Shopping in Spain

In the capital of Spain Madrid, there are different styles of shops in different areas: from the famous Golden Mile (the Salamanca district, especially Calle Serrano) with the most prestigious brands, to alternative and indie shops in Fuencarral and Hortaleza, the window displays of Gran Vía and Calle Preciados, or the famous Sunday morning street market, El Rastro, with over 400 years of history.

Barcelona has become a European hub of innovation and design, and this can clearly be seen on its streets and in its shops. The main retail area in Barcelona is known as the “Shopping Line”: with five kilometres of pedestrianised streets, it is the largest outdoor shopping area in Europe. Take the chance to see the elegant shops of Passeig de Gràcia, the century-old establishments of the Gothic quarter, or the indie designers in the Born district.

Other destinations in Spain also have all kinds of shops, and often sell products made by local artisans. In Andalusia, for example, ask about leather goods, ceramics and metalwork, or traditional Andalusian clothing.

As a non-European Union resident, you can request a refund of the Value Added Tax or VAT (in Spain, IVA) paid on your purchases. You just need to fill in the Tax-Free form in the shops where you buy them. Then, get the form validated at Customs within 3 months of the purchase date.

From 1 January 2019 the electronic DIVA system is the only valid procedure for validating invoices at Customs. This new system speeds up the process of validating the documents and refunding the tax. With this method, you just have to ask the shops offering this service to provide the DIVA web form, and validate it directly at the automatic terminals installed in many airports and in Spain’s main ports and land border Customs.

You also have the option of getting your VAT refund in advance, before stamping in the customs office on the last day, through Global Blue. This company has offices and information points ready to do this job in the following city centres: Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Girona, Tarragona, Lloret de Mar and Puerto Banús.

You can see all the requirements for getting VAT refunds in this Spanish Tax Agency leaflet.

More information on the DIVA electronic tax free system.

Informational video on the Spanish Tax Agency’s DIVA system.

Consult the list of Spanish airports and ports offering the DIVA service.