Spain vs Poland for freelancers 2026
The general comparison shows both countries on their ordinary rules. This page answers the question that actually decides the bill: which regime. Every option each country offers, on the same income, each computed with the same engine and verified data as the per-country calculators.
One amount, both countries, every regime
The figures show left after tax and contributions and, in brackets, the effective rate.
On €60,000, that is €1,304 more left after tax and contributions in Spain.
Spain
Autónomo: estimación directa simplificada: The standard route for the self-employed: real income minus deductible expenses; applies while prior-year turnover is within EUR 600,000. · details
left after tax and contributions: €34,359 (31.3%)
Régimen especial de impatriados (art. 93 LIRPF, 'Ley Beckham'): You are moving to Spain after 5 tax years as a non-resident, with a certified entrepreneurial activity or as a highly qualified professional working for a start-up; runs for up to 6 years. · details
left after tax and contributions: €33,400 (33.2%)
Only if you confirm this yourself: Available for 6 tax years in total; Not tax resident in Spain during the 5 tax periods preceding the year of the move to Spain (art. 93.1.a LIRPF; reduced from 10 to 5 by Ley 28/2022 with effect from 1 Jan 2023).
Poland
General scale (skala podatkowa): The default route: 12% up to PLN 120,000 and 32% above, on profit (revenue minus costs), with the PLN 30,000 tax-free amount; allows joint filing, child relief and IP Box. · details
left after tax and contributions: €37,650 (34.7%)
Flat tax (podatek liniowy): A flat 19% on profit with no tax-free amount and no joint filing; worth it once profit is well into the 32% band; IP Box still available. · details
left after tax and contributions: €40,424 (29.9%)
Ryczałt od przychodów ewidencjonowanych: A lump sum on revenue with no expenses deducted; the rate depends on your activity (12% for software/IT, 14% for engineers/architects/doctors, 17% for lawyers/accountants and other free professions, 8.5% for general services). Best when real costs are low. · details
left after tax and contributions: €43,583 (24.5%)
Change every input: Spain Freelancer Tax Calculator · Poland Freelancer Tax Calculator
What each row holds fixed
A regime is only comparable while you can see its assumptions. Each row above is a real calculation on that regime's own qualifying example, with your amount swapped in:
- Spain: Autónomo: estimación directa simplificada: deductible business expenses: €10,000; region: Madrid.
- Spain: Régimen especial de impatriados (art. 93 LIRPF, 'Ley Beckham'): deductible business expenses: €10,000; region: Madrid; what you do: certified entrepreneurial activity.
- Poland: General scale (skala podatkowa): deductible business expenses: PLN 10,000; what you do: IT and software.
- Poland: Flat tax (podatek liniowy): deductible business expenses: PLN 10,000; what you do: IT and software.
- Poland: Ryczałt od przychodów ewidencjonowanych: deductible business expenses: PLN 10,000; what you do: IT and software.
Figures not yet fixed for this tax year
These amounts are applied in practice, but the text that fixes them for this tax year does not exist yet: either the statute has not been passed, or the body that sets the figure publishes it later than the year it applies to. We show them because leaving them out would give you a worse answer, not a safer one, and we show you exactly what each one rests on.
- Spain: regimes[0].reduced_contribution.amount_per_period (EUR 80/month, tarifa plana): EUR 80/month was fixed by law only for 2023-2025 (DT 5ª RDL 13/2022); from 2026 the amount must be set by the annual Budget Law, which has not been passed (budget rollover). No norm of statutory rank sets the 2026 figure. Seguridad Social nevertheless applies EUR 80 de facto and publishes the 2026 tables with it. Publishing it is less wrong than omitting the reduced cuota altogether, which would overstate a new freelancer's first-year cost by roughly EUR 1,400. (what we relied on) · we re-check after 2026-12-31
- Spain: regimes[0].reduced_contribution.surcharge_per_period (EUR 8.64/month, MEI on top of the reduced cuota): Derived from the total of EUR 88.64/month that Seguridad Social publishes for 2026 (88.64 - 80.00). It rests on the same unpassed Budget Law as the EUR 80 itself, and the MEI base used by the administration to reach 88.64 is not stated in any norm we could open. (what we relied on) · we re-check after 2026-12-31
What this calculator does not model
Every rule below is real and is left out on purpose. Modelling it would need information this form does not ask you for, or a mechanism we have not built yet. What matters is not that something is missing, but which way it moves your number, so that is what we tell you.
- Your real tax may be HIGHER: Poland: The health insurance contribution is modelled as fully deductible under the flat 19% tax, but the law caps that deduction at PLN 14,100 per year (2026). A flat-tax freelancer with income above roughly PLN 288,000 deducts more here than the law allows, so their real tax is slightly higher than shown. Applies to: Flat-tax (podatek liniowy) freelancers with annual profit above ~PLN 288,000.
- Your real tax may be LOWER: Poland: Voluntary sickness insurance (ubezpieczenie chorobowe, 2.45%) is included in the ZUS total. A freelancer who does not opt into it pays about PLN 138 per month less than shown. Applies to: Anyone who declines voluntary sickness insurance.
- Your real tax may be LOWER: Poland: Start-up reliefs are not modelled: 'ulga na start' waives all social contributions (health only) for the first 6 months, and the preferential 'mały ZUS'/'mały ZUS plus' bases (from PLN 1,441.80/month) apply for up to the next few years. A new or low-income freelancer pays far less ZUS than the full 'duży ZUS' shown here. Applies to: Freelancers in their first months/years of activity, or with prior-year revenue below PLN 120,000 (mały ZUS plus).
- Your real tax may be LOWER: Poland: IP Box (a 5% rate on income from qualified intellectual property, e.g. copyright to software the freelancer creates in R&D) is not modelled under the scale and flat regimes. A software developer who qualifies pays less than shown on the part of income that is qualified IP. Applies to: Software and R&D freelancers on the general scale or flat tax who own qualifying IP.
This calculator is for information only and is not tax advice. Rates and thresholds change; check the methodology page for sources and verification dates, and confirm your own situation with a qualified adviser.