If your father gives you his car and you live in the Valencia region, you do not pay Transfer Tax (ITP): you pay Gift Tax (Impuesto sobre Donaciones), and you pay it as the person receiving the car (articles 3.1.b and 5.b of Spanish Law 29/1987). Between parents and children, the Valencian regional law (Law 13/1997) gives a €100,000 allowance and a 99% relief, so the bill is usually zero if the gift is made in a public deed (or, up to €4,000, with a qualified electronic signature). You have one month to file form 651 and 30 days to change the owner at the DGT (Spanish traffic authority), with fee 1.5 of €55.70.
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A gift is not a sale
ITP taxes purchases. A gift is a free acquisition and falls under Gift Tax (article 3.1.b of Law 29/1987). The recipient pays (article 5.b), and the tax arises on the day the gift is signed (article 24.2).
Note that the rules are those of the region where the recipient lives, counting where they spent the most days in the previous five years (articles 32.2.c and 28.1.1.b of Law 22/2009). If your son lives in Madrid, Madrid's rules apply even if the car is in Valencia.
If the car comes from someone who has died, the route is different: inheriting a car.
What you pay in the Valencia region in 2026
It depends on the relationship, under Law 13/1997 as amended by Valencian Law 5/2026:
- Children, spouse and parents. An allowance of €100,000 off the taxable base (article 10 bis.2.a). If the child is under 21, €100,000 plus €8,000 for each year under 21, up to €156,000. Plus a 99% relief on the tax due (article 12 bis.1.b). The same for grandchildren, grandparents and registered civil partners (article 12 quater).
- Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, uncles and aunts by blood. No allowance. A 25% relief on the tax (article 12 bis.2.b) and a multiplier of 1.5882 if your existing wealth is no more than €390,657.87 (article 12).
- Cousins, friends and everyone else. No allowance and no relief, and a multiplier of 2 at that same level of wealth.
Watch out: for the €100,000, gifts from the same person in the previous five years are added together (article 10 bis.2.a, last paragraph).
A rough example for a car valued at €9,000, with no earlier gifts (scale in article 11):
- Parent to child, with a public deed: €0.
- Parent to child, with only a private contract: about €697.
- Between siblings, with a public deed: about €830.
- Between siblings, with only a private contract: about €1,107.
The document people forget: the public deed
The allowance and the relief come with a formal condition: the gift has to be made in a public document, or turned into one within the deadline for filing the tax (articles 10 bis.2 and 12 bis.4 of Law 13/1997). In practice that means a deed signed before a notary.
Since 11 August 2026 (Valencian Law 5/2026) there is a simpler route: if the car is for private use and what the same people have given in the previous three years is no more than €4,000, a document signed digitally through a qualified trust service (EU Regulation 910/2014) is enough.
The DGT publishes a standard gift contract that works for the DGT. Not for the tax office: if you only sign that contract on paper and do not turn it into a deed within the following month, you lose the allowance and the relief. Proof of where the funds came from, on the other hand, applies to gifts of money, not to the car.
What the car is worth for tax purposes
You declare the market value (article 9.2 of Law 29/1987). The Valencian Tax Agency (ATV) has an online simulator of the tax value, can check it (article 18) and, if you declared too little, issue a supplementary assessment.
The reference is the Ministry of Finance's average price tables, which for 2026 are in Order HAC/1501/2025 and can be used to check values for Gift Tax (article 2). A percentage for years of use is applied to the table price: 47% between four and five years, 10% over twelve (annex IV).
What if we call it a sale for €1?
It saves less than it seems. In a sale the buyer pays ITP on the market value, not on a lower price (articles 8 and 10.1 of the consolidated ITP Act), and the tax office can check it (article 46). What a normal sale costs is in who pays for a car transfer, our ITP calculator and transferring a car between individuals.
And if it is really a gift, the sale is a sham: the tax office taxes what was actually done, with late-payment interest and, where appropriate, a penalty (article 16 of the General Tax Act). The Valencian reliefs require a deed and a return filed before any request from the tax office (article 12 bis.3 and 4), and a fake sale usually has neither.
What about your father? Normally nothing in his income tax: a car is usually worth less than it cost, and losses on gifts do not count (article 33.5.c of the Income Tax Act). Only a classic that has gone up in value could produce a gain (article 36).
Changing the owner at the DGT, step by step
- Check the car. According to the DGT it must be active, with last year's road tax and any fines paid, and free of retention of title unless the finance company consents. A seizure does not block the transfer if the person receiving the car signs to say they know about it. A DGT vehicle report will tell you.
- Sign the gift in a deed or, up to €4,000, with a qualified electronic signature, stating that it is a gift.
- File form 651 with the Valencian Tax Agency within one month of signing, with no extension (article 12 ter of Law 13/1997), attaching copies of the registration certificate and technical data card. Even if the result is zero.
- Apply for the transfer at the DGT within 30 days of both of you signing the gift (DGT website and article 32.3 of the General Vehicle Regulations). With the gift document signed on every page, proof of form 651, your ID and fee 1.5 of €55.70. In person the new registration certificate is issued on the spot, and it is only valid with the ITV (MOT) in date.
- The giver should protect himself. He must report the transfer within ten days (article 32.1), unless you apply jointly (article 32.5). If your son will take a while, file the notice to the DGT (fee 4.1, €8.67).
Common mistakes
- Signing only the DGT contract and letting the month pass without a deed. This one costs most.
- Filing form 651 in the wrong region. The recipient's residence decides.
- Not filing because the bill is zero. No receipt, no transfer, and filing late has a cost: a surcharge if there is tax to pay and, if nothing is payable, a €100 fine (articles 27 and 198 of the General Tax Act).
- Missing the 30 days. The Regulations provide for immobilisation and a penalty (article 32.3).
When it makes sense to get help
When the notary, the tax office and the DGT have to be lined up within a month, when the recipient lives in another region, when there have been earlier gifts, or when the car carries a charge. We can look at it in a first consultation.
Frequently asked questions
What tax do I pay if my father gives me his car in Valencia?
Gift Tax, not ITP, and you pay it yourself with form 651. With a public deed, the €100,000 allowance and the 99% relief in Law 13/1997 usually bring it to zero.
Do I need a notary to give a car to my child?
Not for the DGT, which accepts a gift contract. Yes for the Valencian allowance and relief, unless the car is worth €4,000 or less and you use a qualified electronic signature.
Can I sell the car to my son for €1?
Yes, but you save nothing: ITP is worked out on the market value. And if it is really a gift, the tax office can treat it as a disguised gift, with interest and a penalty (article 16 of the General Tax Act).
How much does the DGT charge to change the owner after a gift?
€55.70, DGT fee 1.5, the same as for a sale. A separate notice by the giver carries fee 4.1 of €8.67.
What deadlines do I have?
One month from signing to file form 651, and 30 days to apply for the transfer at the DGT. The giver has ten days to report the transfer if you do not file it together.