Economic-Administrative Appeals: A Growing Share of Decisions in Taxpayers’ Favour

The 2023 Report of the Economic-Administrative Tribunals: More Claims Resolved and a Higher Rate of Decisions in Taxpayers’ Favour

The 2023 Report of the Economic-Administrative Tribunals (TEA) records a marked rise in claims and decisions, a higher proportion of claims upheld and continued emphasis on technological modernisation.

1. Overview of the 2023 Report

1.1. Claims filed and resolved

• Claims filed in 2023: 239,177 across the regional (TEAR), local (TEAL) and Central (TEAC) Economic-Administrative Tribunals, up 3.94% from approximately 230,000 in 2022.

• Claims resolved in 2023: 259,596, an increase of 2.50% from 2022 and the highest number in five years. The 2019–2023 average was about 241,000 decisions per year.

Resolving more claims than were filed helped reduce the backlog. The report states the aim is to move closer to decisions within statutory deadlines and avoid unjustified delays.

From 2019 to 2023, an average of about 210,000 claims were filed annually, ranging from around 180,916 in 2019 to 239,177 in 2023. An average of 241,165 were resolved each year, a figure exceeded in 2023.

1.2. Distribution among tribunals

The report details filings and decisions at each regional tribunal, the local tribunals for Ceuta and Melilla, and the TEAC. The largest regional tribunals were:

• Madrid TEAR: 42,509 claims filed and 52,282 decisions in 2023.

• Andalusia TEAR: 37,604 filed and 35,680 decided.

• Catalonia TEAR: 34,033 filed and 36,161 decided.

• Valencia TEAR: 32,479 filed and 33,532 decided.

• Galicia TEAR: 19,407 filed and 21,382 decided.

These five tribunals account for about 70% of claims filed and resolved, broadly reflecting the population and economic weight of their regions.

The TEAC received 11,836 claims and issued 12,011 decisions. In addition to handling certain cases at first instance and appeals, it upheld 2,544 claims in whole or in part, rejected 6,114 and classified 3,353 as “other” outcomes, such as withdrawals, closures or lack of jurisdiction.

1.3. Distribution by tax and type of procedure

The report groups claims by tax (including personal income tax, VAT, corporation tax and transfer and inheritance taxes) and by administrative action, including collection and cadastral matters. Key figures include:

• Collection proceedings: approximately 87,409 filings (36.55% of the total), generally involving surcharges, enforcement orders, transfers of liability and seizures.

• Personal income tax: approximately 60,166 filings (25.16%).

• VAT: 24,883 filings (about 10.40%).

• Transfer tax and stamp duty: 14,591 claims (6.10%).

Together, collection, personal income tax, VAT and transfer tax account for more than 78% of claims in 2023. Other matters, including corporation tax, inheritance and gift tax and cadastral issues, make up the remainder.

2. Outcomes: upheld, rejected and other

Across all decisions in 2023:

• 40.72% upheld the claim in full or in part.

• 50.96% rejected the claimant’s position.

• 8.32% ended in another outcome, such as withdrawal, closure or lack of jurisdiction.

These percentages are broadly consistent with prior years: upheld decisions typically ranged from 30% to 40%, rejected decisions from 50% to 55%, and other outcomes from 6% to 10%. In 2023, the upheld share rose slightly above 40%; the report points to faster processing and more consistent criteria as possible factors.

3. Tax penalties in 2023

The report does not always separate penalty claims from claims concerning assessments or other administrative acts. Based on the figures and historical trends, the article estimates that tax penalties account for 25%–35% of all claims, with around 25%–30% of those upheld in full or in part. These are estimates, not a precise breakdown in the report.

Common reasons for upholding penalty appeals remain:

1. Insufficient reasoning on culpability.

2. Procedural defects, such as defective notices, failure to open a separate procedure or expiry of the deadline.

3. A reasonable interpretation of the rules that rules out culpability.

4. Errors in the penalty base, including where the underlying assessment is cancelled or amended.

4. Qualitative findings in the 2023 Report

1. Technology: electronic transmission and receipt of case files continues to expand across the AEAT, the Directorate-General for the Cadastre and the courts (INSIDE). The new electronic office and Common Documentation Database (BADOCTEA) are also being consolidated to support consistent criteria between the TEARs and TEAC.

2. Strategic priorities: knowledge management, e-government, management by objectives and coordination between regional, central and local tribunals.

3. Reducing the backlog: resolving 259,596 claims while receiving 239,177 helps ease the pending caseload and shorten processing times.

4. Outcomes for taxpayers: with 40.72% of decisions upholding claims in full or in part, taxpayers obtain at least partial relief in roughly two out of five cases. The report also highlights the importance of adequate reasoning, correct procedure and consistency with TEAC criteria.

5. Conclusions and trends

• Both filings (239,177) and decisions (259,596) reached five-year highs in 2019–2023.

• The share of claims upheld rose slightly to about 41%; roughly 51% were rejected and 8% ended for other reasons.

• Disputes remain concentrated in a small number of regions—Madrid, Andalusia, Catalonia, Valencia and Galicia—and mainly concern collection actions and personal income tax.

• For 2024, the stated aim was to complete the tribunals’ digitalisation, reduce backlogs further and reinforce consistent criteria, improving legal certainty and limiting later appeals to the contentious-administrative courts.

References

• 2023 Report of the Economic-Administrative Tribunals, Ministry of Finance.

• TEAC and TEAR statistics for 2019–2022.

In summary, the 2023 Report confirms sustained growth in decisions, a modest rise in the proportion of claims upheld in whole or in part, and continued investment in technology and consistent case law across the Economic-Administrative Tribunals.