Divorced parents say tax reform is pushing them into poverty
Divorced fathers with shared custody say Spain's tax reform bars them from filing jointly with their children and counting their real income, costing them benefits.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Divorced parents say tax reform is pushing them into poverty
Divorced fathers with shared custody have appeared before the Juntas Generales de Bizkaia (the regional assembly of Biscay) to denounce that the removal of joint filing with their children is impoverishing them. "We don't want to pay as much as a single person," they protest. The new criterion of the Basque tax authorities prevents a separated parent from filing jointly with their children, even when they live together part of the time. The result is a tax bill similar to that of a single person with no dependants, even though the parent continues to support the children through child support payments.
How the system counts fictitious income
One affected parent explains the paradox: "If I earn 40,000 euros and pay 12,000 in child support, my disposable income is 28,000. But the tax office still counts 40,000 when calculating access to benefits such as school meals. So I'm not entitled to them and I still have to pay." The problem worsens with shared custody: without exclusive custody, the parent is not recognised as a single-parent family and joint filing is not allowed, while the parent with full custody does enjoy those advantages.
Tax consistency or a penalty for separating
The rules state that joint filing is only possible for married couples. Divorced people must file individually, even if they have children. Those who defend the system argue it is logical: if you are not married, you are taxed as single. Critics, however, point out that this ignores the reality of post-separation families, where the costs of the children are shared. One commenter notes that "going it alone has its advantages" (single-parent and large-family status), while shared custody receives no favourable treatment at all.
A debate that goes beyond ideology
Behind the protest lies a question of principle: should income tax reflect a taxpayer's real economic capacity or their legal situation? While those affected demand that child support payments be deducted from the taxable base or that joint filing with children be allowed, the tax authorities maintain that the rules are clear in order to prevent fraud. What nobody disputes is that the current system financially penalises separation, just as housing and child-rearing costs keep rising.
Related debates in the forum
Divorced fathers with shared custody have appeared before the Juntas Generales de Bizkaia (the regional assembly of Biscay) to denounce that the removal of joint filing with their children is impoverishing them. "We don't want to pay as much as a single person," they protest. The new criterion of the Basque tax authorities prevents a separated parent from filing jointly with their children, even when they live together part of the time. The result is a tax bill similar to that of a single person with no dependants, even though the parent continues to support the children through child support payments.
How the system counts fictitious income
One affected parent explains the paradox: "If I earn 40,000 euros and pay 12,000 in child support, my disposable income is 28,000. But the tax office still counts 40,000 when calculating access to benefits such as school meals. So I'm not entitled to them and I still have to pay." The problem worsens with shared custody: without exclusive custody, the parent is not recognised as a single-parent family and joint filing is not allowed, while the parent with full custody does enjoy those advantages.
Tax consistency or a penalty for separating
The rules state that joint filing is only possible for married couples. Divorced people must file individually, even if they have children. Those who defend the system argue it is logical: if you are not married, you are taxed as single. Critics, however, point out that this ignores the reality of post-separation families, where the costs of the children are shared. One commenter notes that "going it alone has its advantages" (single-parent and large-family status), while shared custody receives no favourable treatment at all.
A debate that goes beyond ideology
Behind the protest lies a question of principle: should income tax reflect a taxpayer's real economic capacity or their legal situation? While those affected demand that child support payments be deducted from the taxable base or that joint filing with children be allowed, the tax authorities maintain that the rules are clear in order to prevent fraud. What nobody disputes is that the current system financially penalises separation, just as housing and child-rearing costs keep rising.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (11 replies).
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