In short: the grants for autónomos in Catalonia fall into four groups. State ones, which apply in Catalonia too: the flat rate and the lump-sum payment of unemployment benefit. The Generalitat's, which come out in a yearly call (aid for young autónomos and the TU+1 subsidy, with the 2026 windows already closed), plus its Consolida't programme. Financing, which is debt and not aid: ICF loans, Avalis guarantees and the MicroBank microloan. And public advice: Xarxa Emprèn, Barcelona Activa, chambers of commerce and PAE points. The Generalitat's pages for autónomos list no «cuota cero». Amounts, deadlines and requirements change every year: check the official page of each one.
State aid (valid in Catalonia too)
- Flat rate: €80 a month plus the MEI (0.9%), €88.64 in total, for 12 months, according to the Social Security Import@ss guide. It is requested in the registration itself; requirements and steps are in the flat rate card.
- Lump-sum payment of unemployment benefit: collecting in one go the unemployment benefit you have left, to invest in your activity. It is requested before registering. In Catalonia you can request it at an SOC Oficina de Treball (by appointment) or at the SEPE electronic office. The SOC page describes three modes: total, partial (part in one go and the rest to pay autónomo contributions) and contributions only.
Generalitat de Catalunya
- Aid for young autónomos (ESF+): a fixed-amount payment from the Departament d'Empresa i Treball for people under 30 who start as autónomos. It is called every year and each call sets the amount. The 2026 call asked for being aged 18 to 29 when starting, being registered as a beneficiary in Garantía Juvenil the day before, living and having your tax address in Catalonia (there is a line for municipalities of fewer than 500 inhabitants), not working as an employee when starting or in the first 18 months (except up to 18 full-time days), presenting a business plan and showing a training or support action. The aid covers the first 12 months of activity and you must keep the activity for at least 18 months. The rules are in Ordre EMT/155/2023. The 2026 call's window ran from 28 July to 22 September 2026 and is now closed; check the procedure page for when the next one comes out.
- TU+1 subsidy: for autónomos with no employees who hire, on a permanent contract, an unemployed person registered with the SOC. The 2026 call gave €22,320 for each full-time permanent contract (less if part-time), up to two contracts, which must be kept for at least 18 months, and required a tax address in Catalonia. Its window ran from 10 to 29 July 2026 and is now closed. Rules: Ordre EMT/95/2025; 2026 call: Resolució EMT/2303/2026.
- Consolida't programme: advice and training to consolidate and grow the activity of self-employed people. It is delivered by partner bodies (universities, professional and autónomo associations, town councils) that receive the Generalitat's subsidy; you contact the body directly from the official list. The page gives no requirements or cost for the autónomo: ask the body.
- «Cuota cero»: the «Autònoms» page of the Departament d'Empresa i Treball lists, among others, the Consolida't programme, the aid for young autónomos, the TU+1 subsidy and the unemployment-benefit lump sum, and none of them reduces the Social Security contribution. The contribution reduction when you register is the State flat rate.
- Where to see all the Generalitat's calls: the Servei de Finançament Unificat on Canal Empresa has a «Subvencions per a autònoms» list and filters by status («Obertes i en termini»). In Catalan, search for «ajuts per a autònoms».
Financing (loans and guarantees, not grants)
- ICF Autònoms i Pimes: a loan from the Institut Català de Finances for self-employed people and SMEs with a registered or operating base in Catalonia. According to its page, from €20,000 to €300,000, up to 10 years with up to 2 years of grace period (time without repaying capital), at the «E12m» index plus a margin of between 1.5% and 3%. Fees and guarantees depend on the project. It is requested through ICF digital banking. It is a debt: if the business does not work out, it is still yours.
- MicroBank microloan: a microloan from MicroBank, CaixaBank's social bank; it is a private loan you repay, not public aid.
- Avalis de Catalunya: a non-profit mutual guarantee company. Its guarantee backs, with the bank, the financing of autónomos and SMEs based or operating in Catalonia, regardless of registered office or nationality according to its website. For investment loans, from €20,000 to €1,300,000. The website refers to a simulator for the conditions.
Advice, registration and spaces
- Xarxa Emprèn: a Generalitat network of more than 125 bodies. In the entity finder you choose the one in your comarca and ask for free advice. Its services include a business plan and viability check, training, procedures for starting the business, mediation to access financing and coworking spaces.
- Autónomo registration with no management costs: according to Canal Empresa, PAE points and OGE offices do the registration with no management costs and immediately. The FUE autónomo registration service is free, at OGE offices or through Canal Empresa, and covers the tax agency registration (census and NIF) and the RETA. The PAE finder locates the nearest point.
- Barcelona Chamber of Commerce: its PAE point does the autónomo registration for free and by appointment; it is closed in August. Chambers of commerce also advise people who want to create a company, according to the Spanish Chamber of Commerce: in its form, with your postal code, you are directed to the one for your area.
- Barcelona Activa: services for starting up in Barcelona: advice, training activities, programmes by group and sector, and coworking spaces. To access most of them you must have attended the information session, held in Catalan, Spanish or English.
- SOC: its entrepreneurship and self-employment page gathers the unemployment-benefit lump sum and links to Xarxa Emprèn.
If you are a foreigner
- Before any aid, your permit must allow you to work for yourself. Organic Law 4/2000 (art. 36.1) requires a residence and work authorisation for people over 16 for any paid activity. Art. 37 regulates self-employment: meeting what is required of nationals to open the activity, proving sufficient investment and possible job creation; the initial authorisation is limited to one autonomous community at most and one sector.
- Royal Decree 1155/2024 develops it: the initial self-employment authorisation lasts 1 year, limited to one autonomous community and one sector (art. 83), with its requirements in art. 84 and its procedure in art. 85. If your authorisation is for employment, art. 73.5 also allows self-employment as long as employment remains the main activity. Temporary residence for exceptional circumstances, such as arraigo, carries work as self-employed or as an employee (art. 131); the arraigo socioformativo has its own limit of 30 hours a week and only as an employee.
- With temporary protection, the Ucrania Urgente website of the Ministry of Inclusion says it allows work as self-employed or as an employee. If you are not from the EU, the Social Security guide asks for a NIE, a Social Security number and a work and residence permit to register.
- In the Catalan aids: Avalis says it guarantees autónomos regardless of nationality. The youth aid requires registration in Garantía Juvenil, and Law 18/2014 (art. 97) asks for Spanish or EU nationality, or being a foreigner with a residence authorisation that allows work, and being registered at a town hall (empadronado). For ICF, Consolida't and Xarxa Emprèn, confirm the nationality and permit requirements with the body that manages them.
- The steps and order of registration are in the card on becoming an autónomo as a foreigner (the example is the Valencian Community; Tax Agency and Social Security registration is the same across Spain); the self-employment authorisation for people living outside Spain, in residence and work as self-employed; taxes, in taxes for a foreign autónomo and, for the income tax return in Catalonia, regional deductions in Catalonia.
And this week's calls?
The table below shows the calls open now in the National Grants Database, from the State, the Generalitat de Catalunya, the diputacions, the consells comarcals and town halls, and it is updated every day. Some aids above are handled on Canal Empresa and do not always appear in the table. The conditions and the exact deadline of each call are only in its official text: open it before preparing anything.
Informational only; check the official source and a professional for your specific case.