The monthly contribution, the reduced rate for new registrations, and how to decide whether to register before or after the first client.
The two things you pay
Two distinct items, often merged into a single figure.
The monthly self-employed contribution, due regardless of turnover, including in a month with no invoice.
And income tax, calculated on the profit, with instalments during the year.
Two practical consequences: the first item is a fixed cost starting on the day of registration, the second is a variable cost arriving later. Confusing them produces exactly the second quarter's bad surprise.
When to register
Three simple rules.
Before the first invoice, always: invoicing without being registered is not a grey area.
Not several months ahead, since the contribution runs from registration even with no activity.
And the right moment is therefore just before the first confirmed order, not when you start looking for clients.
One note: certain entry schemes for new registrations exist and come with conditions. Their amount and their conditions change, and are checked with the competent administration or with an accountant before counting on them.
What to do on registration day
Six actions, in order, in a single morning.
Declare the activity and obtain your number.
Choose the applicable tax regime, with an accountant.
Open the separate account, dealt with above.
Create the invoice template with all the compulsory mentions and continuous numbering.
Set up a table of income and expenses, kept up each week.
And fix the monthly date for setting money aside for coming deadlines.
An honest calculation before starting
Four figures to put on a sheet.
The fixed monthly cost, contribution included, which exists even at zero orders.
The number of videos that have to be sold each month to cover it, before any personal income.
The number of genuinely billable days in a month, once prospecting and administration are removed.
And the minimum price per deliverable that follows from the previous three.
One consequence: that calculation gives a rate floor. Below it, each extra order deepens the deficit instead of filling it.
What falls due every month
| Item | Its nature | What makes it vary |
|---|---|---|
| The monthly contribution | A fixed amount due even with no income | The declared income bracket |
| The tax instalment | A percentage of profit | The quarterly result |
| Sales tax | Collected then remitted | The type of client invoiced |
What is deductible and what is not
Gear assigned to the activity, a share of housing costs if a space is dedicated, and professional banking fees. The line is narrow and confirmed with an accountant, not on a forum.
What is set aside each month
A third of what comes in, on a separate account. It is the only habit that avoids the quarter where tax and contribution land the same week.
What really lightens the first year
Five levers, from most effective to least.
The possible entry scheme, if it applies to your situation.
The deduction of professional purchases, provided they are invoiced in your name, paid from the professional account and kept.
Spreading equipment purchases, rather than a massive investment in the first week.
Invoicing on delivery, which avoids financing your clients.
And weekly tracking of income, which allows a deadline to be anticipated rather than endured.
One general precaution: deduction rules, thresholds and schemes vary with the personal situation and change. None of those points is decided from a testimony read online, they are checked with an accountant, once, before starting.
One last marker: the cost of the status is not what prevents people from living off this trade. What prevents it is discovering that cost at the first deadline, when the money from the first three invoices has already been spent.
Sources
- Agencia Tributaria, Spanish tax authority
- Spanish Social Security, self-employed registration (RETA)
Checked on 26 August 2026. Thresholds and rates change: where this guide and the official source disagree, the official source is right.
