I know you have to pay a monthly autonomo fee even if you don't earn a single cent but does the monthly fee still class as you paying into the system ?

What does the €270 p/m actually represent ?

My friend is about to register as autonomo but forecasts his new business to only break even for the first year after his initial layout and start earning in the 2nd year of trade.

Once registered, how does it work ?

Do you have to show an accountant any income and invoices ?

Do you get medical after paying autonomo for so long ? If so how long ?

In what ways (if any) would you benefit from being autonomo and making sure your fees are always paid on time ?

Cheers

Tom

If you are working self employed then you MUST pay the monthly security payment. It is not optional.

The minimum payment is around EUR270 per month. This is the amount most self employed people choose to pay but in theory the amount should go up to EUR1,000 per month depending on how much you earn

By paying into social security, the person and their dependents get the right to medical cover. And that´s pretty much it

You can also get some very limited rights to sick pay and unemployment benefit if you pay the additional mutua payment of around EUR30 per month

If the self employed person is under 35 and has never been self-employed before then the social security payment is discounted for the first 2 years. Starting at around 70 euros per month

... doesn't it also go towards a pension?

Yes, I am still in my 30s so dont pay much attention to that!

The pension rules have recently changed in Spain in terms of how long and how much you need to pay into the system, but Spanish state pensions can be very generous. My parents in-law receive 5k Euros in state pensions each month which is unthinkable in the UK

The minimum payment of about 270€ includes a compulsory payment of about 40€ to a 'mutua' which covers you for loss of earnings in case of sickness. This doesn't count towards your pension.

It was a brainchild of Zapatero and is effectively useless... the first 3 days loss of earnings are not covered and the money received is minimal and liable to tax so it is effectively a super-expensive insurance policy to line the pockets of the usual suspects.

Being self-employed here is no fun!

Thank you for your replies very helpful and much appreciated.

But....

If my friend registered as autonomo and his business was earning 0% for the first year, is he ok to just pay his initial payment of around 270€ p/m ?

He's layout is over 350k just for production but wants to register as autonomo now. If he registers as autonomo now he is not going to be receiving any income as production of his product takes over a year and is actually being produced in Spain.

Can he happily just pay he's monthly fee without ant income from the business actually coming in ? (Basically pay his autonomo fee out of his own pocket) because obviously the longer he pays into it the better for him.

Thank you all.

If he is working then he must pay the minimum amount of paro (270 euros) each and every month

This is a social security contribution and is not dependent on income

Later the autonomo will also pay income tax (IRPF) on anything they earn

The mutua is optional and in addition to the 270 euros per month

Hi. According to my Spanish friend who has been Autonomo for many years it's simply not worth paying the extra for unemployment cover as the total you might receive should you become unemployed is no more than the amount you have paid in. So you're better off putting your own 30 euros in your own bank account. Another thing is, once you are Autonomo you MUST pay on time unless you want swingeing fines which can bring you up to 320 or even 350 a month instead of the 270ish. Then, and believe me when I say this because it's happened to me, if you are a few months behind they can dip their hands in to your bank account without notification in advance and simply take what they think you owe. What happens if there's nothing in your bank? They embargo and then impound your car. At this point I ceased to be an Autonomo. It is absolutely possible to be bringing in income from customers but to go into a negative situation because of IVA and autonomo and advance payment of taxes which aren't due because your income is too low, plus fines for being skint! I have experienced this and advise anyone considering setting up a very low income autonomo to think very seriously of doing things differently. I spent five years being told I was a fool for being an honest Englishwoman. My upbringing and culture didn't allow me to do things any other way. But when your teeth start to get pulled out because you can't afford to fix them and there's a threat on your valueless little car...You learn that sometimes honesty is a real burden ;-) However if your business is healthy and high income go for it! BTW The autonomo (self employed) payment is nothing to do with 'paro' (unmemployment). It does buy you state medical cover after a certain number of months (I can't remember how many but at least 3) and you keep this even if/when you are unemployed. It also contributes towards your pension but the lowest level brings you only a low level of pension. Some people opt to 'up' this level from around 50 onwards. Personally I don't trust government pots of gold not to be subsequently 'disappeared' so I wouldn't even if I could.

Ok what I am asking in a nutshell is....

If you are a registered autonomo and not earning but can afford to pay the monthly payments every month regardless is it going to benefit you in the long run ?

Are you doing yourself a good thing by just keeping up with the payments ?

Whether you can "afford" to pay the autonomo payments is irrelevant

If you are self-employed you must pay the autonomo payments

If you do not then you risk a massive fine and possible imprisonment

Please check this:

Las Mutuas de Accidentes de Trabajo y Enfermedad Profesional de la Seguridad Social | Infoautónomos

Para los autónomos es obligatorio cubrir la incapacidad temporal por contingencias comunes mientras que es opcional la cotización de los accidentes de trabajo y enfermedades profesionales y el paro autónomo. Ahora bien tanto si solo optas por la cotización de las contingencias obligatorias como si también cotizas por las opcionales, es obligatorio realizar dichas coberturas con una Mutua de Accidente de Trabajo y Enfermedad Profesional de la Seguridad Social.

About 6 years ago the minimum increased from 210€ to 250€ to include the obligatory 'incapacidad temporal' payment of 40€. Seguridad Social told me it was obligatory. I've been paying it since them. Did they lie to me?

From the text you posted it seems that there are two mutuas. The mutua for "work accidents, professional illnesses and unemployment benefit" is optional

Exactly. The payment for contigencias comunes ( aquella situación en la que un trabajador, por causa de una enfermedad o accidente no laboral, se encuentra imposibilitado para el desarrollo de su trabajo y recibe asistencia sanitaria por parte de la Seguridad Social ) IS compulsory and included in the 270€.

It comes to about 500€ a year. I am forced to pay it although I'd rather not. It's very difficult to claim and the Mutuas are awful to deal with.

That's how I understand the situation to be. If I'm mistaken, please correct me as I'd love to stop paying it.

to the original questionyes you can pay the monthly fee and have zero income nut you would have to do tax returns and ensure funds are available to make the payments