The self employed now have more protection. SUR

Self-employed to benefit from new law to protect their assets

To stimulate more entrepreneurs, the Create and Grow law also allows a limited company to be set up with just one euro capital instead of 3,000

JAVIER LÓPEZ

MALAGA.

Friday, 21 October 2022, 12:46

From this week, almost 130,000 self-employed workers - the so called autónomos - in Malaga province can have extra protection. A new law coming in protects their home and other key assets in the event that things go wrong.

"It is vital that they have watered down the risk; this new law gives greater ability for professionals to get back on their feet again in difficult economic circumstances. Take the example of a driving school, if their cars are embargoed, they have no way of carrying on," said the vice president of the national association of autónomos, Celia Ferrero.

The risk is also reduced not just for the self-employed but also for their families, added Ferrero. "It is key to encouraging new start ups as with this change it takes away a bit of the sense of insecurity."

The new law sets out the basic rules for protecting an autónomo's home and assets. The text says the self-employed can protect their home as long as it is not valued at over 300,000 euros. And if the city they live in has over a million people, this rises to 450,000 euros.

For assets, other than homes, not to be frozen when an autónomo runs up a debt, they need to have met basic requirements; to have registered it on the official register of assets and the value of those assets cannot be greater than the volume of business in the last two years.

Autónomos will need to make a list of their assets and be registered at the Registro Mercantil as Emprendedor de Responsabilidad Limitada.

The new legislation is known as the Create and Grow Law (Ley Crea y Crece). Another, separate key feature is the ability for people to start a new limited company with just one euro of capital as opposed to the 3,000 euros now.