Estimación objetiva (módulos)

Under módulos, your net income does not depend on what you invoice or spend, but on indicators set for each activity: square metres of the premises, staff, contracted power, tables or vehicles, depending on the case. Each year an order is published setting the módulos that apply. It is a regime designed for small businesses such as bars, shops or haulage, and it usually goes together with the simplified VAT regime, which is also calculated with indicators.

The typical mistake is believing that under módulos you do not need to keep invoices. You must keep the invoices you receive and issue an invoice when the customer is a business or professional, as well as keep a capital assets ledger. Another frequent slip is not watching the turnover threshold: if you exceed it, you are excluded and move to estimación directa, which changes significantly how your taxes are calculated.

Estimación objetiva is related to estimación directa simplificada, rendimiento neto and retención: if you invoice companies, the income on which they withhold also counts toward the threshold. The result is paid through quarterly income tax prepayments and settled in your annual return. Opting out or being excluded is notified through the census declaration.

Guides that use this term

• Verifactu for bars, restaurants, hairdressers and shops with a POS
• Modelo 130: paying your IRPF in advance as an autónomo
• Modelo 131: the quarterly IRPF prepayment under módulos
• Registering as self-employed in Spain: the two procedures, in order and without fines
• Quarterly tax returns for the self-employed in Spain: which forms you file each quarter and by when

Related terms

• Rendimiento neto: Rendimiento neto is your income from self-employment minus the deductible expenses of your activity; it is the figure used to calculate both your income tax and your RETA contribution bracket.
• Estimación directa simplificada: Estimación directa simplificada is the standard method most self-employed workers use to calculate net income: you subtract documented deductible expenses from income, plus a flat deduction for hard-to-justify expenses of 5%, capped at 2,000 euros a year.
• Retención: Retención is the portion of an invoice or payslip that the payer withholds and pays directly to the tax agency on account of the recipient's income tax.

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