Social Security for freelancers: how much you pay, when, and how to declare

How much you pay, in three numbers

If you are on the simplified regime, the Social Security calculation comes down to three numbers: 70% of the value of your services, a 21.4% contribution rate, and one declaration every three months. In practice: if you invoice 1,000 euros in a month, your relevant income is 700 euros and the contribution for that month is 149.80 euros.

What counts toward relevant income

Relevant income is the base the rate applies to. Under the simplified regime it corresponds to 70% of the total value of the services provided, because the remaining 30% are presumed to be business expenses. There are two particular cases worth knowing:

• Hotels, restaurants and beverages: only 20% of the income counts toward relevant income.
• Organized accounting: the base stops being 70% of services and becomes the taxable profit, which is why these workers do not file the quarterly declaration.

The first year exemption

If you started your activity as a self employed worker for the first time, you are exempt from paying contributions for the first 12 months. It is a real help at the start, but there is a trade off: those months do not count toward social benefits or your retirement. If you prefer to start contributing earlier, you can request early registration when you file the quarterly declaration.

The quarterly declaration and the base limits

When you are not exempt, you file an income declaration every three months on Social Security Direct, in January, April, July and October. You declare what you invoiced in the previous quarter and Social Security calculates the monthly contribution you will pay over the following three months. The contribution base has a minimum of 20 euros and a maximum of 12 times the IAS, which in 2026 corresponds to 6,445.56 euros per month. If you fail to file the declaration when required, you are liable to a fine.

Exemptions many people do not know about

• Combined with employment: if your salary is at least one IAS (537.13 euros in 2026) and your average monthly income as a self employed worker is below 4 IAS (2,148.52 euros), you are exempt from contributing.
• No income: if in January the contribution assessed for the previous year is below 20 euros, you are exempt from paying.
• Disability or old age pension: anyone receiving one of these pensions may be exempt from contributing.

The three most common mistakes

Counting on the first year exemption forever: it lasts 12 months and does not count toward retirement. Forgetting the quarterly declaration: it is the simplest obligation to meet and the easiest to forget, and fines follow. Spending the full value of the receipt: since the contribution applies to 70% of services and income tax still applies, the rule of thumb is to set aside 20% to 25% of every amount you receive.