Spain autónomo tax in 2026: Modelo 130, IVA and your monthly cuota

Who this guide is for

This guide is for self-employed individuals (trabajadores autónomos) taxed under the direct estimation method (estimación directa): consultants, developers, designers, translators, marketers and other professionals invoicing in their own name. It does not cover companies (SL), the modules regime (módulos) or special agricultural schemes.

Income tax (IRPF) has a state part and a regional part, so the final rate depends on where you live. SoloTreasury's automatic profile uses the Madrid tariff for an individual under 65 without dependants or disability; the deadlines and VAT rules below apply across Spain.

Cuota de autónomos: RETA contributions and the tarifa plana

Every autónomo registered with the RETA pays a monthly Social Security contribution. Since 2023 the contribution depends on your expected net earnings (rendimientos netos), grouped into income bands (tramos). You choose a contribution base within the band for your expected income. After the year ends, Social Security compares it with the income reported to the tax agency and regularises the difference, which can mean a refund or an extra bill.

• Tarifa plana: new autónomos pay a reduced €80 per month for the first 12 months, extendable for another 12 months if net earnings stay below the minimum wage (SMI). You qualify if you were not registered as self-employed in the previous 2 years (3 if you used the tarifa plana before).
• Change your base as income changes: you can request a new base several times a year through the Import@ss portal, which limits the regularisation later.
• Tax effect: the cuota is a deductible expense for IRPF, so it lowers your income-tax reserve.

IRPF withholding (retención) on your invoices

When you invoice a Spanish company or another Spanish professional, the client withholds 15% IRPF from the invoice and pays it to the tax agency (AEAT) for you. New professionals may apply 7% in the year they start and the following two years. Invoices to private individuals and to clients outside Spain carry no withholding.

Withholding is a prepayment, not a final tax. It can be more or less than your real income tax, so it does not replace a reserve.

Modelo 130: quarterly income-tax instalments

Modelo 130 is a quarterly advance on your income tax (pago fraccionado). You pay 20% of your cumulative net profit for the year so far, minus the IRPF withheld from your invoices and the instalments already paid in earlier quarters. If at least 70% of your previous year's professional income was subject to withholding, you do not have to file Modelo 130.

IVA: Modelo 303, 390 and EU clients (349)

Most professional services carry 21% IVA. Each quarter you file Modelo 303, paying the IVA you charged minus the deductible IVA on your business costs, on the same dates as Modelo 130. In January you also file the annual summary, Modelo 390, unless you are exempt from it.

• Clients in other EU countries: B2B services are usually invoiced without Spanish IVA under the reverse charge (inversión del sujeto pasivo). You need to be registered in the intra-EU operators register (ROI) and report these invoices in Modelo 349.
• Clients outside the EU: B2B services are generally outside the scope of Spanish IVA, but keep evidence that the client is a business.
• Spain has no general small-business VAT exemption, so most autónomos charge IVA from their first invoice.

For the detailed EU rules, see the EU reverse-charge guide.

How SoloTreasury handles the Spanish profile

1. Set up once. Choose the Spain (Madrid individual) profile in the Control Center, confirm your RETA contribution base, active months and taxable-base adjustments such as the 5% hard-to-justify expenses allowance.
2. Log invoices with their withholding. Smart Invoicing records the VAT treatment and applies 15%, 7% or 0% IRPF withholding for each client; the amount withheld counts as tax already paid in your reserve.
3. See your safe-to-withdraw figure. The Net Spendable dashboard reserves IRPF, your monthly cuota, IVA and a buffer, and shows what you can pay yourself this month.
4. Check each quarter. The payment calendar estimates every Modelo 130 instalment (20% of cumulative profit less withholding and earlier instalments) and shows 0 when at least 70% of your income had withholding.
5. Send the export to your gestor. SoloTreasury prepares the figures; it does not file Modelo 130, 303 or 349.

Common mistakes autónomos make

• Treating the full payment as income. Part of every Spanish invoice is IVA you must pass on, and part may be withholding already sent to Hacienda.
• Forgetting the Renta. Quarterly instalments are advances; the annual IRPF return can still bring a payment in June.
• Choosing a low RETA base and forgetting about it. Social Security regularises the cuota against your real net earnings.
• Applying withholding to foreign clients. IRPF withholding applies only to Spanish business clients.
• Missing Modelo 349. Reverse-charge invoices to EU clients must be reported, even though they carry no IVA.

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