According to the latest data from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (National Statistics Institute, or INE), there are over 3.3 million self-employed professionals in Spain. While the majority of self-employed individuals in Spain (around 60%) work for themselves, nearly 39% either manage or are partners in companies, according to 2019 data from the Association of Self-Employed Workers. This latter group of self-employed individuals is referred to as “autónomos societarios” (corporate self-employed).

Regardless of whether they manage a company, all self-employed individuals in Spain must pay a monthly contribution to the Seguridad Social (the Spanish social security agency). This ensures they receive the same benefits as employees, including healthcare, parental leave, temporary disability, and retirement pensions. Starting in 2023, the amount of this contribution adjusts based on income. If you’re interested in more information on the self-employed contribution in Spain for 2024, see our comprehensive guide, which examines its operation in depth.

In this article, we will delve into the specifics of the contribution for corporate self-employed individuals: who is required to pay it, how to calculate the monthly amount and your annual income, and the situations in which you might qualify for a reduction.

What’s in this article?

• Who has to pay the corporate self-employed contribution?
  
• How is the corporate self-employed contribution calculated?
  
• How is the actual income of the corporate self-employed calculated?
  
• What is the flat rate for corporate self-employed individuals?
  

Who has to pay the corporate self-employed contribution?

In Spain, all persons classified as self-employed workers with corporate activities must pay the corporate self-employed contribution to the Seguridad Social in 2024. This applies to any self-employed worker who meets one of the following conditions:

• Holds at least 33% of the business’s capital stock
  
• Holds at least 25% of the business’s capital stock, and manages the business or performs some type of management work
  

Under no circumstances is the commercial business responsible for contributing to the self-employed individual who manages it; instead, the self-employed person must pay it themselves. Aside from paying their self-employed contribution, they must also comply with other tax obligations, such as corporate income tax (which is applied to the company’s profits) and value-added tax (VAT, which is charged on the sale of products and services).

A tax automation tool such as Stripe Tax can make managing your tax obligations easier. Stripe Tax automatically calculates and applies the correct tax rate for your sales in over 50 countries and generates reports on the VAT you’ve collected, simplifying your tax returns (see the list of exclusions).

How is the corporate self-employed contribution calculated?

After the approval of Royal Decree Law 13/2022, Spain introduced a new contribution system for self-employed individuals. The key change brought by the new system is that the monthly contributions for self-employed individuals now depend on their annual net income. In this section, we’ve created a table showing the various contribution ranges that they might pay in 2024. First, here’s the information you will find in each column:

• Net income brackets: The income that corporate self-employed individuals earn while performing their duties. In the next section, we’ll explain how to calculate this amount so you can identify your income bracket.
  
• Minimum contribution base: This contribution base calculates the self-employment contribution. If you opt for the minimum amount in your bracket, your contribution will be the lowest possible. However, this means you’ll also receive a lower pension when you retire.
  
• Maximum contribution base: Select the highest contribution base with your bracket to maximize your retirement pension.
  
• Minimum contribution: This is the minimum monthly amount a corporate self-employed individual can choose to pay to the Seguridad Social for a specific net income bracket. The payable amount is 31.30% of the chosen base, which includes contributions for common professional contingencies (28.30%), cessation of work (0.9%), the Mecanismo de Equidad Intergeneracional (Intergenerational Equity Mechanism) (0.7%), and professional training (0.1%).
  
• Maximum contribution: This is calculated in the same way as the minimum contribution, but it uses the maximum base. If you choose the highest base, your monthly contribution will also be at the maximum.
  

The primary difference between corporate self-employed individuals and other self-employed individuals is that the former cannot select a minimum contribution base below €1,000. The official calculator for self-employed contributions can help streamline your estimations. We recommend using the current version of the calculator (the year is indicated in the title on the Seguridad Social page). If the data doesn’t match the current year, please refer to a more recent table. Here are the contributions for corporate self-employed individuals for 2024:

How is the actual income of the corporate self-employed calculated?

To determine your bracket, you need to calculate the actual income you earn as a corporate self-employed individual. The formula you need to use will depend on the type of income you earn, but the process is generally straightforward. The result will determine your contribution base and the monthly corporate self-employment contribution you need to pay to the Seguridad Social. Keep in mind that while the amounts in the formulas are annual, the contribution you need to pay is based on your monthly average. Therefore, all formulas include a division by 12.

Corporate self-employed individuals with economic activity

Many corporate self-employed individuals only issue invoices to the company they manage or partner in. In this scenario, the method used is almost the same as that of other self-employed individuals. However, they can only deduct 3% of their income as hard-to-substantiate expenses, compared to the 5% deduction available to other self-employed individuals. Here’s the formula:

[(Income - Deductible Expenses) - (0.03 × Income)] ÷ 12

Corporate self-employed individuals who receive a salary from their business and who also invoice another company

If self-employed individuals receive a salary from the business they manage or are partners in, and also issue invoices to another company, their formula is as follows:

[(Income from Work + Income In Kind + Cash Income + Dividends + Profits Obtained from Professional Activity) - (0.03 × Income)] ÷ 12

Let’s look at how the first elements are defined so we can understand their nuances:

• Income from work: Salary the corporate self-employed individual receives for the work done in the business.
  
• Income in kind: Goods or services for personal use obtained at no cost or a reduced price.
  
• Dividends: This is the share of the business profits a corporate self-employed individual could receive as a manager or partner.
  
• Cash income: Like dividends, cash income is a salary paid to them as the business’s manager, in addition to the salary for their professional activities.
  
• Profits obtained from professional activity: This includes the income from their independent work outside of the company they oversee. Specifically, it refers to the annual income they receive from invoicing other businesses after deducting expenses as a self-employed individual.
  

Corporate self-employed individual who gets paid in the form of a salary from their business

Unlike the earlier example, this situation involves a corporate self-employed individual who only earns a salary from their own company and does not bill other businesses. The formula is simpler for this position:

(Salary + Income In Kind + Dividends) ÷ 12

The earnings used for this formula is the gross annual salary. The first two values can be found in Form 190, a report that informs the Agencia Tributaria about withholdings made throughout the year. However, if your company hasn’t issued dividends, you won’t have to add anything to this entry.

What is the flat rate for corporate self-employed individuals?

Now that you know how to calculate your actual income, you can figure out the minimum contribution base and, consequently, the amount you need to pay. However, you can also decrease your contribution significantly for a certain period. In 2013, a flat rate for self-employed workers was introduced. This reduced contribution applies during the initial months of activity to encourage entrepreneurship in Spain. Although corporate self-employed individuals couldn’t take advantage of this until 2020, they can now pay a reduced monthly contribution of €80.

This amount remains the same during the first year of activity. If your income doesn’t exceed the minimum wage (€1,134 per month from February 6, 2024) after those 12 months, you can continue to benefit from the extended flat rate.

To qualify for the flat rate, corporate self-employed individuals must meet certain requirements:

• They cannot be a collaborating self-employed worker (in Spanish, “autónomo societario colaborador”), meaning they cannot benefit from the special tax regime for immediate family members.
  
• They must not have any debts with the Seguridad Social or the Agencia Tributaria.
  
• They must not have been in the RETA (Régimen Especial de Trabajadores Autónomos, or Special Regime for Self-Employed Workers) during the two years prior to the start of business activity. If they have previously benefited from the flat rate for corporate self-employed individuals, the period extends to four years.
  

Despite the significant fee reduction offered by the flat rate, most self-employed individuals in Spain won’t be able to benefit from it and will need to pay the standard self-employed fee based on their net income bracket. As previously discussed, it can be straightforward to determine which category applies to you.