Andalusia will implement from January the ‘zero quota’ for new self-employed

Andalusia will implement from next January the so-called ‘zero quota’ for new self-employed workers, which may be extended for two years and which, according to the Board, intends to give aid to “compensate” the cost burden that social security contribution changes will entail of this group that will arrive at the beginning of 2023.

Andalusia is currently the autonomous community with the largest number of self-employed workers in the country, with 565,696 members of RETA. In the last year, 5,279 more self-employed workers registered, a 0.9% increase, and it has contributed 44.6% of the new self-employed workers in Spain in this period.

The measure has been announced by the Minister of Employment, Business and Self-Employment, Rocío Blanco, at a press conference after the Governing Council. Blanco recalled that this proposal was already launched by the Chairman of the Board, Juanma Moreno, during his investiture speech last July and explained that this movement occurs “as a consequence of the change in the price established by the Government of Spain” in in relation to the self-employed, who become governed by a contribution for real income. The president of ATA, Lorenzo Amor, has estimated that it will benefit some 5,000 self-employed workers.

“Given these changes in the quotas, we considered in this Ministry that we wanted to be at the side of the self-employed once again and we established an aid regime to establish compensation for the expense burden that the social security contribution implies by establishing this ‘quota zero”, pointed out the counselor.

Two years

The Andalusian ‘zero quota’ will apply to workers who use the state flat rate as of January 1, 2023. They will have a ‘zero quota’ the first year “and the second year also for the self-employed who do not have income, net income, higher than the minimum interprofessional salary”, Blanco pointed out.

“In other words, two years of ‘zero quota’ for the self-employed in Andalusia,” he summarized.

In addition, the Board will pay them the “100% advance payment” of the incentive “so that they do not have to bear those social security contributions either”, said the counselor, who pointed out that they will be paid in advance and then it will be verified “if they have really been discharged during all that time”.

more measurements

On the other hand, Blanco has remarked that since the Andalusian Government continues with the “extension” of its flat rate to cover this period of time until the end of the year, an increase of 11.1 million euros has been approved for the call for the state flat rate, “so that this line already has an endowment of 60 million euros”.

Along with these measures, the counselor wanted to emphasize that they continue with other calls to support the self-employed, such as the lines for starting the activity, for operating expenses, work and professional reconciliation, digital transformation or that boost the economy green and digital

“We must continue promoting an ecosystem that allows the self-employed to carry out their activities”, he concluded.

new council

In addition, the Governing Council has approved this Tuesday the Decree that regulates the composition and operation of the Andalusian Council of Autonomous Work (CATA), a collegiate body that will bring together representatives of the different ministries of the Andalusian Government, professional associations of the self-employed, organizations business and trade unions and Andalusian municipalities to channel the collective’s right to institutional participation when designing policies and approving plans and measures aimed at this collective.

The Council will be integrated equally by 18 members between the Presidency, the Vice-President and 16 members: four corresponding to the professional associations of autonomous work of Andalusia of an intersectoral nature that have been declared representative; two members of the trade union organizations; two members of the business organizations; a committee representing the Andalusian municipalities at the proposal of the most representative association of municipalities and provinces in Andalusia; and seven members with representatives of the Administration of the Junta de Andalucía.

The council will include the representative associations, administrations and unions

The CATA will issue the mandatory report on the project of the Strategic Plan for Self-Employment, the draft bills for the modification of the Andalusian Law for the Promotion of Self-Employment and the regulation governing the Andalusian Distinction for Self-Employment of Excellence. In the same way, it will also issue reports on the draft laws and draft decrees that affect self-employment, the design of Andalusian public policies in this area, as well as studies or reports related to the situation of the group. Likewise, it will have powers to designate the person who will exercise the Andalusian representation in the State Autonomous Work Council.

Lorenzo Love (ATA)

The president of the Association of Self-Employed Workers (ATA) and vice-president of the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE), Lorenzo Amor, has valued the creation of the Andalusian Council of Autonomous Work announced this Tuesday as “a very important step” to support the collective, especially in the face of the “moment of uncertainty” that we are experiencing due to the economic context.

In the opinion of the person in charge of ATA, “dialogue and consensus are fundamental at this time”, for which he praised the fact that administrations, social agents and self-employed organizations come together in this body to discuss “entrepreneurship and self-employment policies “.