Starting out as a freelancer will be free for young people in the Region of Murcia

The Regional Government will be responsible for paying Social Security contributions during the first year of activity of new self-employed workers under 30 years of age.

The President of the Region of Murcia, Pedro Antonio Sánchez, has announced the call for the “Zero Quota” for new self-employed workers who are under 30 years of age, a measure that will be included in the new Self-Employed Law. Murcia thus becomes the first Autonomous Community in which young people will be able to start a business without having to pay Social Security contributions.
The measure aims to facilitate the incorporation of young people into the group of self-employed workers in a region in which the number of self-employed workers has experienced growth above the national average with 874 more people during 2016. The regional Administration will be in charge of the payment of Social Security contributions during the first year and will implement a flat rate of 50 euros per month for the second year of activity.
The announcement occurred during the closing of the National Steering Committee of the Association of Self-Employed Workers (ATA) in which Sánchez stressed that “the Region of Murcia is a pioneer in this type of programs” and stressed that they wanted to start with the young people “because there is a very prepared generation that needs to be part of that better future that we want for the Region.”
The regional government will allocate more than five million euros this year to support the establishment of new self-employed workers, with aid to each worker of between 3,000 and 9,900 euros. In addition, the Executive will offer business initiatives of advice, guidance and information, betting on responsible self-employment.
The President of the Community has assured that they will agree with ATA on new measures to support self-employed workers, since he considers the group as a key piece for the future of the Region. In this sense, he has announced that he has reached an agreement with employers and unions to launch the Strategy for Quality Employment 2017-2020, which includes a program aimed at entrepreneurship, with measures that include training for entrepreneurship, aid to establishment as a self-employed person and advice, information and motivation for self-employment and initiatives for local development.