In 1854, the personal taxes, first called cédulas de vecindad, later cédulas de empadronamiento, and finally, cédulas personales, were established as capitation taxes and were a type of personal identification document up until 1943 (Martín Niño, 1972). It is a source that is hardly used in Spain and even less linked with the population registers, which is one of the novelties of our Demodesigual project. In 1870, three personal tax classes were created but the tax was abolished in 1873 (Melis Maynar, 2019).
It was reinstated in 1874 with 9 tax classes and in 1884 the 11 classes that lasted for the rest of its duration were instituted. From 1874 onwards, the tax classes were established based on information about direct taxes paid on real estate or industrial activities, annual salaries (only workers with annual contracts, not day laborers), and annual housing rents (Pérez Hernández, 2020).
Its structure was similar to that of the population registers, gathering individual personal, occupational, and fiscal information for all citizens aged 14 years and over residing in each municipality, together with their address.
These taxes were modest in terms of yields, but they were important in terms of the creation of a liberal tax system (Marín Corbera, 2010). Preparation of the collection lists and the tax collection itself was a municipal responsibility, like the population registers, which is another indication of the quality of these sources. Its broad coverage in terms of measures of wealth and income for much of the population is also worth noting. However, active and inactive women alike fall into a single category, making its use as an economic measure unadvisable, whereas the men are represented in all the tax categories
BIBLIOGRAFÍA:
- Carreras, Albert; Prados de la Escosura, Leandro; Rosés, Joan R. (2005). «Renta y riqueza». Cap. 17 en Carreras, Albert; Tafunell, Xaviers (coord.) Estadística Históricas de España, Siglos XIX-XX. Fundación BBVA, 1297-1376.
- García Ruipérez, Mariano (2012). “El empadronamiento municipal en España. Evolución legislativa y tipología documental”. Documenta & instrumenta, 10: 45-86.
- Hernández Andreu, Juan (2009). “Los orígenes de la fiscalidad española contemporánea”. Revista empresa y humanismo, 12 (1): 63-88.
- Martínez Cuadrado, Miguel (1976). “El sistema Social”. La burguesía conservadora (1874-1931). Alianza Universidad, Madrid: 216-283.
- Melis Maymar, Francisco (2019). “Distribución personal y provincial de la renta en 1926 según el Impuesto de Cédulas Personales”. Papeles de Trabajo 3/2019. Instituto de Estudios Fiscales, Madrid.
- Portillo Navarro, María José (1997). “Evolución del sistema impositivo español desde 1845 hasta la <reforma tributaria silenciosa> de Flores de Lemus”. Anales de Derecho. Universidad de Murcia, 15: 129-149.