New autónomo: when will they pay tax for the first time?

Imagine a new autónomo. Let’s call them Sasha — universal, with no gender-related tax disputes 😅

Sasha:

— registered as an autónomo on 1 January 2026;
— provides consulting services;
— issues invoices for €4,000 per month before VAT;
— spends about €500 per month on work;
— bought a work laptop in January for €2,400 before VAT;
— applied for the cuota reducida — the reduced social-security contribution for a new autónomo.

In our example, there is no other income, no children, no mortgage and no additional deductions.

Reduced social-security contribution

📌 In 2026, the reduced social-security contribution is €88.64 per month:

— €80 — the basic cuota reducida;
— €8.64 — MEI (the contribution to the Intergenerational Equity Mechanism).

Yes, even the reduced €80 somehow managed to become €88.64 in Spain. Welcome to adult life as an autónomo 😅

What happens in January

Sasha issues the first invoice to a Spanish company:

€4,000 — service fee;

• €840 — IVA (VAT) at 21%;
  − €280 — IRPF (personal income tax) at 7%;
  = the client transfers €4,560 to Sasha.

And this raises the main question:

Why does the client withhold 7%, and where does the €280 go?

It does not disappear.

If an autónomo provides professional services to a Spanish company or another Spanish autónomo, the client is generally required to withhold part of the IRPF (personal income tax) directly from the invoice.

Sasha states on the invoice:

IRPF 7%: −€280

The client then:

— pays Sasha €280 less;
— transfers that €280 directly to the Spanish Tax Agency;
— reports that the money was paid on Sasha’s behalf.

In effect, the client says:

“Here is €280 of our contractor’s personal income tax. We took it from the invoice and handed it to you immediately, before it was all spent on coffee and life by the sea.” 😅

The €280 is not lost. It is credited to Sasha as an advance personal income-tax payment already made.

When the annual Renta return is filed, the Tax Agency calculates the final IRPF (personal income tax) and deducts all amounts that clients have already paid for Sasha.

📌 A new autónomo carrying out a professional activity can generally apply the 7% rate:

— in the year the activity begins;
— during the following two years.

After that, the standard withholding is generally 15%.

But 7% is neither the final tax rate nor a tax discount. It is only a payment on account.

What if the client withholds nothing?

This happens, for example, when the client is a private individual who is not carrying on a business activity.

In that case, the invoice looks like this:

€4,000 — service fee;

• €840 — IVA (VAT);
  = the client transfers €4,840 to Sasha.

No IRPF (personal income tax) is deducted from the invoice.

Sasha must therefore calculate and pay personal income-tax instalments independently through Modelo 130.

If the client is outside Spain, different IVA (VAT) rules may apply. For simplicity, this article uses an example with Spanish clients.

How much of the money really belongs to Sasha?

Even if €4,560 or €4,840 reaches the bank account, that does not mean it can all be spent.

👉 €4,000 is Sasha’s revenue.
👉 €840 is IVA (VAT), which must be kept until the quarterly return.
👉 The €280 of IRPF (personal income tax) has either already been paid to the Tax Agency by the client, or Sasha will have to make the tax instalment personally.

The first rule for a new autónomo:

It is better to transfer the IVA (VAT) to a separate account immediately.

That money has merely stopped with you temporarily on its way to Hacienda. There is no need to feed it, entertain it or buy a new iPhone with it 🤪

What Sasha pays during the first three months

January

— receives the first payment;
— sets aside IVA (VAT);
— pays work expenses;
— pays €88.64 of RETA (the autónomo social-security contribution).

February

— issues another invoice;
— sets aside IVA (VAT) again;
— pays another €88.64 of RETA.

March

— closes the first quarter;
— collects all sales and expense invoices;
— pays another €88.64 of RETA.

There is no separate quarterly tax payment in January, February or March.

For the first three months, Sasha mainly works and sets money aside.

The first full tax hello arrives in April 👋

What must be paid in April

There are again two possible scenarios.

Scenario 1: clients withhold 7% IRPF

If at least 70% of Sasha’s professional income has already been subject to IRPF (personal income-tax) withholding, Modelo 130 generally does not have to be filed.

The clients are already paying the tax instalments on Sasha’s behalf.

However, Modelo 303 for IVA (VAT) still remains due if Sasha is required to charge Spanish VAT.

Scenario 2: clients withhold nothing

Sasha then files Modelo 130 personally — the quarterly calculation of the IRPF (personal income-tax) instalment.

For the first three months:

€12,000 — revenue;
− €1,500 — current work expenses;
− €265.92 — RETA (autónomo social-security contributions);
− €156 — laptop depreciation;
= €10,078.08 profit before the additional 5%.

Under estimación directa simplificada, an additional 5% allowance for difficult-to-document expenses is applied:

€10,078.08 × 5% = €503.90.

This gives:

€10,078.08 − €503.90 = €9,574.18 of calculated profit.

The IRPF (personal income tax) instalment:

€9,574.18 × 20% = €1,914.84.

This is the first independent payment under Modelo 130.

The deadline is generally 20 April.

How much IVA (VAT) must be paid?

Assume that all clients are in Spain and the services are subject to IVA (VAT) at 21%.

During the first quarter, Sasha collected from clients:

€840 × 3 months = €2,520 of IVA (VAT).

But the IVA (VAT) on business expenses can be deducted from this amount.

Assume:

— €315 — IVA (VAT) on monthly expenses;
— €504 — IVA (VAT) on the laptop purchase.

This gives:

€2,520
− €315
− €504
= €1,701 payable under Modelo 303.

Modelo 303 is the quarterly IVA (VAT) return.

Total first payment in April

If clients did not withhold IRPF (personal income tax):

— Modelo 130 — about €1,914.84 as a personal income-tax instalment;
— Modelo 303 — about €1,701 of VAT.

The total payable is:

approximately €3,615.84.

It is frightening only if Sasha had already decided that all the IVA (VAT) belonged to them and introduced the money to Amazon, Booking and the bar on the seafront 😅

When are the next payments?

📅 By 20 July — calculation for the second quarter.
📅 By 20 October — calculation for the third quarter.
📅 By 30 January of the following year — calculation for the fourth quarter.

In the spring or summer of the following year, Sasha files the annual Renta return.

That is when the Tax Agency finally calculates the IRPF (personal income tax), taking into account:

— actual annual profit;
— professional expenses;
— social-security contributions;
— equipment depreciation;
— the relief for a new activity;
— personal and family allowances;
— instalments already paid;
— amounts clients withheld from invoices.

💡 The first tax therefore does not arise on the day an autónomo registers.

But money must be set aside for it from the first invoice.

Hacienda knows how to wait. And then it suddenly remembers that all this time it was waiting specifically for you 😅

Why does the client withhold 7% while the autónomo pays 20%?

At first sight, it looks strange:

— the client withholds only 7%;
— if the client withholds nothing, the autónomo pays 20% independently.

It may appear that tax is almost three times lower with a Spanish client. But no — tax magic is not that generous 😅

Neither 7% nor 20% is the final tax rate.

Both amounts are only advance payments towards IRPF (personal income tax). The final tax is calculated later in the annual Renta return.

The difference is who pays the instalment and the amount on which it is calculated.

The 7% is withheld from revenue

If a new autónomo provides professional services to a Spanish company or another Spanish business, the client may be required to withhold IRPF (personal income tax) directly from the invoice.

For example, Sasha issues an invoice:

€4,000 — service fee;

• €840 — IVA (VAT);
  − €280 — IRPF (personal income tax) at 7%;
  = the client transfers €4,560 to Sasha.

The client does not keep that €280.

It transfers the money directly to Hacienda on Sasha’s behalf. For Sasha, it counts as an advance personal income-tax payment already made.

Over three months, the client transfers:

€12,000 × 7% = €840 of IRPF instalments.

Importantly, 7% is calculated on all revenue before IVA (VAT). The client does not know or take account of Sasha’s expenses when making the withholding.

The 7% rate is intended for the start of a professional activity: it can generally be used in the year of registration and the following two years. The standard withholding is generally 15% afterwards.

One purpose is to leave a new professional with more working capital during the first few years.

But 7% is not a preferential final tax rate. An additional payment may still arise in the annual return.

The autónomo calculates 20% on profit

If clients do not withhold IRPF (personal income tax), the autónomo generally files Modelo 130 personally — the quarterly calculation of the personal income-tax instalment.

Here, the 20% is calculated not on all revenue but on profit:

revenue − documented expenses − social-security contributions − depreciation − other allowable expenses.

In our example for the first quarter:

€12,000 — revenue;
− €1,500 — current expenses;
− €265.92 — RETA (autónomo social-security contributions);
− €156 — laptop depreciation;
− €503.90 — the 5% allowance for difficult-to-document expenses;
= €9,574.18 of calculated profit.

The quarterly instalment:

€9,574.18 × 20% = €1,914.84.

Therefore:

— the 7% withholding is calculated on revenue;
— the 20% under Modelo 130 is calculated on profit after expenses.

They are different mechanisms for calculating the same kind of advance payment towards IRPF (personal income tax).

What if some clients withhold 7% and others do not?

Amounts already withheld are not lost and are not paid twice.

For example:

— the calculated Modelo 130 instalment is €1,914.84;
— clients have already withheld and paid €420;
— approximately €1,494.84 remains to be paid personally.

In other words, amounts already withheld by clients are deducted from the calculated quarterly instalment.

The Tax Agency does not charge the same instalment twice. At least not officially 😅

When is Modelo 130 not required at all?

If at least 70% of professional income has already been subject to IRPF (personal income-tax) withholding, a professional generally does not have to file Modelo 130.

For a new autónomo, this percentage is checked against income for the relevant quarter.

For example, if all revenue comes from a Spanish company and 7% is withheld from every invoice, the client is already paying regular instalments to the Tax Agency. A separate quarterly instalment through Modelo 130 is therefore generally not required.

But this does not turn the 7% into the final tax.

📅 In the spring or summer of the following year, Sasha files the annual Renta return.

The Tax Agency calculates the final IRPF (personal income tax) under the progressive scale, taking into account:

— annual profit;
— expenses and depreciation;
— social-security contributions;
— relief for a new activity;
— personal and family allowances;
— region of residence;
— other income;
— all client withholdings;
— all independent payments under Modelo 130.

There are then three possible outcomes:

— advance payments were lower than the final tax — the difference must be paid;
— advance payments were higher — the Tax Agency refunds the difference;
— the amounts are roughly equal — nobody owes anyone anything, and that is almost a celebration 🎉

In short:

💡 7% — the client withholds it from your revenue and pays it for you.

💡 20% — you calculate it personally on profit through Modelo 130.

💡 Final IRPF is determined only in the annual return.

At income of €4,000 per month, a 7% withholding often does not cover all final tax. Even when a client already withholds IRPF, it is therefore sensible to set aside an additional part of profit for a possible payment when the annual Renta return is filed.

General information only; check your case against official sources or with a qualified professional.