Cuota autónomo 2026: contribution table and calculation by income

How much an autónomo pays per month in 2026: contributions table

An autónomo pays Seguridad Social from €205.88 to 1,606.88 a month: these are the 2026 minimum and maximum bases multiplied by the 31.5% rate (editorial calculation) [1]. Cuota autónomo is the monthly contribution a self-employed person pays to Seguridad Social. Since 1 January 2023 its amount depends on your actual net income for the year, not on a base you simply chose [2]. The contribution equals the base multiplied by a combined rate of 31.5%.

It is made up of five parts: general risks (contingencias comunes) 28.30%, occupational risks 1.30%, protection on cessation of activity (cese de actividad) 0.90%, vocational training 0.10% and the MEI (intergenerational equity mechanism) 0.90% [1][2][5]. All parts are calculated on the same chosen base. There is no tax in this amount: the money goes to Seguridad Social, while IRPF and IVA are collected by the tax agency [1].

The base comes from the table. For 2026, Orden PJC/297/2026 set 15 brackets: 3 in the reduced table and 12 in the general one. The maximum base is €5,101.20 a month [1]. We calculated the contribution column ourselves by multiplying the official bases by 31.5%, so the Seguridad Social simulator may differ by a few cents [1][2].

If you expect income below €1,166.70 a month, the law requires you to choose a base from the reduced table [3]. The lower limit of the reduced table is €653.59, so the smallest contribution in 2026 is about €205.88 a month [1].

How the real-income system works

At the start of the year and when you register (alta), you state your forecast of average monthly net income and choose a base within the matching bracket. This base is provisional [2][3]. Once the year is over, the tax agency sends Seguridad Social your actual income for the year, and your contributions are recalculated [3].

Income covers all your activities during the year, including those carried out through holdings in companies [3]. Under estimación directa, net income is taken according to IRPF rules, the Seguridad Social contributions paid during the year are added, and then 7% is deducted for general expenses [3]. For directors and members of companies the deduction is 3%, and it applies if they were in alta for at least 90 days in the year [3][2]. The result is divided by 12 and determines your bracket [3].

How to work out your base: the calculation step by step

1. Take your net income for the year under IRPF rules (revenue minus deductible expenses) and add the Seguridad Social contributions paid during the year [3].
2. Deduct 7% (or 3% for company members who control the company) [3].
3. Divide by 12 and find your bracket in the table [3].
4. Choose a base within the bracket: the minimum or any higher amount, up to the maximum [1][3].
5. Multiply the base by 31.5%.

An example with hypothetical figures. Net income €24,000, contributions for the year €3,600. Add them: €27,600; deduct 7% to get €25,668; divide by 12 to get €2,139 a month. That is bracket 6 (from €2,030 to 2,330): a base from €1,274.51 to 2,330 and a contribution from €401.47 to 733.95 a month. The choice of base within this range is yours, but you cannot go below the bracket minimum [1][3].

The example is illustrative: a gestor does the calculation based on your documents.

Can you change your contribution base during the year?

Yes, but no more than six times a year and only on set dates. The new base applies not from the date of your request but from the next date on the list [2].

You change the base in Importass, in the section on the contribution base and income [2]. If your income is higher than forecast, the base and contributions go up; if it falls, you can lower the base, but not below the minimum of your bracket [3].

What happens after the year ends: regularisation

Seguridad Social compares what you paid with what was due on your actual income. If you paid less than the minimum base of your bracket requires, you must pay the difference by the last day of the month following the notification, and if you meet that deadline there is no interest or surcharge [3]. If you paid more than the maximum base of the bracket requires, Seguridad Social refunds the difference on its own by 30 April of the year after the one in which the tax agency sent the data. No interest is paid [3].

Contribution debts you did not pay on time are not written off or reduced in the regularisation, and if the final base is higher than the provisional one, you will have to pay the difference [3]. If you did not file IRPF or did not declare your income in it under estimación directa, your final base will be the minimum base of group 7 of the general scheme. In 2026 that is €1,424.40, which means about €448.69 a month [3][1].

Tarifa plana, discounts and special groups

For new autónomos, Seguridad Social describes a tarifa plana: €80 a month for the first 12 months, plus another 12 months at that price if expected net income is below the SMI (€17,094 a year). It is available to those who have not been in RETA for two years (three if they have already used the benefit) [2]. The tarifa plana is not regularised during the first 12 months [4].

For people with a disability of 33% or more and for victims of gender violence and terrorism, the page gives €80 for 24 months and €160 for a further 36 months on low income. There are other reductions as well: a 75% reduction in the contribution while caring for a seriously ill child, and 80% for 24 months when returning to work after the birth of a child [2].

The caveat matters more than the figure itself. As of 2 October 2026, the Seguridad Social page describes the benefit for 2023-2025. RDL 13/2022 set €80 only for those years; from 2026 the amount is set by the budget law, and RDL 3/2026 extended only the contribution tables [4][5]. We did not find the rules for 2026, so check the amount when you file your alta.

SL partners, family and salaried work: what changes

A director or employee of a capital company who controls it is included in RETA under article 305.2.b LGSS. Their minimum base cannot be lower than the minimum base of group 7 (€1,424.40 in 2026), and the income calculation includes dividends and salary from the company if you hold at least 33% of the capital (at least 25% for a director) [3][1]. A comparison of the two ways of working: autónomo or SL.

Relatives of a self-employed person who work in the business are subject to the same minimum base limit [3]. If you combine employment with RETA and your total contributions exceed €17,323.68, you can get back 50% of the excess (no more than 50% of your RETA contributions for general risks) [1]. Anyone who paid on a higher base than required in 2022 can keep it in 2026 as well [2].

What else an autónomo pays besides contributions

Taxes are separate from the cuota. IVA is filed quarterly on modelo 303, and the IRPF advance payment on modelo 130 is made by those under estimación directa who are not exempt from it: from 1 to 20 April, July and October, and for the fourth quarter by 30 January [6][7]. The full calendar is in the article reporting for autónomos and SLs; the taxes themselves are covered in what IRPF is and what IVA is.

For a freelancer on a DNV, alta in RETA is mandatory: according to UGE guidance, without it the permit may be terminated during a check [8]. The step-by-step procedure is set out on the DNV route card.

Common mistakes when calculating contributions

• Setting the minimum base when your income is higher: after the year you will have to pay the difference up to the minimum of your bracket [3].
• Forgetting to file IRPF: instead of your base, Seguridad Social will use the minimum base of group 7 [3].
• Not adding the contributions paid to your income: the estimación directa rule requires you to add them to net income before deducting 7% [3].
• Counting from the filing date instead of the effective date: a base change applies from the next first-of-the-month date on the list [2].
• Mistaking the 31.5% for a tax: these are Seguridad Social contributions, and IRPF and IVA are paid separately [1].
• Treating €80 as a guaranteed amount for 2026 without checking the rule [2][4].

When you need an individual review

It is worth checking the calculation with a gestor if your income is irregular, you are near the boundary between brackets, you combine activities, you own a share in an SL, you started working mid-year, or you have only just received your residence permit and are not yet sure of your income. A forecasting error costs money after the regularisation, and the base cannot be corrected retroactively.

How we can help

The ReloVictory team in Barcelona explains how contributions and alta work and helps you gather, for the gestor, the data your income forecast is based on: revenue, expenses, other activities, a share in a company. An overview of residence routes is in the section residence permit in Barcelona. To book: consultation. Registration procedure: autónomo registration, what RETA and alta are.

Frequently asked questions

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ReloVictory · Sources reviewed 02.10.2026 · Not a substitute for individual legal advice.