The age at which a self-employed worker can retire depends directly on the years they have contributed to the Special Regime for Self-Employed Workers (RETA). In 2026, those who have contributed 38 years and 3 months of contributions can retire at age 65. The rest will have to wait until they are 66 years and 10 months old. These conditions change each year within the transitional period established by Law 27/2011 and which ends in 2027.
Self-employed retirement age in 2026
The 2011 pension reform established a transitional period that began in 2013 and ends in 2027. During these years, the legal retirement age progressively rises from 65 to 67 years for those who do not reach a minimum number of years of contributions. Self-employed workers are subject to the same rules as General Regime workers regarding age and required contribution period.
This is the age table in force until the end of the transitional period:
| Year | Quoted periods | Retirement age |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 38 or older | 65 years |
| Less than 38 years old | 66 years and 6 months | |
| 2025 | 38 years and 3 months or more | 65 years |
| Less than 38 years and 3 months | 66 years and 8 months | |
| 2026 | 38 years and 3 months or more | 65 years |
| Less than 38 years and 3 months | 66 years and 10 months | |
| From 2027 | 38 years and 6 months or more | 65 years |
| Less than 38 years and 6 months | 67 years |
A self-employed person born in 1961 who has contributed uninterruptedly since the age of 25, for example, would accumulate around 40 years of contributions by the time he turns 65 and could retire without waiting until he is 66 years and 10 months old.
Years of contributions necessary to collect 100% of the pension
Reaching retirement age does not guarantee receiving the full pension. The percentage that is applied on the regulatory basis depends on how many years contributions have been made in total. The regulatory base is, in simple terms, the average salary of the last years of contributions that Social Security uses to calculate the pension.
The percentage scale in 2026 works like this:
- 15 years of contributions (minimum required): 50% of the regulatory base.
- Each of the following 49 months (until reaching 19 years and 1 month): 0.21% monthly is added.
- Each of the following 209 months (until completing 36 years and 6 months): 0.19% monthly is added.
- 36 years and 6 months: 100% of the regulatory base.
Starting in 2027, the threshold for 100% will rise to 37 years of contributions.
To make it more concrete, if a self-employed person reaches retirement with 25 years of contributions, they would collect approximately 71% of their regulatory base. With 30 years, around 82%. Only if you are 36 and a half years old or older would you receive the full amount.
Minimum requirements to access the pension
Before thinking about percentages, the self-employed must meet two minimum contribution conditions established by the General Social Security Law:
- General waiting period: having contributed at least 15 years to any Social Security scheme.
- Specific waiting period: of those 15 years, at least 2 must be within the 15 years immediately preceding the date on which retirement is requested.
If a self-employed person stopped contributing more than 13 years ago and has not registered again, he or she does not meet the specific deficiency and will not be able to access the contributory pension even if he or she has accumulated more than 15 years of working life.
New calculation of the regulatory base from 2026
Since January 2026, Social Security applies a dual system to calculate the regulatory base and automatically chooses the most favorable option for the worker, as established by Royal Decree-Law 2/2023:
- Traditional method: the contribution bases of the last 25 years (300 months) are added and divided by 350.
- New method (gradual implementation until 2037): the best 27 years of the last 29 are taken, discarding the months with lower contributions.
For 2026 specifically, the calculation compares the last 302 bases divided by 352.33 with the last 300 bases divided by 350, and applies the higher result. This especially benefits self-employed people who have had years of irregular income or low contribution bases, as it allows the worst months to be ruled out.
Early retirement for the self-employed
A self-employed person can advance his retirement, but he will never collect 100% of the pension with this modality. The reducing coefficients cut the pension permanently.
There are two ways:
- Voluntary early retirement: allows you to retire up to 24 months before the ordinary age, but it is necessary to prove at least 35 years of contributions. The reducing coefficients range between 2.81% and 21% depending on the months in advance and the total number of years contributed.
- Early retirement due to cessation of activity (involuntary): allows you to retire up to 48 months in advance. The self-employed person must demonstrate an involuntary cessation of their activity for economic, technical, productive or organizational reasons.
In both cases, the penalty is for life and affects all payments, including extraordinary payments.
Active retirement: work and collect pension at the same time
The self-employed have an advantage over employees in active retirement, since they can continue billing while collecting part or all of the pension:
- With at least one hired worker: the self-employed person receives 100% of the pension and can continue carrying out his or her activity.
- Without dependent workers: collect 50% of the pension while still registered in the RETA.
To access active retirement it is mandatory to have reached the ordinary retirement age and be entitled to 100% of the regulatory base (36 years and 6 months of contributions in 2026).
How to check the years of contributions
The self-employed person can check their current situation before making any decision. Social Security offers two tools:
- Work life report: available at the Social Security electronic headquarters with digital certificate, Cl@ve or SMS. Shows all accumulated registration and contribution periods.
- Retirement simulator: allows you to estimate the approximate amount of the pension by entering personal data. The result always shows the gross amount, before personal income tax and pharmaceutical copayment.