Ex-tax chief admits ‘lamentable error’ over Zapatero associate’s unpaid taxes

The former director of Spain's tax agency (AEAT), Soledad Fernández, has acknowledged a 'lamentable error' in failing to inspect Julio Martínez, an associate of former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who did not file income tax returns from 2020 to 2023 despite receiving over €50,000 annually and paying €60,000 monthly rent Source: ABC.es. Sources within AEAT expressed shock, suggesting that Martínez's absence from inspection lists for four years implies someone deliberately removed him Source: El Español.

The admission

During a Senate hearing on July 13, 2026, Fernández stated that if the data was available, the oversight 'should have triggered our mechanisms' and called it a 'lamentable error' Source: Infobae. She denied receiving political pressure and insisted her resignation, effective June 30, was planned long before and unrelated to the controversy Source: Infobae. The PP, however, linked her departure to the handling of the case.

Reaction from inspectors

The Association of State Tax Inspectors (IHE) demanded urgent reforms to selection procedures and risk detection systems, warning that such errors undermine taxpayer trust Source: El Mundo. They noted that Martínez controlled a network of companies, including one in the British Virgin Islands, and that delays may have caused tax crimes before 2021 to prescribe Source: El Mundo.

Key facts

• Martínez did not file IRPF for four years.
• He earned €50,218 as a company administrator and paid €60,000 monthly rent.
• AEAT only opened an inspection in June 2026 after judicial intervention.
• Fernández argued that tax secrecy prevented her from giving full details, but the committee's legal counsel insisted she could answer about high-ranking officials Source: Infobae.