North America

How to Avoid Errors in Fire Brigade Charge Reporting in Spain

Hector Fernandez
May 11, 2021

This blog was last updated on August 5, 2025

The Spanish tax system is one of the most complex in Europe. This can bring a real challenge to insurance companies writing business in Spain or for those that want to start writing business in the country.

As explained in previous blogs, Spain has various taxes and surcharges on insurance premiums with different rates and several reports which must be declared. In this blog, we’ll focus on the Fire Brigade Charge (FBC).

Fire Brigade Charge

FBC is one of the surcharges that insurance companies should file and pay in Spain. Its complexity lies in the fact that the surcharge is the full responsibility of the local governments (councils, provincial councils, etc.).

According to local legislation, municipalities with more than twenty thousand inhabitants are obliged to provide the fire extinguishing service themselves or by association. There are more than 380 municipalities that can create their own FBC municipal taxes. In addition, there are 41 provincial councils that provide support to those small municipalities.

Annual report: Who has the obligation to file the report?

To be compliant with the FBC, insurance entities must file reports in these cases:

  • Entities authorised to write class 8 and 9 (Fire & Natural Forces and other damages to Property) in Spain need to report the policies subscribed during the last year.
  • An entity that has ceased its activity in Spain and will no longer write insurance business in this territory must declare the policies insured for the part of the year that the entity was active. This applies even if the entity will not be active or will not continue covering risk in Spain.

Important points about Spain’s Fire Brigade Charge

As explained previously, the FBC is a municipality charge. It’s extremely important to identify the location of the risk insured, which is possible through the use of postal codes. It’s important to include the correct post code to ensure a successful submission. This is for both the municipalities and to be compliant with the FBC report.

In the report the class of business must be split by fire and natural forces and other damages to property as follows:

  • Multi risk homeowners
  • Fire
  • Multi risk shop
  • Multi risk industry
  • Other multi risk policies

It’s also important to correctly classify the fire and multi risk policies. Levies can vary substantially if the class of business is wrongly identified, from 5% to 2.5%.

As explained, businesses need to submit the FBC report annually. The annual FBC report requires collecting information regularly for use. This will avoid delays in collecting the necessary information.

Municipal Fire Brigade Charge (MFBC)

In addition to the national FBC, insurance companies may be subject to a Municipal Fire Brigade Charge (MFBC) if the insured risks are located in the Region of Madrid because some Madrid Councils have implemented a municipal levy (MFBC). MFBC rates vary by municipality and coverage type, ranging from 5% to 30%, and may be fixed or variable. The declaration period is typically annual.

Take Action

Talk to our team to find out how we can help you stay compliant in Spain or read our overview about IPT in Spain.

Sign up for Email Updates

Stay up to date with the latest tax and compliance updates that may impact your business.

Author

Hector Fernandez

Hector, a principal compliance services representative, joined the country team at Sovos in 2019 and specializes in Spanish insurance premium taxes. He has eight years’ experience working in Spain (Broseta Abogados) and Dublin (HERTZ) in tax departments dealing with direct and indirect taxes and has completed a Degree in Law and a Masters in International and Community Taxes. He is a Member of the Bar association Law Madrid (ICAM).
Share this post

Supreme Court Peters v. Cohen
North America Unclaimed Property
August 5, 2025
Supreme Court Petition Challenges State Unclaimed Property Laws: Peters v. Cohen

This blog was last updated on August 5, 2025 Supreme Court Peters v. Cohen: Major Unclaimed Property Case By Freda Pepper, General Counsel, Unclaimed Property Sovos regulatory team is tracking the latest Supreme Court Peters v. Cohen, a landmark case that raises fundamental questions about how state unclaimed property laws handle dormant assets and the […]

NAUPA III file format
North America Unclaimed Property
August 5, 2025
NAUPA III File Format: What Compliance Teams Need to Know

This blog was last updated on August 5, 2025 The National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators (NAUPA) has approved a major update to their electronic reporting standards with the introduction of the NAUPA III file format. This significant advancement in unclaimed property reporting represents a modernization effort that aims to streamline the submission process while […]

See for yourself how the Sovos Compliance Cloud can meet your business' unique tax compliance challenges.
Book a Demo
© 2025 Sovos Compliance, LLC. All rights reserved.
Why Sovos?
Resources
About
Products
Indirect Tax Suite
Information Reporting and Withholding Suite
Specialty Products
Solutions
By Tax or Document Type
By Industry
By Team or Initiative
By Region