The new contribution system for freelancers has raised a great deal of doubt among the more than 3.3 million self-employed workers, mainly due to the number of changes that the bill has undergone throughout the year. And despite its approval, according to the first Report on the Income Statement and Spanish Tax Policy drawn up by TaxScouts, 50% of self-employed Spaniards would no longer be autonomous due to the new law and would seek another way of carrying out their professional activity.
Additionally, according to data from the same study, 52% of them believe that fees should be paid based on income and not be a fixed fee. While 40% of them think that, despite being a progressive system, the monthly fees are very high. Taking into account the uncertainties generated around the new legislation, TaxScouts highlights and resolves the main doubts of the Spanish self-employed.
How is the contribution base calculated?
The new quotas approved this summer will be calculated based on the monthly net income obtained by self-employed workers as follows: to the benefit of the activity (annual benefit: tax base of invoices less deductible expenses), it will be necessary to add what was paid to Social Security, and the result is subtracted by 7% of expenses that are difficult to justify. The result of this operation is divided by 12, and that is the Monthly Net Income figure, from which the new quote table can be applied.
The self-employed should bear in mind that in the event that the selected quotation bracket does not correspond With the real income that ends up being invoiced, it will be possible to change the section every 2 months, that is, a total of six times throughout the year, which is why it is essential to make an estimate of income as close as possible, based on the results obtained the previous year. In the event that at the end of the year you have quoted less for having chosen a lower section than what has been charged, you will have to return the remaining part. In the opposite case, in which the contribution bracket has been higher than the actual income, Social Security will refund the corresponding amount. The new self-employed will be able to benefit from the flat rate, which from January will be €80, so they will not have to carry out these operations.
What procedures must be done with the system change?
The only management that self-employed workers must carry out is to communicate to Social Security the chosen contribution base based on real income, through the platform Import@ss.
What will happen to the flat rate?
With this new reform of the self-employed quotas, the flat rate becomes 33% more expensive, going from the current €60 to €80. The self-employed who have registered before January 1, 2023 may continue to enjoy the €60 quota until their first year as self-employed workers is completed, after which the current system of flat rate reductions will be applied, but regarding the new quotas.
How does the ‘zero rate’ proposed by the Community of Madrid and Andalusia affect the self-employed?
The zero rate proposal will mean that all those people who want to register as self-employed will have total exemption from the fee, with the Administration assuming the payment of 100% of the same. Although the details are not yet known, all those entrepreneurs who register for the first time in the RETA and those mothers who have ceased their activity as self-employed due to the birth or adoption of children and who return to activity in the following two years.
The Administration has ensured that it will subsidize 100% of the self-employed quota for all these workers during the first year and those self-employed who do not reach the Minimum Interprofessional Salary (SMI) will be able to continue with this zero rate for two years.
“The new self-employed quotas have generated a lot of confusion this year, due to the range of proposals made during the months of negotiations. With the law finally approved, it becomes essential for all self-employed workers who are well aware of the changes that it will entail as of January 1 of next year, as well as the different proposals and exemptions that the autonomous communities are preparing in order to get the most out of it. possible party to be autonomous“, it states James Sunol, General Manager of TaxScouts Spain.
