Price of light at highs

The continuous rise in the price of electricity in the wholesale market for months will not disappear with the arrival of the new year. Although at first the Government indicated that it would last until February, now the upward trend is expected to continue in 2022 at least until the second quarter of the year.

The Government is counting on this and has extended until April a series of tax and charge reductions to try to prevent rising energy prices from becoming an unsustainable burden for families, the self-employed and companies.

A) Yes, the charges and tolls charged on the electricity bill (and that before the sales of the last quarter of 2021 it could easily be half the bill) will go down around 30% and 4.6% respectively as of this Saturday, which will result in at least a discount of 7 euros per month in an average household, according to government calculations.

However, despite these measures, the light begins 2022 at all-time highs. in the wholesale market and the bill continues to rise. The price of energy is one of the guilty of making other products more expensive, inflation increases and citizens lose purchasing power, so it will continue to have a negative impact not only on the electricity bill, but on many of the purchases that are made on a day-to-day basis. During the past month of December, the CPI has shot up to 6.7%, the highest figure in almost three decades.

Rising fuel prices

As with electricity, the other culprit that the shopping basket and inflation increase are fuels.

I’m ua rise of more than 50% of a barrel of Brent in 2021, is expected to continue increasing in the short and medium term, so more will be paid for fuel this year.

Butane cylinder

The global gas shortage has caused a recent increase in the butane cylinder, a trend that will continue this new year. According to the Consumer Organization (OCU), during this month of January, when gas prices are reviewed, the butane cylinder it will break a new record and its price will exceed the current 17.5 euros.

Natural gas

As it happened in 2021, with the entry of the new year the Regulated gas rates (TUR) are updated and will increase this year by 5.48% for average gas consumers, as published in the Official State Gazette (BOE) on December 25.

This regulated tariff is reviewed on a quarterly basis, its price varying according to the cost of the raw material. Meanwhile, natural gas remains at record highs in the international market.

House prices and rents

House prices will rise by around 4% in 2022 due to the rising cost of raw materials and the blocking of international trade, according to the CaixaBank research service, while rents, which in 2021 have fallen by an average of 4.5% according to Idealista, could stop falling.

Freelance quota

The self-employed quota will go up 8 euros per month from now on being the minimum price of 960.6 euros, and the contribution rate will be 30.60%. Translated for the self-employed who contribute the minimum base, from this month of January they will have to pay 294 euros per month.

The rise in price will affect almost 2 million workers the self-employed who quote this base, causing an increase in the collection by the Social Security that will amount to 173 million euros.

Increase in excise duties

The 2022 PGE include an item for increase excise duties by around 5.5%, which will cause an increase in the price of this type of products such as tobacco.

In fact, according to the Executive’s calculations, a third of everything collected by this tax will be thanks to tobacco.

Apart from tobacco, these taxes are levied on alcoholic products such as beer or wine.

Changes in pension plans

In the last year, the Government has already substantially reduced the maximum amount to deduct by those who have a pension plan from 8,000 to 2,000 euros. With the arrival of the new year, that figure drops again to 1.500 euros.

However, maximum contributions that can be made to business plans entitled to deduction will increase 500 euros, from 8,000 to 8,500 euros. Between both measures, the total contribution of tax benefits remains at 10,000 euros per year.

Pensions and Minimum Living Income go up

Not everything was going to be bad news, just before the end of the year the Government approved in the Senate the law that confirms a realization of pensions linked to the CPI and during this year they will rise 2.5%.

With this update the minimum retirement pension will be 721.7 euros in 14 payments, a total increase of almost 300 euros compared to that received in 2021.

According to the maximum retirement pension will be 2,819.1 euros per month, a total rise of 962.78 euros more than last year.

It also increases the minimum vital income (IMV) by 3%, as established in the general state budgets of 2022, and which come into force with the arrival of this new year.

The salary of civil servants increases, but the SMI remains frozen

That of pensions will not be the only increase, along with them the salary of public servants is also going to rise by 2%.

However, as with pensions, the rise to 6.7% in the CPI during the month of December will make public sector employees and retirees lose purchasing power.

For its part, the interprofessional minimum wage (SMI) will begin the year frozen at 965 euros gross per month, but with the intention of the Government to begin a new negotiation with the employers and unions to undertake a new increase that could be retroactive from this January 1.

Registration tax

As has happened in 2021, the new year again brings a increase in car prices caused by definitive increase in registration tax.

According to the Association of Manufacturers and Sellers of Cars (ANFAC), they point out that the rise in 2022 will be similar to that experienced in the last year, so it is expected that the price paid for a car will become more expensive about 800 euros.

State highways up 1.97%

The The Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda has updated the rates for 2022 of the highways dependent on the General State Administration in accordance, fundamentally, with the consumer price index (CPI) and will rise 1.97% as of January 1.

For the highways managed by the State Society of Land Transport Infrastructures (Seittsa), which are not included in this update, the rates approved in the agreement of the Council of Ministers of December 14, 2018 remain in force.

Post office is 7% more expensive

Correos increases 7% the price of the stamps necessary for sending standardized letters and postcards of up to twenty grams in weight to national destinations for this year. From this Saturday the base rate will become 0.75 euros, which represents an increase of five cents.

In 2021, prices for domestic letter mail increased 7.7%, after increasing 8.3% in 2020, 9% in 2019, 10% in 2018, and 11.1% in 2017 , 7.14% in 2016 and 10.5% in 2015. Thus, since 2015, when it cost 0.42 euros, the increase has now reached 79%.

15% corporate tax

In line with what was agreed with the OECD, the PGE for 2022 establish a corporate tax of 15%, a measure that will raise less than 50 million in 2022, although its main effect will take place in 2023, in the liquidation of the tax, and not in the installment payments of the next year that is established now.

This tax taxes the income of legal persons, mainly affecting large companies. Until now they could tax below that 15% figure that is established as of this moment.