The initiative, named ‘The Economic and Fiscal Regime of the Canary Islands: closer, more yours’, will begin in September in collaboration with municipal employment and local development agencies and areas. Over 40 town councils have already joined the project, aiming to reach all Canary Islands municipalities by the end of the year.
This agreement marks a new phase for the REF Training Plan, launched by the regional executive, which has already trained over 2,000 people. Extending it to the municipal level will facilitate access to this training from anywhere in the archipelago, especially for those operating far from capitals and major business centers.
The REF Commissioner, José Ramón Barrera, stated that the agreement represents "an important step for the opportunities offered by the REF to reach every town and neighborhood, where small businesses and entrepreneurs, representing over 90% of our productive fabric, open their doors daily."
For her part, the president of FECAM, Mari Brito, highlighted the importance of these fiscal tools being known by those who can benefit from them. She emphasized the essential role of municipalities, through their local development areas, as the necessary bridge to bring this information practically and accessibly to SMEs, micro-enterprises, and the general public.
The program will consist of two-hour sessions, focusing on a simple, accessible, and eminently practical approach. The training will be delivered by chartered professionals specializing in the economic and fiscal field of the Canary Islands, who have collaborated with the REF Commissioner since the project's inception. Sessions will include examples, practical cases, and a Q&A space to help attendees identify the measures best suited to their projects.
The sessions will present REF incentives that allow companies and the self-employed to significantly reduce their tax burden when reinvesting profits. Specific measures for certain sectors, such as the bonus for the production of tangible goods, which can halve taxation for industrial, agricultural, livestock, and fishing activities, will also be addressed.
Furthermore, the sessions will explain the conditions offered by the Canary Special Zone (ZEC) for a wide variety of business activities, and will detail fiscal incentives on Corporate Tax and Personal Income Tax, including the Reserve for Investments in the Canary Islands (RIC) and the Canary Investment Deduction (DIC). Economic compensations, such as those for passenger and freight transport, energy, and water acquisition and generation, will also be detailed.
