank that decides whether the signatory must be present.
- 6
Investment Register
We check that the investment is declared on Form D-1A within the following month.
- 7
Tax registration and staff
Tax registration, authorisation to act before the Spanish Tax Agency so that we can deal with its notifications, registration with the Social Security (Seguridad Social), employee registrations and staff permits.
- 8
Annual compliance
Corporate Income Tax, VAT, withholdings on payments to the parent company, related-party transactions, annual accounts and beneficial owner.
Your Mexican team in Spain
To work for the subsidiary, your Mexican staff need a residence and work permit. For executives and qualified profiles, the following routes are available before the Large Companies Unit (Unidad de Grandes Empresas), which has 20 days to decide (if it does not reply, the permit is deemed granted); the consular visa is decided within 10 working days. If the person is already lawfully in Spain, the application extends their stay.
- Intra-corporate transfer: executives, specialists or trainees with three months' prior service in the group; up to three years (one for trainees).
- Highly qualified professional or EU Blue Card: qualified positions in the subsidiary; up to three years, renewable for two.
- Entrepreneur: an innovative project or one of special economic interest, with a favourable report from ENISA (Empresa Nacional de Innovación).
- Family: spouse or partner, minor or dependent children and dependent ascendants, at the same time as the permit holder or later (family reunification).
- Exempt: anyone who also holds Spanish nationality or that of another EU country.
The residence permit for investors has not existed since 3 April 2025.
The treaty with Mexico and what is paid in Spain
The subsidiary is taxed like any Spanish company: Corporate Income Tax at the general rate of 25%. The reduced rates are measured against the turnover of the whole group, and the 15% rate for newly created entities does not apply to those belonging to a group.
| Payment from the subsidiary to Mexico | Without the treaty | Maximum under the treaty |
|---|---|---|
| Dividends to a company holding at least 10% of the capital directly for a period of 365 days that includes the day of payment | 19% | Exempt |
| Other dividends | 19% | 10% |
| Interest on loans from banks, financial institutions or insurers | 19% | 4.9% |
| Other interest, such as that on a loan from the parent company | 19% | 10% |
| Royalties (trade marks, patents, technology) | 24% | 10% |
To apply the treaty, the subsidiary keeps the parent company's certificate of tax residence issued by the Mexican authority, valid for one year. The Protocol denies the benefits to transactions where obtaining them is one of the principal purposes, and its most-favoured-nation clause may reduce the rates on interest and royalties: we review this in each case.
Transactions with the parent company are valued at market price. With a branch, royalties, interest and fees paid to the head office are not deductible, and profits sent to Mexico may bear an additional 19%, unless there is reciprocal treatment: we check this before you choose.
What we do for you
We file and sign on your behalf before the Spanish Tax Agency, the Social Security, the Large Companies Unit (MERCURIO) and the Registries, in writing and remotely. We are available at any time, including during Mexican business hours.
- Subsidiary or branch, with its NIFs, tax registration and beneficial owner.
- Tax representation where the case allows it; if the law were to make us liable for your debt, we tell you beforehand and agree the guarantees.
- Permits for your team and their families, and nationality.
- The subsidiary's taxes and accounts, and European Union trade mark.
We do not provide a registered address, we do not act as directors, secretaries or shareholders of your company, we do not apostille documents or sign sworn translations (we coordinate them), we do not act as customs representative, IOSS intermediary or product responsible person, and we do not handle Spanish trade mark applications filed by a company from outside the European Union.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a Spanish partner to set up a company in Spain?
No. Your company can be the sole shareholder of a limited company. The minimum capital is €1; up to €3,000, the company sets aside 20% of its profit and, if it is wound up without sufficient assets, the shareholders are liable for the shortfall.
Do the deed of incorporation (acta constitutiva) and the powers of attorney have to be translated?
Not if they are in Spanish. They do need an apostille: from the Ministry of the Interior (Secretaría de Gobernación) if they are federal, or from the state Ministry of Government (Secretaría de Gobierno) if they are state documents.
How much does Spain withhold on dividends paid to Mexico?
Nothing, if the parent company is a company holding at least 10% of the capital directly for a period of 365 days that includes the day of payment and evidences its tax residence in Mexico; otherwise, a maximum of 10%, compared with 19% without the treaty.
Do my executives need a visa to come to Spain?
For meetings or signings, no: 90 days in any 180-day period. To work for the subsidiary, they need a permit such as the intra-corporate transfer permit, with a decision period of 20 days.
Can I run the subsidiary from Mexico?
Yes: resident directors are not required. But if it is in fact managed from Mexico, the treaty may place its tax residence there, at its place of effective management: we plan this with you from the outset.
This guide explains the general framework and does not replace a review of your own case: what applies to you depends on your transaction, your sector and your structure.