The SEXPE grants 1.77 million euros to 213 new self-employed workers

The Extremadura Public Employment Service (SEXPE) has granted 1,767,000 euros in subsidies for the establishment of unemployed persons as self-employed workers, an amount distributed among 213 beneficiaries. The decision was adopted by the General Secretariat for Employment through the Resolution of October 16, 2026, and published in the Official Gazette of Extremadura (DOE) no. 208, of October 28, 2026, with the official reference 2026062674.

The call is based on Decree 39/2024, of April 30, which establishes the regulatory bases for subsidies to promote and consolidate self-employment in Extremadura and approved the first call for Programs I to V (DOE no. 109, of June 6, 2024). This regulation was subsequently modified by Decree 154/2026, of July 28 (DOE no. 148, of August 3, 2026).

The individuals listed in the annex of the resolution applied for aid under Programs I and V: the first covers aid for the establishment of unemployed persons as self-employed, and the second covers the maintenance of registration in the RETA (Special Regime for Self-Employed Workers) for twelve additional months beyond the mandatory twenty-four. The authority to resolve corresponds to the General Management of SEXPE according to article 11 of the decree, exercised through the General Secretariat for Employment.

Verified requirements and exclusion of agricultural activities

The resolution details the checks carried out on the applications, all of which were submitted within the deadline of the call:

• Registration in the RETA or an alternative mutual fund, being at least eighteen years of age, and having the status of an unemployed person registered with a public employment service, without effective occupation.
• Development of the economic activity in Extremadura and the absence of the circumstances listed in article 13 of Law 6/2011, of March 23, on regional subsidies.
• Exclusion of agricultural, livestock, or forestry activities, as well as the coal, fishing, and aquaculture sectors, due to the application of the de minimis regime.
• Not having been a beneficiary of these aids in the previous five years, nor having worked independently with a RETA registration in the previous six months.
• Registration not derived from the status of a corporate self-employed person nor from being a working partner in cooperatives, civil societies, or labor companies.

Obligations for two years

The second section of the resolution sets the conditions that the 213 recipients must meet:

• Remain continuously registered in the RETA (Special Regime for Self-Employed Workers) for at least the two years following the registration date, carrying out the activity under the same conditions under which the grant was awarded.
• Not be corporate self-employed workers, nor hold positions as directors or administrators of a commercial company, nor be working partners of cooperatives or labor companies during that same period.
• Maintain for two years the business address in municipalities of fewer than 5,000 inhabitants or the status of generational replacement when the aid was received due to those circumstances, with amounts of 1,000 and 1,500 euros respectively (articles 32.F and 32.G of the guidelines).
• Submit to verification and control actions, report other aid received for the same purpose, and comply with information and publicity regulations.

European financing and appeal process

The grants are subject to the de minimis regime of Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/2831 of 13 December 2023, and are financed with own funds from the Autonomous Community of Extremadura. In the event of co-financing with the European Social Fund Plus, beneficiaries must maintain independent accounting records and acknowledge the support of the SEXPE, under the Regional Ministry of Economy, Employment and Digital Transformation, and the ESF+ in all their communication actions.

Failure to comply with the conditions may lead to the reimbursement of the amounts received with the corresponding late payment interest. Against the resolution, which does not exhaust the administrative route, an administrative appeal (recurso de alzada) may be filed before the head of the Regional Ministry of Economy, Employment and Digital Transformation within one month from the day following its publication. The text appears signed by the Director General for Employment Promotion, Pedro Galán Berrocal, by delegation established in the Resolution of June 10, 2026 (DOE no. 114, of June 16, 2026).

The complete annex with the identity of each beneficiary and the assigned amount is available on the SEXPE electronic office; therefore, individual details are not reproduced in the bulletin. With this distribution, the average aid granted is around 8,295 euros per person.

The publication confirms that the SEXPE self-employment line maintains its resolution pace: barely three weeks prior, DOE no. 196 included the call for the 2026-2027 period for these same programs, authorized by the Governing Council on September 22, 2026. For the 213 beneficiaries, the grant represents the economic start of their activity, but also a commitment to remain in the RETA for two years, the breach of which requires the money to be returned.

Source: Official Gazette of Extremadura (DOE), no. 208, October 28, 2026, section I (official reference: 2026062674).