A View from the Mountains

Pope Francis died this morning, it was announced by the Vatican. He was 88 and had been seriously ill for two months. Now, the first ever South American Pope, Francisco from Argentina, has left us.

[Obituary notice courtesy of ABC News]    

The conclave of archbishops is already in session to choose his successor. Until smoke rises from the chamber where the Archbishops meet and seek guidance from God, the world is pope-less!

This is, of course, of little interest to Muslims, Hindus, atheists and even non-Catholic Christians.

A personal perspective

I am not a Roman Catholic. I was christened in the Church of England, raised as a Methodist and later, as a young adult, baptised in the Pentecostal church.

However, as a young teacher I only taught in Roman Catholic schools in England, three of them in fact. As a form teacher and later Head of Year I found myself obliged to go through the Catholic motions. I led assemblies, said the prayers and delivered a "thought for the day" (like a mini-sermon). I attended school masses, although I didn't take holy communion, strictly speaking not allowed for those not baptised as Catholics.

A C of E christening [Photo: Lightstock]    

Me and Popes

I happened to be in France in 2005 when Pope John-Paul II "popped his clogs". I was staying with my English friend Alan, a converted Catholic, at his French father-in-law´s house in Metz (Moselle).

We both went to the service in Metz cathedral to celebrate the new Pope, Benedict, a German, who was "selected" after just two days of the conclave.

Metz Cathedral [Photo: Wikipedia]    

When Benedict "resigned" in 2013 - unheard of in the history of the papacy - I was aware that the new Pope, Francis, was a Spanish-speaker and allegedly a bit of a reformer. I have to say, as an interested outside observer, Francis turned out to be a disappointment.

Now he's gone and it will be interesting to see who is next. Will they play safe and choose another Italian?

Last word

RIP Francisco. When all is said and done, he was a human being and many will be saddened by his passing. However, he had a good innings.

Being celibate, I assume he has no family to mourn him.

[Image courtesy of Sky News]    

© The Real Inspector Hound

Photos and images:

ABC News, Sky News, Lightstock, Wikipedia

Information source:

Wikipedia

Tags:

2005, 2013, ABC News, another Italian, Archbishops, Argentina, atheists, A View from the Mountains, baptised in the Pentecostal church, Benedict, celebrate the new Pope, celibate, Church of England, conclave of archbishops, converted Catholic, English friend Alan, first ever South American Pope, form teacher, France, Francis, Francisco, German, go through the Catholic motions, Head of Year, Hindus, holy communion, human being, Lightstock, Methodist, Metz, Metz cathedral, Moselle, Muslims, no family to mourn him, non-Catholic Christians, Paul Whitelock, Pope Francis, Pope John-Paul II, RIP Francisco, Roman Catholic, Roman Catholic schools in England, school masses, smoke rises from the chamber, Spanish-speaker, The Pope is dead - Long live the Pope, The Real Inspector Hound, those not baptised as Catholics, "thought for the day", Vatican, Wikipedia

The start of the new Tax Year in the UK is always on 6 April and runs until 5 April of the following year. Why? I can't answer that, but I do know that it's out of step with most, if not all, other advanced countries.

I've lived in France and Germany in the past and now live here in Spain. The tax year in those countries is the same as the calendar year, ie January 1st until December 31st.

Preamble

So why I am I posting about this on Eye on Spain? Well, because there are large numbers of British people living here and even more who own property which they visit for up to 90 days a year (since Brexit) and they may/will have tax liabilities in the home country.

So, how many of us are there?

[Photo courtesy of iStock]    

A Google search reveals conflicting numbers - no site in the first ten which appeared as a result of my search agrees on the figure. Numbers range from 293,171 UK nationals who were residents in Spain at the start of 2023, according to padrón census records from town halls across the country (SGM Abogados - a legal firm) to 412,040 Britons who are residents in Spain, according to immigration observatory data, as of December 31st 2022 (Right Casa Estates - an estate agency).

According to the latest figures from Spain’s Ministry of Migrations, there are a total of 409,763 Brits living in Spain. This is over 115,000 more than the figure stated by Spain’s statistics body the Instituto Nacional de Estadistica INE (source - The Local - a news website).

Wikipedia starts with a definition: "British people or Britons, also known colloquially as Brits, are the citizens of the United Kingdom, the British Overseas Territories, and the Crown dependencies."

The online encyclopedia goes on to inform us that there were 262,885 Brits residing in Spain in 2020.

Anyway, whatever the true figure, there are lots of us here, all keen to know what Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves has done.

The main fiscal points

[Source: Which? The Consumers' Association]

Stamp duty holiday comes to an end, plus rates hiked on second homes.

Rachel Reeves [FaceBook]    

The current extra stamp duty relief for first-time buyers and home movers in England and Northern Ireland is set to end on 31 March 2025. From 1 April, the stamp duty threshold for first-time buyers will drop from £425,000 to the previous rate of £300,000. 

From the same date, home movers will pay stamp duty on purchases over £125,000, rather than the current £250,000.

Council tax rises

Households should brace themselves for higher council tax bills from April 2025.

Most councils in England are able to raise council tax rates by 5% without needing to call a referendum. 

Those rules remain unchanged for the next financial year, so you could see your council tax bill increase by up to 5% again in 2025. Given the average Band D council tax bill in England is currently £2,171, this could mean a rise of £109.

Employer National Insurance increase

The government will increase National Insurance contributions for employers from 13.8% to 15% from 6 April 2025.

In addition, the threshold for when employers need to start paying the tax will be lowered from £9,100 to £5,000.

Although these changes won't affect most people directly, this change could have a knock-on effect on employees, through employers offering lower pay increases or less generous employment benefits in future.

Other financial changes which affect me personally from April 6th

Pensions

- A 4.1% rise is payable on my UK state pension from April 6th. I got the letter informing me yesterday.

- My private pension will get a 1.7% increase. I expect a letter with my P60 any day now.

Whilst these increases are welcome, they are not going to up my spending power.

[MPF]    

Travel

Rail Travel (RENFE) - discount railcard. The last time I purchased one it cost 12 euros for a year.

Tarjetasesentaycinco - free for over-65s. Gives all kinds of discounts and free services. The most interesting benefit for us is 50% off interurban bus travel.

[Ideal]    

Links:

HOW TO ….. do your Spanish INCOME TAX return?

“WHEN I’M 65…”: HOW TO ….. get a tarjetasesentaycinco

5TH TIME LUCKY - IN LOVE WITH SEVILLA AT LAST

Photos and Images:

Facebook, Ideal, iStock, MPF, Right Casa Estates, SGM Abogados, The Local, Wikipedia

© Pablo de Ronda

Acknowledgements/Sources:

Consumers Association, HMRC, Merseyside Pension Fund, Right Casa Estates, SGM Abogados, The Local, Which?, Wikipedia

Tags:

April 6th, Brexit, Brit, British Overseas Territories, Briton, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Crown dependencies, discount railcard, Employees NI contribution, Eye on Spain, Facebook, fiscal, gestor, gestoria, Ideal, iStock, HMRC, Merseyside Pension Fund, Pablo de Ronda, Paul Whitelock, private pension, Rachel Reeves, RENFE, Right Casa Estates, Sevilla, SGM Abogados, Spanish Income Tax Return, tax year, The Local, tarjetasesentaycinco, UK state pension, Wikipedia