The Spanish Affiliation of Self-Employed Employees (ATA) has calculated that between 25 and 30 p.c of self-employed individuals in Spain haven’t been paying the correct amount of social safety for the reason that new system got here into drive in 2023.
The brand new contributions system that was launched final yr now implies that anybody registered as autónomo and is self-employed pays social safety based mostly on actual earnings reasonably than one flat charge for everybody.
The charge now goes down progressively to €200 a month for decrease earners and progressively greater – as much as €590 a month – for greater earners.
Basically anybody incomes greater than €1,700 per thirty days is having to pay greater than they did beneath the previous system.
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The brand new system is especially difficult as self-employed employees should estimate their month-to-month earnings upfront and state how a lot they suppose they’ll earn with the intention to learn how a lot social safety they’ll pay. They’re allowed to vary their estimation as much as six instances per yr to replicate adjustments in earnings.
This convoluted new scheme inevitably implies that not everyone seems to be paying the correct quantity as not everybody was capable of appropriately estimate how a lot they’d earn, both predicting greater or decrease revenue than in actuality, or just didn’t say as a result of they didn’t know the way a lot their revenue can be.
In response to ATA, solely 20 p.c of self-employed modified their contribution base in 2023 when the brand new system got here into drive. And, of those, solely a 3rd did so to extend their contribution base.
Simply over a 3rd of self-employed employees ought to have elevated their contributions, however the overwhelming majority haven’t but carried out so.
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Which means that now self-employed individuals who have chosen a contribution base under their annual revenue should pay the distinction they saved within the settlement.
This would be the first take a look at for the reform that was launched by the now governor of the Financial institution of Spain, José Luis Escrivá.
The authorities will probably be answerable for taking a look at everybody’s annual revenue return or Declaración de Renta and their enterprise bills to see in the event that they paid the correct quantity of social safety over the previous yr and can ship a letter to all those that over or underpaid, asking them to ensure their funds are updated.
The Minister of Social Safety, Elma Saiz has assured the federal government that this will probably be carried out earlier than April 2025, though the preliminary forecast was by the tip of the yr.
ATA estimates that the typical charge most of those 30 p.c must pay will vary between €1,000 and €1,200 a yr. That’s between €83 and €100 additional that they need to have been paying per thirty days.
If these calculations are right, Spain’s Social Safety will ass between €800 million and €1.2 billion extra to the general public coffers than it at the moment does.
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In response to ATA, they consider that almost all of self-employed employees who overpaid in 2023 is not going to obtain an computerized refund. If these charges have already been deducted these charges in your revenue tax return, you should submit a complementary private revenue tax return to assert the corresponding quantity. The refund would additionally suggest a discount in your contribution base, which may negatively have an effect on any future advantages.
Whereas many autónomos will most probably should pay extra, it is going to imply higher advantages and pensions sooner or later. Actually, the introduction of this new contribution system responds to a need to enhance the social safety of self-employed employees.
Till now, most self-employed have principally opted for the minimal contribution base, which may depart them in a troublesome state of affairs once they retire or once they can now not proceed working.