Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
For members

WORKING IN SPAIN

GUIDE: How to register with Spain’s social security system

If you want to be able to work in Spain, whether as an employee or self-employed, you will need to register with the country's social security system. Find out the step-by-step process and the documents you'll need to do it.

Published: 11 July 2023 09:35 CEST
GUIDE: How to register with Spain's social security system
How to register with social security in Spain. Photo: Lala Azizli / Unsplash

Registering with Spain’s social security is one of the first things you have to do after arriving in España if you plan on working here.

In fact, you need your social security certificate to even apply for your TIE or foreigner identity card during your first month in the country.

In essence, you pay taxes into Spain’s welfare system and in return get access to one of the best public healthcare systems in the world, as well as other benefits from parental leave to unemployment benefits. 

If you’re employed by a company, they will be responsible for registering you with social security, but if you are self-employed, you will have to do it yourself.

What do I need in order to register?

Remember, if you’re from a non-EU country, you will need to show that you have a valid work permit to authorise you to work in Spain in order to register. 

You will also need your social security number, which you will apply for first, as part of the process.  

How to get your social security number

Step one is to get your social security number. You can do this if you have a digital certificate or you have been issued with an NIE or foreign identity number (this can be found on your TIE card or green EU residency card).

Go to the social security website and click on the ‘Trabajadores’ option at the top, then click on Afiliación y Número de la Seguridad Social. This will take you to the link to apply for it online using your digital certificate. If you don’t have your certificate, there are instructions on how to send a text message in order to get a security code to apply for it instead. 

You will fill out the TA1 form, completing all the boxes with your personal information such as name, date of birth and address. You will also check the box indicating your reason for completing the form – in this case – AFILIACIÓN A LA SEGURIDAD SOCIAL. 

You need to fill out this form to get your social security number in Spain. Source: Seguridad Social

Once this is done, you will receive your NUSS or social security number.

How to register?

Even though you have a social security number, you will still need to register with Social Security before you start working.

There are two different ways to register, the first is online and the second is by going in person to your nearest office.

Online

Go to the social security website and select Alta de Trabajo Autónomos. You can identify yourself online with your digital certificate, cl@ve pin or via text message as above.

Once, identified you will have to fill out the form TA.0521. 

Complete form TA.0521 to register with social security in Spain. Source: Seguridad Social

You will need all your personal details again, as well as the social security number you just applied for.

In Part 2 you’ll select your reason for filling out the form. If you’re registering for social security because you want to start work, you’ll check the box that says ‘alta’.

Part 3 of the form will ask you all about your profession and what industry you intend to work in. You will have to register for a particular one, if you want to work in more than one, the process is slightly different.

READ ALSO: Self-employed in Spain: What are the tax rules if you do two or more jobs?

The final part asks you to select the base cover for your social security fees, whether that’s the minimum, maximum or somewhere in between. This will cover you against various situations such as an accident at work, maternity or paternity pay and healthcare.

The form you need to complete to register with social security in Spain. Source: Seguridad Social

You will also include your work address, if it’s different from your home address.

Other documents you will need to upload include:

  • An identity document such as TIE, green residency card or passport
  • Documentation attesting to registration with the Tax Office – this is the other part of registering to become self-employed.

In-person

First, you’ll need to apply for an appointment at your nearest social security office. When you get your appointment you will take all the same forms and documents as above. Remember to have photocopies of everything.

READ ALSO: Will you pay more under Spain’s new social security rates for self-employed?

How long do I have to wait for it to be processed?

Once you register, you can start work immediately. You will be charged a monthly social security fee once you do. This changes depending on how much your net earnings are per month.

Over the next few years, the fee will go progressively down to €200 a month for lower earners and progressively higher – up to €590 a month – for higher earners. 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

AMERICANS IN SPAIN

EXCLUSIVE: What the new Spain-US social security deal means for Americans

The Local speaks to the Spanish government and tax experts to understand what the new social security and pensions agreement between the United States and Spain means for American workers, digital nomads and pensioners in Spain.

Published: 15 May 2024 11:10 CEST
EXCLUSIVE: What the new Spain-US social security deal means for Americans

In early April, the United States and Spain announced a new social security and pension agreement.

The first update to the bilateral agreement between the two countries since 1986 was announced by US Ambassador to Spain, Julissa Reynoso, and Spain’s Minister of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration, Elma Saiz.

The official agreement is unpublished so The Local spoke with a representative from Spain’s Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration as well as international tax experts to understand the agreement in more detail.

Key aspects of the agreement

The Ministry told The Local Spain that the agreement is a step towards, bolstering mobility between Spain and the United States by improving pension calculations and social security protections.

The agreement has to do with the accumulation of benefits and affects working Americans living in Spain. There are two main components; the first affects which system people pay into (Spanish or American) and the second maximises the amount people can collect from social security.
 
Regarding paying into social security, the new agreement extends the “posting period” from three years to five years, with the possibility of extending it to seven years.

READ ALSO:

This is meaningful for US employees who are working in Spain and means that they can now pay into the US social security system, rather than the Spanish social security system for longer.

Whereas the employee contributions in Spain and the United States are similar, 6.4 percent in Spain and 6.2 percent in the United States, the rate that employers pay differs greatly. In the United States the employer pays 6.2 percent into social security, whereas in Spain they pay 31 percent.
 
Why does this matter? “Previously when Americans moved to Spain, US employers were cutting the amount that they paid in salary because the cost of employment went up so much”, Louis Williams, Co-Founder and CEO of Entre Trámites, told The Local Spain.

It’s also made employers hesitant to grant digital nomads an Employer of Record (EOR) which would allow American workers to be on a Spanish contract.

READ ALSO:

In terms of collecting benefits, the representative from Spain’s Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security, and Migration says, “In the calculation of the Spanish pension there have been technical modifications that will benefit especially those people who developed their last working life in the United States, without this harming those who have worked in Spain immediately before requesting the benefit.”

In other words, under the new agreement, after calculating a person’s benefits under each country’s system, the recipient will be awarded the most beneficial of those two calculations.

Impacts for self-employed workers and digital nomads

According to the Ministry, “The agreement allows self-employed workers to temporarily move to the other State while maintaining their legislation, a possibility that was previously restricted only to employed workers.”
 
This has big implications for people who avoid moving to Spain because of the complicated social security contributions scheme, as they’ll now be able to continue paying US social security taxes (rather than Spanish) for up to seven years.
 
“The interesting thing is if this is extended to digital nomads because it would make the digital nomad visa more attractive,” says Williams.

“Why? Because if you’re posted by an employer (who can now avoid high Spanish social security taxes) you’re eligible for Beckham’s Law.” The law, which does not extend to autonomous works, can cap tax liabilities at 24 percent.
 
Being posted could make life much simpler, according to Elliott Locke, ACSI, co-founder of abroaden, a financial wellbeing and education start-up for people living abroad headquartered in Barcelona.

“The calculus is harder for freelancers given the different legal structures and methods for freelancing between the two countries. In many ways, if an American moves here to work remotely, it could be beneficial for them to have their US-based employer hire them on a local contract through an employer-of-record,” Locke told The Local.
 
In short, the new agreement could make it more attractive for U.S. companies to post employees in Spain, making them eligible for Beckham’s law and allowing autonomous workers to pay into the U.S. social security system, making it more beneficial and easier to be a digital nomad in Spain.

READ ALSO:

Who benefits from the new agreement?
 
The people who will feel this new agreement the most are employers, digital nomads, retirees who have paid into both systems over the years, and finally, civil servants. “Spain has incorporated as possible beneficiaries of the Agreement those people who have contributed to the civil servant’s regime (passive class regime), who were excluded in the previous Agreement,” says the Ministry.
 
When can we expect the new agreement to come into force?

Don’t hold your breath; this is Spain after all, but we can expect the agreement to come into force within the next two years.

The deal has to pass through Congress before approval, which is likely why it has not yet been published. If things move quickly, people could expect to benefit within a year.

READ ALSO:

SHOW COMMENTS