Awake, for morning in the bowl of night has flung the stone that puts
the stars to flight.
And, lo, the hunter of the east has caught the sultan’s turret in a noose of light!

Spanish life is not always likeable but it is compellingly loveable – Christopher Howse: ‘A Pilgrim in Spain.

Cosas de España

The defunct Golden Visa Scheme has had some life breathed into it. It’s now the walking dead, as least for a few months.

Spanish friends at dinner last night told me there’s a tax payable on someone’s death of 3% of the value of their household assets. I found this hard to believe but there’s an AI answer on it below. It’s called the Ajuar Doméstico. BTW . . . I did Probate for both of my parents. I don’t recall having to calculate 3% of 50 or 100% of their furniture, for example. Or 3% of the value of my father’s 3 sets of golf clubs. Actually, I’m pretty sure I didn’t. Because I wasn’t asked/compelled to.

Coffee prices are said to be about to rise by up to 70%, for one reason or another. Maybe I should stock up. Or change to alcohol.

Cousas de Galicia

Giantkillers Pontevedra F C are to face another First Division club – Getafe – in the Copa de Rey next week. Will the fairy tale continue​? Will I go to see the match?

Portugal

Portugal remains one of the most unequal countries in the EU, with a fifth of the population (2.1m people) living in poverty or social exclusion.

Why global travellers are flocking there.

Germany

Still playing God, Musk sort of interviews the leader of the far-right AfD party.

The USA

Musk is reported by the FT to be seeking information on building a British political party – notably the right-wing populist Reform UK party – to force a change of prime minister before the next election. Ignorance is no bar to ambition, as someone once said.

The Way of the World/English

‘Genocide is now clearly one of those words – like ‘liberal’ and ‘fascist – which have lost their original meaning.

The USA/Social Media/Quotes of the Day

• Social media is not a free speech machine. Never was. Source.
• Meta’s plan to end its fact-checking program is about appeasing Trump. That signals the making of a mafia state. IBID
• Meta never cared about fact-checking. What it wants is friction-free oligarchy,  where those with the most power and influence no longer have to contend with facts or corrections. IBID.
• It’s looking more and more like what I’ve got. And the stupid Americans willingly voted for it!: Vladimir Putin.

Spanish

Cal y arena: The good and bad aspects of someone/something. Examples:-

• La Unión Europea está dando una de cal y otra de arena.  The European  Union is blowing hot and cold at the same time.
• El imperialismo internacional sabe muy bien cómo dar una de cal y otra de arena, cómo intercambiar las incursiones con la ayuda humanitaria. International imperialism is well versed in the art  of using the stick and the carrot, of alternating bombing incursions with humanitarian aid.
•  La reforma judicial no necesita de cal, sino de arena.  Judicial reform needs the stick, not the carrot

Finally . . .Did you know?

Can you guess what this is?

It’s something that was quite common in the UK in the 19th century – a urine deflector. If you pee’d on it, you got your own back, as it were. They can still be seen around London.

We could do with several of these in Pv city the nights the Peñas gather in Plaza de Teucro after the annual bullfights.

The Ajuar Doméstico Tax

In Spain, the law regarding the valuation of a deceased household’s objects for inheritance tax purposes involves a concept called “Ajuar Doméstico” or household goods.

1. The Spanish inheritance tax law traditionally included a presumption that household goods were valued at 3% of the deceased’s estate
2. This 3% was automatically added to the value of the estate for tax calculation purposes, unless proven otherwise by the heirs
3. However, recent Supreme Court rulings have significantly changed the interpretation and application of this law:
   • The 3% is no longer automatically applied to all assets in the estate
   • The “Ajuar Doméstico” now only includes specific types of assets, namely movable goods used for the family home or personal use of the deceased
   • Money, stocks, real estate, and other intangible assets are explicitly excluded from this category
4. Heirs now have the right to prove that the value of household goods is lower than 3% or that they don’t exist at all
5. The burden of proof has shifted, making it easier for heirs to challenge the automatic application of the 3% rule
6. If there is a surviving spouse, 3% of the cadastral value of the couple’s habitual residence will be deducted from the 3% value of the household goods

My thanks to those readers who take the trouble to Like my posts.

The Usual Links . . .

• You can get my posts by email as soon as they’re published. With the added bonus that they’ll contain the typos I’ll discover later. I believe there’s a box for this at the bottom of each post. If you do this but don’t read the posts, I will delete your subscription. So perhaps don’t bother if you have other reasons for subscribing . . .
• For new readers: If you’ve landed here looking for info on Galicia or Pontevedra, try here. If you’re passing through Pontevedra on the Camino, you’ll find a guide to the city there.
• For those thinking of moving to Spain:– This is an extremely comprehensive and accurate guide to the challenge, written by a Brit who lives in both the North and the South and who’s very involved in helping Camino walkers. And this is something on the so-called Beckham Rule, which is beneficial – tax-wise – for folk who want to work here. Finally, some advice on getting a mortgage. And this article ‘debunks claims re wealth and residency taxes’. Probably only relevant if you’re a HNWI. In which case, you’ll surely know what that stands for.