Gran Canaria: EU-Certified Quality of Life
As the residents of Gran Canaria and the millions who visit it well know, the island ranks as one of the territories with the best quality of life in Europe.
The reasoning and the intuition which explain why independent professionals and workers relocate year after year to the Canaries is forcefully and quantitatively backed up in the latest report drawn up by the European Commission's European Spatial Planning Observation Network (ESPON). ESPON's mission is to give advice and reinforcement to the European Union's policies for cohesion, and it publishes an annual report on the status of the living conditions in Europe. The report analyses up to 50 variables, grouped into three major categories (quality of life enabler indicator; life maintenance indicator; life flourishing indicator), with a level of breakdown in line with the NUTS-3 standard, and including the territories of the European Economic Area (Norway, Switzerland, Iceland). This analytical exercise provides specific data for the island of Gran Canaria.
Among other factors, there is analysis of indicators such as quality of air, water, noise, contamination, access to healthcare, green infrastructures, labour market, natural spaces, governance, social interaction rates, and the like; this allows the identification of the potential of the various European regions, cities and territories, and the economic challenges they are facing.
The result of this study, with 2020 data, places Gran Canaria as the fifth territory at national level in terms of quality of life (with a score of 0.58), practically tied with the fourth (0.59 points). The Canarian territories rank immediately after the NUTS-3 of the Basque Country and well ahead of Spain's remaining island and coastal destinations. It is quite clear that Gran Canaria places at the topping range, rivalling regions and provinces in Scandinavia, Germany and Switzerland.
In comparison with the highest scoring territory of the ranking (0.69), Gran Canaria outstandingly performs in various aspects: healthcare, environmental health, biodiversity, cultural values and social harmony/sense of social belonging. In the final analysis, this compound score, known as TQoL, reflects the capacity of living beings to survive and flourish in a certain place, thanks to the economic and societal factors and the ecological conditions of the territory.
‘Best in Gran Canaria’ and the SPEGC (link) are working to share information and provide support for all those professional and entrepreneurial projects which decide to grow and consolidate their global impact from a destination which is a unique place to live: Gran Canaria.
Gran Canaria: ‘Embrace your new Home’
‘Best in Gran Canaria’ and the Economic Promotion Agency of Gran Canaria (‘Sociedad de Promoción Económica de Gran Canaria’- SPEGC) continue with their shared efforts to provide information, intelligence and support to companies, entrepreneurs and professionals with relocation plans to the island. Gran Canaria is indeed a top-tier destination for work, entrepreneurship, business and personal development. As such, this full-scale digital approach aims at showcasing how easy it is to relocate on the island rather than merely introducing the attributes that make of Gran Canaria a global hotspot for quality of life.
After the launch of ‘Moving to Gran Canaria: the complete relocation guide’ and its broad success in the media, the latest version already includes feedback and tips received from readers, users and local economic agents. Hence, the guide is now a validated instrument for attracting talent and professionals that has been widely advertised and used by established and soon-to-arrive companies. We equally know that both remote workers and expats remain as key audience of this thoughtful document.
What’s new?
- Promotional video: designed to attract and retain digital professionals. It also aims at raising the awareness of the genuine and welcoming character of Gran Canaria’s society.
- A specific website hosted at ‘Best in Gran Canaria’ corporate site, including videos, testimonials and the downloadable version of ‘Moving to Gran Canaria. The complete relocation guide’, both in English and Spanish.
- Comprehensive support/’Landing package’, that not includes administrative knowledge already displayed on the guide, but also local intelligence, tips and other support and information services offered by ‘Best in Gran Canaria’, via an exclusive soft-landing desk ([email protected]). Our experts will guide you through the relocation process.
Gran Canaria commits to a reliable and comprehensive landing service (our ‘Landing Package’), that encompasses a set of instruments and professionals whose objective is to facilitate and speed up the adaptation to your new home: Gran Canaria.
‘Best in Gran Canaria’ participates at the virtual meeting with video game developers from the Visegrad Group
Best in Gran Canaria took an active role in today’s virtual mission with video game developing studios from the Visegrad Group countries (Slovakia, Poland, Czech Republic and Hungary).
This meet-up was organized by ‘Canary Islands Films’, a group of public institutions including 2 regional entities and 2 entities at the island level (SPEGC among them). For Canary Islands video-game developing studios joined the event, Rising Pixel and Eteru from Gran Canaria, along eight studios from the Visegrad group. The private sector introduced their latest content, as well as their ongoing & forthcoming projects. From ‘Best in Gran Canaria’ perspective, it has been a great opportunity to show the economic and fiscal advantages available on the Canary Islands and to facilitate one-on-one collaboration between local and international companies.
The video game sector is a growing industry with great potential related to investment and job creation. Gran Canaria, as a technological hub for the IT and audiovisual companies, has powerful instruments such as the 45% tax deduction for Technological Innovation activities, qualified talent and its own financing instrument (participative loans from SPEGC to finance disruptive and innovative projects based on the island). It must be noted that the services offered by the Sociedad Económica de Gran Canaria – Economic Development Agency of Gran Canaria – through its brand ‘Best in Gran Canaria’, also represent a key support to establish a foothold in Gran Canaria (tailored-training, offices, information & soft-landing package, tax consultancy services via SAE – Business Support Service, etc.).
Gran Canaria: up and coming start-up ecosystem
Gran Canaria has placed 5th in the national ranking and at 64th in Western Europe in the latest annual report on technological and entrepreneurial ecosystems drawn up by StartupBlink. This means it has risen four places in the global ranking over last year's figures, according to the 'Global Start-up Ecosystem Index Report', to reach number 225.
In addition, StartupBlink provides a comparative analysis of destinations by quantity and relevance of their start-ups, as well as by the resources available for their acceleration. Thanks to the 48 start-ups based on the island (in different stages of development), 22 co-working spaces and 3 accelerators, Gran Canaria has placed immediately after Spain's major technological centres (Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia and Bilbao). In particular, the report highlights various verticals with particular strength: Transport (destination #109 worldwide), Social and Leisure (#144) and E-commerce (#154).
In addition to the organic growth of the local entrepreneurial ecosystem, the Canary Islands have turned into an ideal place to relocate companies with pilot projects or with global scale projects, particularly in digital environments. The explanation for this growing impetus for the entrepreneurial environment lies not just in the institutional support and the interest of investment funds, platforms and venture building programmes, both local and national; it is also due to a series of fundamentals: expertise and qualification of the local talent, lower operative and living expenses, tax advantages and funding instruments, and the capacity to attract and retain international talent.
The high impact of the ‘Economic and Fiscal Regime of the Canary Islands’ (REF, in its Spanish acronym) is well-accounted for in start-ups’ business plans: not only can it support the commercialization/service placement (4% tax rate for corporate tax), but also benefit from a deduction of up to 45% of expenses incurred in technological innovation projects (up to 75.6% in the case of R+D), alongside other exclusive funding.
StartupBlink is a global leader in the collection and representation of data concerning entrepreneurial ecosystems.
The SPEGC (Sociedad de Promoción Económica de Gran Canaria - Gran Canaria Society for Economic Promotion) provides support and information through its ‘Business Support Service’ (SAE), office space in the Gran Canaria Technology Park and its own investment instruments.
Find out the tax advantages to establish in Gran Canaria with the Tax Guide of ‘Best in Gran Canaria’
The Economic Promotion Society of Gran Canaria has updated its fiscal guide, a document prepare by the initiative ‘Best in Gran Canaria’ and whose purpose is to provide support to companies and entrepreneurs who are making the decision to relocate on the island. To ease its use, it is available in both, Spanish and English.
The Tax Regime of companies that operate from Gran Canaria is explained through the guide, covering subjects such as the specificities for resident entities, Corporate Income Tax and the withholdings in the Canary Islands, among others.
Additionally, other instruments as Canary Islands Special Zone (Zona Especial Canaria, ZEC), deductions for R&D and Technological Innovation or Investments in Audiovisual Productions, as tools that represent a great advantage for companies in Gran Canaria are worth special attention; thanks to the notable increases in these deductions compared to those applied at national level. As well as other instruments such as the Canary Islands General Indirect Tax (IGIC), Customs Duties (AIEM) and the Duty-Free Zone.
This document also offers a wide explanation about special taxes in the Canary Islands, given its statuts as a European customs territory, even though not from the territory of application of VAT. Thus, an overview of the application of the Business and Professional Activities Tax, Transfer Tax and the Stamp duty.
Finally, the guide dedicates a chapter to the taxation of individual persons with fiscal residence in Spain and concludes with another to Social Security, since, it should be remembered, all employers, employees and self-employed workers who work in Gran Canaria must be registered in the Spanish Social Security System.
Download the guide here.
The Gran Canaria Film Commission promotes the island's industrial ecosystem at MIFA, the world's top market for animation and digital content
SPEGC's intiative for the audiovisual and digital content creation, the Gran Canaria Film Commission, is attending online meetings from today to June 18th in its online version of the Annecy International Animation Market (MIFA), the main market in Europe for the animation film industry.
This year the event is being held for the first time in a hybrid format, with a smaller exhibition space in the city of Annecy and a virtual platform to also facilitate remote participation.
‘Best in Gran Canaria’ sister initiative, the Gran Canaria Film Commission, is participating under the umbrella of the Canary Islands Films, together with the rest of the entities that make up this label. Our aim is showcasing the advantages that the island offers for the digital animation industry, both to attract new companies to the island and to support local studios' own IP development.
A delegation of studios based in Gran Canaria participates in this online edition of the most important market in Europe to search for projects, co-productions and distribution of their own IPs.
Much more than just words: Gran Canaria is in the world spotlight for marine and maritime R&D
The island of Gran Canaria is establishing itself as one of the prime locations to undertake R&D projects, as it offers ideal conditions in terms of spatial & locational advantages, logistics and business resources, tax support, and funding opportunities.
Gran Canaria benefits from very special geo-physical conditions, together with well-equipped infrastructure (including mid-Atlantic's leading port and the related industrial cluster), economic stability, legal security, talent pool and exclusive and flexible tax conditions, as a result of the Canary Islands’ Economic and Fiscal Regime (REF). The island is therefore particularly appealing for marine and maritime projects. There are two main compelling arguments:
- The R&D tax support regime in force in the Canary Islands offers an even more advantageous version of the fiscal model operating in the rest of Spain, which already ranks among the most favourable in Europe (tax credits of up to 75.6% for expenses on R&D projects and 45% on technological innovation expenses).
- Gran Canaria has unique scientific, technical and technological facilities linked to offshore energies and exploitation of the island’s marine resources. In addition to the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria having multiple affiliated research groups (118 in all areas), other locally based outstanding institutions include the Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (PLOCAN), the Canary Islands Institute of Technology and the Spanish Bank of Algae, plus a series of public initiatives currently underway incubating projects in such key sectors such as aquaculture and biotechnology.
The object of the Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (PLOCAN) is to construct, equip and operate a set of marine infrastructure resources for research in the field of marine sciences and technologies. PLOCAN offers a series of high-value services aimed at attracting domestic and international users to respond to the maritime challenges of the coming years. Its specialized facilities include onshore buildings with experimental laboratories and access to harbour area, the Oceanic Offshore Platform resting on the seabed (1.5km from the coast), the Oceanic Observatory and a 23sq km offshore test site. Facilities are operational all year round thanks to the island’s excellent climatic conditions.
There are many companies currently developing projects such as Esteyco, Enerocean and X1Wind, aimed at expanding wind-power systems, transforming existing offshore wind, wave and tidal technologies and introducing newly conceived support devices.
Latest news have just been revealed by danish company Floating Power Plant (FFP), which recently reported that it had obtained 17.65 million euros in R&D tax credits to finance the operational demonstration phase for a floating wave and wind unit. It represents a real milestone for the Canary Islands and Spain: never before had an offshore windpower R&D project been granted such a high level of guaranteed tax support. This funding has been approved by the Spanish Tax Agency as eligible for the country’s R&D tax credit programme. FPP intends to implement a version of its floating hybrid wind-energy and wave-power device on a commercial scale.
Gran Canaria is therefore moving forward towards a sustainable economic development model by opening up fields of innovation and energy, showing a number of successful cases of companies that have decided to develop their projects on the island, benefitting from the R&D-related tax benefits, resources and funding systems that are making Gran Canaria an unbeatable environment for developing marine technology.
Las Palmas Port community proves its industrial know-how & innovative spirit following the approval of five ideas within the framework of the Ports 4.0 Fund
The Ports 4.0 fund, an acceleration & financing framework aimed at the 4.0 transition of the Spanish port logistics sector, has approved economic support for the development of 33 ideas, five of which have been forwarded by Gran Canaria entrepreneurs and companies, through Las Palmas Port Authority. The 33 ideas which have been approved (5 of them correspond to projects developed by Port Authorities’ employees), have been chosen from a total of 100 applications presented to the "Ideas Tender" (TRL 2-4, pending experimental proof of concept).
The fact that 15 per cent of the selected ideas have been developed from the Las Palmas Ports 4.0 headquarters shows that our port community's know-how is of decisive value. Las Palmas Port is a well-known maritime operations hub, including the full range of traffics plus technical and operative capacity to nourish the development, incubation, testing and prototyping of innovative products and services.
Ports 4.0 is an initiative of the 28 State Port Authorities of Spain, under the aegis of the Plan for Innovation for Transport and Infrastructures of Spain's Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda. A total of 12 million euros were provided by the Port Authorities themselves, channelled through their 14 incorporated offices (with Las Palmas Port Authority as the Canary Island’s headquarters).
Out of these 12 million euros, 500,000 have been awarded for grants for the 33 ideas which have already been approved, and the rest will be deployed for the tender's other categories (commercial projects with higher TRLs).
Gran Canaria will deliver a joint acceleration response for these ideas, with the complete support of the Las Palmas Port Authority and of the the island's institutional and entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Source: Las Palmas Port Authority
SPEGC launches its 'Relocation Guide - Moving to Gran Canaria' aimed at professionals, expats and remote workers
The Economic Development Agency of Gran Canaria (‘Sociedad de Promoción Económica de Gran Canaria’ - SPEGC) recently launched a ‘Moving to Gran Canaria’ - Relocation Guide through its 'Best in Gran Canaria’ investment attraction initiative.
This guide provides all the information they need to establish their professional activity on the island, ensuring smooth and hassle-free adaptation to their new home: Gran Canaria. The guide places a firm emphasis on providing practical information from the viewpoint of relocated employees, expatriates, professionals and remote workers, facilitating their arrival on the island and minimising uncertainties in a relocation process which on many occasions includes family members and children.
Gran Canaria is a leading destination for global business and research projects, but it also offers a series of advantages that make it a unique destination to pursue a personal and family life with every guarantee of success and personal satisfaction. With its combination of quality infrastructure, digital connectivity, cost of living, climate, healthcare and legal security, Gran Canaria is an international hub where professional development and the pleasure of disconnection go hand in hand.
SPEGC has years of experience providing assistance for projects and people wishing to establish a base in Gran Canaria. This guide draws on this knowledge to propose a novel way of approaching the soft landing process in Gran Canaria. The document includes a unique Reading Guide with a recommended checklist of tasks and formalities before, during and after settling on the island (visas, identification documents - NIE, social security, municipal registration, taxes, etc.), along with advice and solutions for all the typical matters that must be dealt with by families planning to relocate in Gran Canaria (housing, areas to live, health, transport, etc.). It is an extensive yet practical compendium of all the technical, legal and administrative matters that professionals and their families encounter during the relocation process: although it offers very detailed information, the Reading Guide provides users with quick access to the knowledge they may need at any given moment. The technical information is grouped according to different profiles, whether workers moving for a short period of time or indefinite/long-term relocations. In addition, the guide has a dynamic and user-friendly approach that makes it easy to read, as well as including a printable checklist to facilitate the follow-up of pending tasks.
In pursuit of its mission of stimulating and promoting local economic development, the SPEGC and 'Best in Gran Canaria' place emphasis on accompanying and supporting professionals who choose Gran Canaria to pursue their life projects. Gran Canaria is an open, globally connected destination renowned for its hospitality and cosmopolitan lifestyle.
SPEGC also offers training activities in areas such as entrepreneurship, innovation and internationalisation, as well as an advisory service for companies establishing themselves on the island and support for business creation and consolidation initiatives.
SPEGC launches its 'Relocation Guide - Moving to Gran Canaria' aimed at professionals, expats and remote workers
The Economic Development Agency of Gran Canaria (‘Sociedad de Promoción Económica de Gran Canaria’ - SPEGC) recently launched a ‘Moving to Gran Canaria’ - Relocation Guide through its 'Best in Gran Canaria’ investment attraction initiative.
This guide provides all the information they need to establish their professional activity on the island, ensuring smooth and hassle-free adaptation to their new home: Gran Canaria. The guide places a firm emphasis on providing practical information from the viewpoint of relocated employees, expatriates, professionals and remote workers, facilitating their arrival on the island and minimising uncertainties in a relocation process which on many occasions includes family members and children.
Gran Canaria is a leading destination for global business and research projects, but it also offers a series of advantages that make it a unique destination to pursue a personal and family life with every guarantee of success and personal satisfaction. With its combination of quality infrastructure, digital connectivity, cost of living, climate, healthcare and legal security, Gran Canaria is an international hub where professional development and the pleasure of disconnection go hand in hand.
SPEGC has years of experience providing assistance for projects and people wishing to establish a base in Gran Canaria. This guide draws on this knowledge to propose a novel way of approaching the soft landing process in Gran Canaria. The document includes a unique Reading Guide with a recommended checklist of tasks and formalities before, during and after settling on the island (visas, identification documents - NIE, social security, municipal registration, taxes, etc.), along with advice and solutions for all the typical matters that must be dealt with by families planning to relocate in Gran Canaria (housing, areas to live, health, transport, etc.). It is an extensive yet practical compendium of all the technical, legal and administrative matters that professionals and their families encounter during the relocation process: although it offers very detailed information, the Reading Guide provides users with quick access to the knowledge they may need at any given moment. The technical information is grouped according to different profiles, whether workers moving for a short period of time or indefinite/long-term relocations. In addition, the guide has a dynamic and user-friendly approach that makes it easy to read, as well as including a printable checklist to facilitate the follow-up of pending tasks.
In pursuit of its mission of stimulating and promoting local economic development, the SPEGC and 'Best in Gran Canaria' place emphasis on accompanying and supporting professionals who choose Gran Canaria to pursue their life projects. Gran Canaria is an open, globally connected destination renowned for its hospitality and cosmopolitan lifestyle.
SPEGC also offers training activities in areas such as entrepreneurship, innovation and internationalisation, as well as an advisory service for companies establishing themselves on the island and support for business creation and consolidation initiatives.