Review of the extraordinary cessation of activity benefit for self-employed workers (POECATA1)

The aspects to be reviewed of the POECATA 1 benefit (Article 9 of Royal Decree 24/2020) are as follows:

1. Be receiving the extraordinary benefit for cessation of activity provided for in Article 17 of Royal Decree-Law 8/2020 through 30 June (Art. 9.1).
2. Be registered in the RETA on 01/07/2020, and stay registered (Art. 9.1 and 330.1.a of the TRLGSS) while receiving the benefit.
3. Have the minimum contribution period for cessation of activity referred to in Article 338 of the TRLGSS (Art. 9.1 and 330.1.b of the TRLGSS) covered.
4. Not have reached the normal age to be entitled to the contributory retirement pension, unless the worker does not have accredited the period of contribution required for it (Art. 9.1 and 330.1.d of the TRLGSS).
5. Compliance with labour and Social Security obligations with respect to its workers (Article 9.1).
6. Incompatibility with employment (Art. 342.1 of the TRLGSS).
7. Incompatibility with pensions or benefits of the Social Security Institute, unless they were compatible with the work that led to the benefit for cessation of activity (Art. 342.1 of the TRLGSS).
8. Be up to date with Social Security contribution payments (Art. 9.1).
9. Prove a reduction in turnover during the third quarter of 2020 of at least 75% in relation to the same period in 2019 (Art. 9.1).
10. Not obtained credit during the third quarter of 2020 some net yields higher than 5,818.75 euros.
11. The regulatory base for the benefit as an average of the contribution bases during the 12 months following and immediately prior to the legal situation of termination (Art. 339.2 and 3 of the TRLGSS).
12. The amount of contributions for non-work-related contingencies paid to the worker, together with the financial benefit, that the worker would have had to deposit if said worker had not been engaged in any activity.

All communications made will be sent to the email address specified at the time in the benefit application form, either by email (favourable resolutions) or by electronic notification (hearing procedures and subsequent resolutions to correct differences or reject the benefit).

The benefits were received from 1 July 2020 to 30 September 2020. If it was requested in the first 15 days of July, but the benefit was initiated the day following the application.

If a self-employed person receives a notification to correct the documentation, they must go to the link contained in the notification and send the relevant documentation to correct it. If the link is not accessible, it is attached below:

In the notification received, the correction ID is at the top of the document, which can be used to access the process on the website, together with the identity document number.

The same document details the reason why the benefit is under review and the number of incidents detected that could affect compliance with the legal requirements or the amounts paid. The notification received informs of the opening of the hearing procedure, setting a period of 15 business days to present the documentation specified in each section, and to present any evidence and justifications deemed appropriate (remember that Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays are not included when calculating the days).

If the recipient wishes to waive this hearing procedure, or if no documents or evidence have been presented within 15 business days, a final decision will be made, either issuing or rejecting the benefit on a definitive basis. If the benefit is deemed to have been received unduly, the associated amounts received will have to be repaid.

 For more information on the documentation required to correct the incident, the notification document received by email lists the manager who can help with the process.