Self employment (autonomous)
A comprehensive guide on everything you need to know about being self empoyed in Gran Canaria. The tax obligations for self employed people, the benefits and disadvantages of being self employed and information on all the paperwork required to be self employed in Gran Canaria.
If you choose to be self-employed or are offered a self employed contract there are a few things you must know.
You will have to go to the social security office yourself and fill in the necessary forms. The minimum monthly contribution for social security is 225 euros / month.
At the end of the year you will also have to complete your tax return (RENTA), however as you are self employed you are able to claim more expenses than those on standard contracts but not as many as you would in the UK.
If you are already registered in the UK system you can work self employed in Spain for up to 2 years and claim medical benefits. See The Department for Work and Pensions website for details.
For more information about what income tax you'll have to pay at the end of the year see our taxes section.
If you are self employed and have any further information that could help the many self employed foreigners in GC please add a comment below. Thanks
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Paying taxes in Spain or UK?
juli
Hi,
We will be moving to the Canary Islands this year from the UK but still be working for a UK Company. In that case, do we need to register as "autonomo" or self-employed in Spain if we are not receiving our salary from an Spanish employer?
Cheers
taxes in Spain
Hi, as far as I understand if you work for more than 183 days a year in Spain you are obliged to pay Spanish taxes, however it would be best if you spoke to an accountant about it. A lot of people don' t declare they live in Spain but legally I think you have to pay taxes here but please check and let us know. There is a telephone number of an accountant in this thread who should be able to help,
hope this helps
English speaking accountant
hi,
try Alfredo Sosa his office number is 928339151, he speaks English and should be able to help.
thanks
Much appreciated Richard, will give him a call next week
Regards
Monique
Self employment in GC
You will have to register as self employed here and bill your company monthly. Every three months you will register your earnings and costs and pay the relevant income tax (retenciones). You will probably have to pay an accountant 100€ a month for the privilege. Your costs will be 250€ social security / month (which are deductable) and 15-40% tax depending on your income. At the end of the year you do your tax return (RENTA) and get money back or pay some more. It is not an uncommon thing to do here. Hope this helps.
Before making any decisions though I would consult with an accountant to get up to date information taxes and your obligations. We can provide you with an English speaking accountant if you want.
self-employed
Hi Richard,
Thanks for the info, much appreciated. I will discuss this with my accountant here in UK. To clarify, we're only moving to GC for a trial period of 1 year, just to see how it goes. We keep our UK residence (s we keep our appartment here) and as I am registered as self-employed in the UK, pay tax here, keep our UK bank account, you can see it as a year "holiday". We only need a spanish bank account for our rent and other bills, so we tend to transfer that from our UK one. I don't know if that will make a difference. If you can provide me with an english speaking accountant, please give me his number and I will call and get some more info on the subject. Thank you again, much appreciated
Regards
Self-employed in UK
As I am self-employed and work for a UK company, I can take my work to Gran Canaria, so basicly I will keep my UK job, only have residence in Gran Canaria. Can anybody tell me how this will effect taxes?? Do I have to pay In GC as well as in the UK??
Cheers
candm