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Work and business

Registering as self-employed

Alta como trabajador autónomo

What it is

Anyone who will regularly carry out an economic activity on their own account and is 18 or older, being a Spanish resident in Spain or a foreign national with a work permit, must register as self-employed. Registration is requested before starting the activity, up to 60 days in advance; if you have already started, it counts as late. You need: the IAE code and your tax office, the CNAE code, the start date and address of the activity, an estimate of annual net income, a collaborating mutual insurer (mutua) and a bank account for the monthly contribution. Besides registering with Social Security, you must register with the Tax Agency (census declaration, form 036 or 037), and both registrations must match.

Official wording
Tienes que solicitar el alta antes de iniciar tu actividad. En todo caso, puedes tramitarla con una antelación máxima de 60 días. Si ya has empezado a trabajar por cuenta propia, también debes comunicar tu alta pero se considerará realizada fuera de plazo a todos los efectos.

Official sources

Where it applies
All of Spain

Official information

Official sources

Go to the official website: Apply for registration (Importass)

When

Before starting the activity. With the Tax Agency, the census registration declaration (form 036) is filed before the activity starts. With Social Security, registration is notified on the same day you start working on your own account or up to 60 days before. If you register later, the registration date is taken as the first day of that month, you pay the whole month, you lose contribution reductions and a surcharge may apply.

Official wording
Debes comunicar el alta el mismo día en el que empieces a trabajar por cuenta propia o hasta 60 días antes.

Official sources

Steps

  1. Step 1: Register with the Tax Agency (census declaration, form 036)

    As a general rule, all self-employed workers must register with the Tax Agency through the census declaration (forms 036 or 037), electronically or in person at the Agencia Tributaria. The registration declaration (box 111) is filed before starting the activity. First-time starters can use the Censos WEB service. Some groups are not obliged (members of cooperatives, general partners, managing partners, members of religious orders, collaborating family members and family members of agricultural workers).

    Official wording
    La declaración de alta en el censo de empresarios, profesionales y retenedores (casilla 111) se deberá presentar con anterioridad al inicio de las correspondientes actividades empresariales o profesionales, a la realización de las operaciones, al nacimiento de la obligación de retener o ingresar a cuenta sobre las rentas que se satisfagan, abonen o adeuden o a la concurrencia de las circunstancias previstas reglamentariamente.

    Official sources

    Go to the official website: Form 036 at the Agencia Tributaria (Censos WEB)

  2. Step 2: Register as self-employed with Social Security (Importass)

    You apply through the Importass service Alta en trabajo autónomo. The Social Security registration must match the Tax Agency registration. During the process you give the IAE and CNAE codes of each activity, the start date and address of the activity, you choose the collaborating mutual insurer that will cover your risks and you give a bank account for the contribution. If you do not have a Social Security number, you must apply for it first. Even if you carry out several activities, there is a single registration and a single contribution.

    Official wording
    Ten en cuenta que el alta en la Seguridad Social debe coincidir con el alta en Hacienda.

    Official sources

    Go to the official website: Apply for registration (Importass)

  3. Step 3: Choose the contribution base from expected income (and apply for the flat rate)

    When registering you must estimate the monthly average of your annual net income and choose a contribution base within the bracket that applies to it in the general table (or in the reduced table if it falls below bracket 1). The contribution is 31.40 % of the base and is charged to your account on the last working day of each month. If it is your first registration (or you have not been registered in the previous 2 years, 3 if you already had the benefit), you can request the flat rate (tarifa plana) when registering: 80 € a month for 12 months (88.64 € with the MEI), extendable for another 12 if your income is below the minimum wage. You must be up to date with Social Security and the Tax Agency. You can change your base up to six times a year in the service Base de cotización y rendimientos.

    Official wording
    Al darte de alta, tendrás que elegir tu base de cotización en función de la previsión del promedio mensual de tus rendimientos netos anuales conforme a una tabla general de bases, fijada cada año por la Ley de Presupuestos Generales del Estado.

    Official sources

    Go to the official website: Base de cotización y rendimientos (Importass)

  4. Step 4: File VAT (form 303) and income tax prepayments (form 130) every quarter

    Form 303 (VAT self-assessment): if your filing period is quarterly, it is filed from 1 to 20 April, July and October, and the fourth quarter from 1 to 30 January; it is filed electronically. Form 130 (IRPF instalment payment, for those under direct assessment): same deadlines; as a general rule 20 % of the net income accumulated in the year is paid. Professionals are not obliged to file form 130 if in the previous year at least 70 % of their professional income was subject to withholding or payment on account.

    Official wording
    Autoliquidaciones TRIMESTRALES: Del 1 al 20 del mes siguiente al período de liquidación (abril, julio, octubre).

    Official sources

    Go to the official website: Form 303 at the Agencia Tributaria

  5. Step 5: Annual adjustment of contributions

    The bases you choose are provisional. The following year the Tesorería General de la Seguridad Social adjusts them using the income reported by the Tax Agency: if your income was lower than expected, it refunds the difference automatically; if it was higher, you must pay the difference. The flat-rate period is not adjusted.

    Official wording
    Si tras el resultado de la regularización tus rendimientos anuales han sido menores a los que habías previsto, la Tesorería General de la Seguridad Social procederá de oficio a devolver la diferencia entre la cuota que has pagado y la que te corresponde pagar.

    Official sources

Documents

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🖨 Printable bilingual document card (you can show it at the counter)

Fees

Registration means paying a monthly contribution: 31.40 % of the chosen contribution base. In 2026 the base ranges from 950.98 € to 5,101.20 € a month in the general table; in the reduced table the minimum base is 653.59 €.

Official wording
La cuota que deberás pagar es el 31,40% de la base de cotización.

Official sources

Flat rate (first registration): 80 € a month for the first 12 months; with the Intergenerational Equity Mechanism (0.9 %), 88.64 €.

Official wording
La tarifa plana consiste en el pago de una cuota de 80 € al mes durante los primeros 12 meses de alta si el autónomo se da de alta por primera vez en Trabajo Autónomo.

Official sources

FAQ

Can I register if I am a non-EU foreign national?

Yes. You need your NIE, your Social Security number (NUSS) and your residence and work permit.

Official wording
Sí, en ese caso, para darte de alta necesitarás tu NIE, el Número de la Seguridad Social (NUSS) y el permiso de trabajo y residencia.

Official sources

What happens if I start working before registering?

The registration date will be the first day of the month and you will not be able to benefit from contribution reductions. In addition, a fine of between 3,750 and 12,000 € may apply and you will have to pay contributions from the date the authorities become aware that the activity started.

Official wording
Además, se te podrá aplicar una multa de entre 3.750 y 12.000 € dependiendo de la gravedad y tendrás que pagar las cuotas correspondientes desde que la Administración tenga constancia de que iniciaste tu actividad.

Official sources

If I already work for a company, do I still need to register as self-employed?

Yes, everyone who works on their own account must register as self-employed. Your situation will be one of multiple activity (pluriactividad) and you are entitled to a refund of 50 % of the excess contributions for common contingencies in both schemes.

Official wording
Sí, todas las personas que trabajen por cuenta propia deben darse de alta como autónomos.

Official sources

My clients withhold tax from my invoices; do I still have to file form 130?

If you carry out professional activities, you are not obliged if in the previous year at least 70 % of the income from those activities was subject to withholding or payment on account. If you have just started, the percentage for the quarter covered by the instalment payment is used.

Official wording
No obstante, las personas físicas que desarrollen actividades profesionales no están obligadas a presentar declaración de pago fraccionado ni a efectuar ingreso alguno por este concepto en relación con las mismas si, en el año natural inmediato anterior, al menos el 70 por 100 de los ingresos procedentes de dichas actividades hubieran sido objeto de retención o ingreso a cuenta.

Official sources

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