Manuel Domínguez announces new measures for self-employed people seeking a second chance

The Canary Islands Government’s vice-president and minister for Economy, Industry, Trade and Self-Employment, Manuel Domínguez, defended the “positive” record of policies for self-employed people since the start of the current term during a parliamentary appearance on Tuesday. He noted that the Canary Islands now has 147,975 self-employed people, up from 139,264 in July 2023, an increase of 8,711.

“Talking about self-employed people in the Canary Islands means talking about an essential part of our economy,” Domínguez said, stressing that the Government had made this group a priority from the outset. He announced new second-chance measures for self-employed people at risk of closing their businesses, including loans, mentoring and advice, delivered in collaboration with the islands’ bar associations.

He also said that a generational handover programme would be presented after the summer, in collaboration with the chambers of commerce. It aims to help family businesses, traditional shops and small workshops affected by retirements without a successor to continue operating.

Domínguez recalled that the creation of the Directorate-General for the Self-Employed and the launch of the zero-contribution scheme had been two of the regional government’s main priorities. He said applications for the latter had risen with each call: more than 3,000 in 2024, 3,700 in 2025 and 4,689 registered in 2026. He added that the first round of payments under the scheme had been made to 1,079 self-employed people, totalling €1,014,992.12, equivalent to 31% of the call’s total budget of €3.3 million.

Domínguez highlighted the Self-Employed Support Plan, which is currently active with all its funding calls open. Its targeted programmes include Concilia, which supports work-life balance; a temporary incapacity support scheme; the +uno52 programme, designed to encourage self-employed people aged 52 or over to hire their first employee; and investment and modernisation grants through interest-rate subsidies.

He also recalled that the IGIC tax-free threshold had been raised to €50,000 and that fuel had been subsidised. Fuel will continue to be subject to a zero rate of IGIC throughout next August, he said.

The vice-president said that people who open up for business every morning “deserve more support and fewer obstacles”, and pledged that the Government would continue to address taxation, contributions, administrative simplification, grants, work-life balance, training and stability. “This Government wants to stand by those who take risks, invest, create jobs and keep the real economy of our islands alive,” he concluded.