Sara opened her activity and issued her first €1,000 green receipt. She was pleased - until she wondered: “do I get to keep all of this?”. No. But, contrary to what most people fear, the real bite is usually smaller than it looks. Let’s do the maths.
The bites - in this order
Up to four things can come out of what you invoice - and not all of them are a cost of yours:
The VAT rate and the 0.75 coefficient have their own guides - here we care about the result in your pocket.
Example: Sara invoices €1,000/month (VAT-exempt)
Sara is in the simplified regime, does consultancy (an art. 151.º profession) and invoices ~€12,000/year - below €15,000, so she’s VAT-exempt (art. 53.º) and exempt from withholding. She’s past her first year, so she pays Social Security.
Look at the income tax: because the minimum of existence in 2026 is €12,880 (14 × the €920 minimum wage) and Sara earns less than that in the year (with no other income), her IRS comes out near zero. For Sara, the only real bite is Social Security (because her income tax is near zero) - and, if it’s her first activity, not even that in the first ~12 months: the duty to contribute only starts in the 12th month.
And if you invoice more?
The picture changes once you pass €15,000/year. The exemption falls away - as a rule the following year, but within the current year if you exceed it by more than 25% (above €18,750) - and the sum gains more layers:
- VAT: exempt (art. 53.º)
- Withholding: exempt
- Social Security: ≈ €150/month
- Income tax: ≈ 0 (minimum of existence)
- VAT: you charge 23% (neutral, but you manage and remit it)
- Withholding: if the client is required to withhold, 23% (an advance)
- Social Security: ≈ €375/month (21.4% × 70%)
- Income tax: above the minimum now, climbing the brackets
Notice what changes most isn’t Social Security (it stays 21.4% × 70%), but income tax: as income rises above the minimum of existence, the tax starts to bite and the share you keep falls. It’s not all-or-nothing - the brackets are progressive and apply in slices, not to all your income at once.
Careful: these figures are a snapshot with assumptions (simplified regime, art. 151.º profession, no other income, no deductions to the tax). Your real income tax depends on the whole year, your household and your deductions (health, education, etc.), and only settles in the annual return. The withholding taken during the year is an advance - if it’s too much, it comes back in your refund. See the detail in the freelancer income-tax guide.
✅ In summary
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€1,000 invoiced isn’t €1,000 in your pocket, but the real bite is smaller than it looks: VAT is neutral (or exempt) and withholding is just an advance. What remains is Social Security (21.4% on 70%) and income tax - near zero at low income, but heavier as you invoice more.
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Someone invoicing ~€1,000/month and VAT-exempt (up to €15,000/year) keeps ≈ €850 - and in the first ~12 months (if it’s their first activity), with no Social Security, keeps almost all of it (at this income level), because income tax is protected by the minimum of existence (€12,880 in 2026). From €15,000/year (the exemption falls away the following year, or within the current year if you pass €18,750), VAT, withholding and more income tax kick in.
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With FIZ you see in real time what’s VAT, what’s Social Security and what’s income tax - and how much of the receipt is really yours, with no year-end surprises. See the plans.
