I know there’s many topics on this subject but I couldn’t find the information I was looking for in there.
I’m a 21 year old girl from Holland and have been living in Madrid for almost 4 months now, got the NIE number and then started looking for a job. It was a survival of 3 months but the job finally found me. Teaching English to spanish employees of an American multinational company.  Great hours, great salary, great everything BUT…no contract. I will have to work as an autonomo and after reading up on the matter I’m not entirely sure this is the best thing for me to do. Next to all the paper work I would have to get arranged I would have to pay min. 200 euro’s a month for my social security and on top of that about 20% of my salary as tax. (perhaps it’s less since I got the NIE, I’m not sure) This all would cost me a great deal of my salary since I will only be working part-time and during the summer months there won’t be classes but I will have continue to pay the social security even when my income at that moment will be zero.
The company has offered to pay me cash for the first two months so I can take my time to look into all this and see what to do.

To make a long story a bit shorter:
Thoughts, anyone? Is becoming an autonomo in my situation really admirable? Because the way I see it I won’t really have any benefits from it but I might be wrong..

Hi,
There are just two ways to work legally in Spain, with contract or as autonomo. As autonomo (I am one) you are entitled to social seguridad (health care,sickness benefit, pension, unemployment benefit).  If you do not have a contract and you do not are autonomo then you are just entitled to emergency health care as all EU citizens are.

There is also one more main benefit, it is far more easy for you to get more work if you have your autonomo. The reason for this is that the companies here in Spain are often afraid to hire someone with a regular contract. But they do not fear at all to hire you if you are legally self employed (autonom). I is also a matter of confidence, your autonomo shows that you have planned to stay here in Spain.

The other side of it is certainly the costs, you have to pay the same amount every month so social seguridad even if you do not earn a penny, but on the other hand, you can also earn hell of a lot whit out paying more.

You do not have to concern about the tax, you have to pay tax of course. But if you do not earn more than you say, than you will get all of it back after you have declared for it. You have to earn very much more to really pay any tax at all, in the end. This is not a high tax country.

Best regards from Costa del Sol