Canary Islands Investment Reserve (RIC): a new investment opportunity through regional government bonds
On 7 October 2026, the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands published the Order approving a new €100 million issuance of public debt bonds by the Canary Islands Regional Government, which qualify as eligible investments for the purposes of the Canary Islands Investment Reserve (Reserva para Inversiones en Canarias – RIC).
The issuance will consist of five-year bonds carrying a fixed annual nominal interest rate of 0.2%. The subscription period will run from 5 to 11 November 2026. The minimum investment amount will be €1,000, while the maximum investment per investor will be €5 million.
Although the financial return is modest, this issuance may be particularly attractive from a tax perspective, as it constitutes one of the qualifying investment options available under the RIC regime, as provided for by the Canary Islands Economic and Tax Regime.
This option is especially relevant for taxpayers approaching the deadline for investing RIC allocations made in previous tax years and who do not anticipate carrying out other qualifying investments in the short term.
Many companies and business owners that have made substantial RIC allocations encounter difficulties in identifying investment projects that fit their operational, financial, or strategic needs. In this context, subscribing to Canary Islands government bonds may provide a useful alternative, allowing taxpayers to preserve the tax benefits associated with the incentive while maintaining a relatively conservative financial position.
It should be noted, however, that this investment option is subject to an important limitation: securities issued by Canary Islands public entities may only be used for up to 50% of the RIC allocation made in any given tax year.
For example, a company that allocated €500,000 to the RIC in a particular year could invest no more than €250,000 of that allocation in these bonds. The remaining amount would need to be invested through one of the other qualifying options provided for by law.
Accordingly, this issuance should not be viewed as a universal solution for meeting RIC investment requirements, but rather as a complementary tool within the range of options available under the legislation. Its main value lies in offering an additional mechanism to comply with the requirements of the incentive and to avoid rushed investment decisions driven solely by approaching statutory deadlines.
In our view, the issuance may attract significant interest from Canary Islands companies and business owners with RIC allocations still pending investment, particularly in an economic environment where it is not always easy to find projects that combine profitability, security, and compliance with the requirements of the RIC regime.
Ultimately, beyond their limited financial return, these bonds may constitute a particularly useful tax planning tool for certain taxpayers. Within the limits established by law, they can help ensure that part of the RIC is properly invested in accordance with the applicable requirements, while reducing the risk of future tax contingencies arising from a failure to meet the requirements of the incentive.