Following the publication in the Official Gazette of the Canary Islands of the resolution opening the period for self-employed workers without activity due to Covid-19 to apply for the additional 30% aid, starting this Wednesday, the Arrecife City Council reminds that it has a team of two technicians available to the self-employed and SMEs of the island's capital who advise entrepreneurs on these procedures and the aid granted by the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the Government of the Nation.
Following the new agreements between the Canary Islands and the State, the mayoress of Arrecife, Ástrid Pérez, and the Councilor for Employment and head of the Local Development Agency, Saro González Perdomo, have prioritized that the activities of the municipal technicians in promoting employment be used in this alert period to provide advice and assistance to the self-employed in Arrecife and small SMEs. The procedures can be carried out by calling 674 083 939 or by email [email protected].
In this regard, the City Council recalls that the Government of Spain has approved a 6-month interest-free moratorium for the payment of Social Security contributions for the self-employed and SMEs. Decree-Law 11/2020 of March 31 enables the General Treasury of Social Security to grant moratoriums on the payment of Social Security contributions in exceptional circumstances. On the other hand, it is stated that those self-employed workers who have suspended their activity and are receiving the benefit for cessation of activity regulated in Royal Decree-Law 8/2020 and who have not paid the social contributions corresponding to the days actually worked in March on time may pay them late without surcharge.
In addition to these aids, the Canary Islands Executive will also allocate some 11 million to guarantee the full payment of the extraordinary benefit to the self-employed for cessation of activity. The Government of Spain contributes 70 percent and the Government of the Canary Islands the remaining 30 percent.
Nearly 4,000 self-employed in Arrecife before the alert
The mayoress of Arrecife points out that, according to the statistics of the Lanzarote Data Center on Social Security affiliations, in Arrecife there were 3,376 contributing self-employed workers last February -before the coronavirus alert- and an "important" network of SMEs dedicated to commerce, tourism, hospitality, construction or port services, among others.
Thus, the Department of Employment and Local Development, through the two technicians of the Arrecife Impulsa 2020 Plan with degrees in Labor Relations, will dedicate these weeks to providing free help and advice to the group of self-employed workers and SMEs in Arrecife so that they can process and access these regional and state aid after the cessation of activity due to the coronavirus and the declaration of alert.
