Self-employed workers will have to shoulder a new increase in their social security contributions from January 2027, even if Seguridad Social does not approve any changes to the tables or the system of contributions based on real income. The increase is due to the Intergenerational Equity Mechanism (MEI), whose rate will rise from the current 0.9% to 1% next year.
The increase will affect all self-employed workers but will not be the same for everyone. It will depend on each self-employed worker's contribution base: those contributing on a base of 653.59 euros will pay around 65 cents more per month, while those contributing on the maximum base of 5,101.20 euros will face an increase of 5.10 euros per month. In annual terms, the difference will range between 7.84 and 61.21 euros.
Moreover, this increase will come at a time of uncertainty over the new contribution rates. Seguridad Social has not yet reached an agreement with self-employed organisations to update the contribution brackets based on real income for 2027, so the group could start the year with the same current reference figures, but paying more due to the application of the MEI.
Self-employed workers' contributions will rise by up to 5.10 euros per month due to the MEI in 2027
The increase responds to the schedule set out for the Intergenerational Equity Mechanism. This surcharge, which is applied to the contribution base, will rise by one tenth of a percentage point in January: from 0.9% to 1%.
Although it may seem like a small difference, the change will have a direct effect on self-employed workers' monthly bill. In 2026, a self-employed worker with a contribution base of 1,000 euros pays 9 euros per month for the MEI. In 2027, with the new percentage, they will pay 10 euros. In other words, one euro more each month.
The amount will be higher for those with higher bases. A self-employed worker contributing on a base of 2,000 euros will go from paying 18 to 20 euros per month, while another contributing on the maximum base of 5,101.20 euros will go from paying 45.91 to 51.01 euros.
The MEI is an additional contribution intended to strengthen the Social Security Reserve Fund. Its application follows its own legal schedule, so the increase does not depend on whether new contribution tables are approved for self-employed workers.
This is what self-employed workers will pay extra depending on their contribution base
The increase is calculated by applying the difference between the two rates - from 0.9% to 1% - to each self-employed worker's contribution base. Therefore, the higher the chosen base, the greater the additional amount they will have to pay.
Thus, self-employed workers contributing on lower bases will face an increase of less than one euro per month, while those with bases above 1,000 euros will pay progressively higher amounts. At the highest end, the increase will reach 5.10 euros per month.
These amounts reflect solely the effect of the MEI and use the 2026 bases as a reference. They do not include possible changes to the minimum or maximum bases that may be approved for the coming year, nor do they represent the total contribution amount paid by each self-employed worker.
Seguridad Social still not negotiating changes with self-employed organisations on the contribution system
The MEI increase will come at a time of uncertainty over the future of the contribution system based on real income. With just a few weeks left until the end of 2026, Seguridad Social has still not sat down with the representative organisations of self-employed workers to negotiate changes that would improve the group's contribution and protection system.