STS 1218/2025, October 1, 2025 (3rd Chamber, 2nd Section). The Supreme Court has established a legal principle: it is not permissible to demand late payment interest arising from the suspension of the enforcement of an act (Art. 26.2.c LGT) when the enforcement surcharge is already due (Arts. 28.2 and 28.5 LGT) because the debt was in the enforcement period at the time the suspension was requested.
The Key Point of the Ruling
STS 1218/2025 (October 1, 2025). The Supreme Court establishes the following legal principle: it is not possible to simultaneously demand late payment interest and an enforcement surcharge when, at the time the suspension of the act was granted, the debt was already in the enforcement period.
In other words, the Tax Authority, Hacienda, cannot “double” the compensation for the same event—non-payment during the voluntary period—by applying both the enforcement surcharge and late payment interest at the same time. The ruling emphasizes that late payment interest, surcharges for late filing, and surcharges from the enforcement period are all compensatory in nature, so they cannot be applied simultaneously.
What this means for businesses and self-employed individuals
- Tax assessments in the collection process: if your debt enters the enforcement phase and you request a suspension through economic-administrative channels, you cannot be required to pay both the enforcement surcharge and suspension interest for this same time period.
- Review of tax assessments: it is worth reviewing assessments where suspension interest has been charged alongside the enforcement surcharge, to evaluate the possibility of recovering overpaid amounts.
