«60% of clients come to us when it's already hard to change anything». Igor Lapchynskyi on taxes, partnerships, trademarks, and real cases from his firm's practice.
Lawyer, founder of Lapchynskyi & Partners.
— Igor, do clients often come to you too late?
Unfortunately, that's the norm. Roughly 60/40: most inquiries come in when it's already too late, rather than when the problem could still have been prevented. Spain is very strict about deadlines — the opportunity simply expires. You can file an appeal, write a letter, but the outcome will already be different. We work with the reality that already exists.
— Share some cases from your practice that have stayed with you.
One of them was a woman who had been widowed. Her husband's daughter left her out of the inheritance. Under Spanish law, a widow is entitled to the so-called cuarta parte — a quarter of the joint estate. We secured her rights through the courts.
The second case is a classic labor story: someone was promised payment and never received it. We filed a lawsuit and secured not only financial compensation but also the restoration of all worked days within the social security system — that's pension-qualifying service, real money down the line.
And the third, the most memorable one. When I was just starting out, a family came to us — their child had cancer. They arrived with no resources at all. We arranged a humanitarian residence permit for them and didn't charge a single cent. The child recovered in Spain. He still stops by the office from time to time. That's what you work for.
— Let's talk taxes. Self-employed (autónomo) or a limited company (SL) — which is more advantageous?
Clearly: once you reach a normal income level — especially once you start hiring employees — move from autónomo to an SL.
An autónomo carries unlimited personal liability toward creditors, the tax office, and social security. If something goes wrong, all of your personal assets are at risk. In a company, liability is limited to the share capital. That's a fundamental difference.
On taxes: an autónomo is taxed on a progressive scale from 19% to 47%. The more you earn, the more you give up. In a company, corporate tax is 15% for the first two years, then 23%. On top of that, there are two ways to take out profit: salary (the same progressive scale as autónomo) or dividends — 19, 23, 28, 30%, depending on the amount.
A combination of salary plus dividends is usually more advantageous than autónomo status. My general recommendation for Spain: keep as much as possible inside the company. Cars, real estate — register everything under the legal entity. Here, it doesn't pay to hold assets as an individual.
— Is the wealth tax real?
Yes, it exists. The amount depends on the region. Madrid has no such tax, for political reasons. Valencia does. That's also worth factoring in when choosing a region to register a business or buy property.
— You mentioned it's better not to fight the tax office.
That's one of the most important things I tell clients. Tax law has no presumption of innocence, unlike criminal law. The tax office names a figure, and you have to prove they're wrong. You can argue whatever you like — they'll say no.
Then the economic tribunal will say no too. And only after 6–7 years, as in Shakira's case, do you reach the Tribunal Superior — and only there are you on equal footing.
I know people who lost everything to the tax office — house and business. One tax misstep. That's why, when the tax office offers "pay 30% now at a discount, but sign that you agree," many people accept. And often that's the right call, because the alternative is a years-long court battle with an uncertain outcome.
— What's the right way to formalize a business partnership legally?
This is probably the single most important piece of advice for anyone going into business with someone else. Sign a partnership agreement that spells out absolutely everything: rules for selling a stake, rules for exiting the partnership, division of roles and authority. Most people go into business on trust — and that's exactly why they later lose huge amounts of money on lawyers.
One company I worked with — 50/50, a large business. A conflict broke out. The lawyers hired lawyers, and they divided up clients, office, profits, staff. In the end they reached a settlement, but spent enormous amounts of money. The reason was always the same: the rules of the game had never been written down.
Another case — a pastry chef and an investor. He put in the money, she put in the skills and labor. They fell out. Part of the money was in cash. How do you split it? How do you prove anything? Everything turned into chaos.
A partnership agreement is your constitution. It costs from 250 euros. Compared to the consequences of not having one, these are incomparable sums.
— Should you register a trademark?
Absolutely — and as early as possible. The principle is simple: whoever registers first is the owner. Someone can spot your brand, register it under their own name, and then send you a claim demanding payment for using your own name. These are real cases. As soon as I opened my company, I immediately registered three trademarks. One under my own surname, because if the company ever changes its name for any reason, the surname-based trademark will always remain mine.
Registering a trademark in Spain costs around 450 euros plus VAT, plus a 124-euro fee. It takes anywhere from 9 months to a year and a half. If you want protection across all of Europe, it's 750 euros plus VAT, plus an 800-euro fee, plus 50 euros for each additional class. But that covers all 27 EU countries and lasts 10 years.
— You have dozens of consultations a day — that's a serious load. How do you recover from that kind of pressure?
Two things. First — the morning gym. I start my day at 6:00–6:30. I can no longer force myself after work, so it has to be in the morning. It helps me leave the stress there and start the day in a different state of mind.
Second — I'm learning to switch off on weekends. That didn't happen overnight. There are categories of calls on Saturdays and Sundays that I always take myself — extradition, detention, and acute family conflicts. Everything else goes to colleagues. Because if you never switch off, every client passes through you personally — and that's emotionally exhausting. Right now I practically don't handle cases myself anymore — I focus on organization, oversight, and select consultations. The work is spread across specialists, because handling everything yourself at this volume is simply no longer physically possible.
— One last question: what's your main piece of advice for entrepreneurs in Spain?
Watch your reputation. For me, when working with people, integrity comes first, and professionalism only after that. You may live in big cities, but believe me — they're all small. Everyone knows everything. If someone does something wrong, by the next day everyone knows about it. Reputation is the one asset you can't buy and can lose very easily.
