Spain is proposing to impose a 100% tax on property purchases for non-EU buyers

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Spain plans to impose a 100% property tax on buyers from non-EU countries such as the UK, in a bid to improve affordability in the housing market by deterring foreign purchases.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced a plan to impose a punitive property tax, which will be applied to non-EU citizens who do not live in EU countries. Spainas part of a set of measures aimed at addressing the “serious” housing crisis.

Spain is one of many European countries where public anger is mounting over the difficulty of finding affordable housing, with property prices rising and construction lagging far behind demand.

“The West faces a crucial challenge: not to become a society divided into two classes, the wealthy landlords and the poor tenants,” Sanchez said as he unveiled a set of 12 measures.

This is a developing story