Newsletter 195 BNFIX PICH
People, principles, services
October 2024
Dear all,
With the autumn routines already settled in the calendar and the chestnuts and sweet potatoes about to be cooked, we invite you to read the October newsletter, in which we remind you of the penalties that can result from not submitting the annual accounts within the deadlines established by law. We also remind you of the obligation to have a time register, as well as the latest agreements on pensions and the new labour developments aimed at the safety and protection of domestic workers. In addition, we encourage you to apply for the digital kit before due date 31 December, an opportunity to renew equipment or create a website for your business.
In the final part of the newsletter we talk about different professional meetings in which we have participated and we suggest you to read several publications that we believe may be of interest to you.
These, and other topics, below.
Jordi Altafaja – jordi.altafaja@pich.bnfix.com
Partner CEO, in charge of labour area BNFIX PICH AUDITORS
Highlights
/ Penalties and closure of the company’s register for failure to submit annual accounts
The Spanish Accounting and Auditing Institute (ICAC) has begun to impose sanctions on companies that do not present their annual accounts within the deadline established by law, i.e. during the month following their approval by the General Meeting. Such non-compliance can lead to very severe penalties and the impossibility of registering corporate acts until the situation is regularised.
/ Government and social partners sign agreement on pensions and Social Security
The Government and the representatives of the majority business and trade union organisations -CEOE, CEPYME, CCOO and UGT- have signed an agreement on pensions and Social Security, within the recommendations of the Toledo Pact, and which completes the reforms initiated in 2021. This text makes access to retirement more flexible, involves mutual insurance companies more in health treatment, regulates retirement in arduous professions and introduces new features in permanent-discontinuous contracts.
/ Time recording: new obligations for companies
The new draft law on time recording provides, among other things, for companies to be obliged to have digital means of recording and storing working hours so that the Labour Inspectorate can consult the data in real time.
/ Measures on equal opportunities for the LGTBI community
What measures should companies take to guarantee equality and non-discrimination of LGTBI people in the workplace?
These measures, compulsory for companies with more than 50 employees and voluntary for the rest, are explained in our note.
/ New developments in health and safety protection for domestic workers
On 11 September, the Official State Gazette (BOE) published a new Royal Decree on the protection of the health and safety of domestic workers, which came into force the following day.
This decree addresses the inequalities of this group compared to other workers and seeks to improve the working conditions of this traditionally unprotected sector.
/ Digital kit for the self-employed. Applications until 31 December.
The self-employed who have not yet ordered their digital kit and wish to do so, can apply until 31 December.
We talk about the aid (depending on the size of the company), the beneficiaries and the taxation of this type of investment.
News BNFIX PICH International
/ DFK EMEA Region Newsletter
The EMEA region (Europe, Middle East and Africa) of the DFK International network, of which we form part, has published its first newsletter, which aims to be a space for connection, information and inspiration for the professional community of law firms in the region. In this first newsletter, the members of the new executive committee are announced, in which, as we reported months ago, the partner responsible for the Legal Department, María José Moragas, participates.
It also reports on the next regional meeting, which will take place from 19 to 21 February 2025.
/ XXI IR Global Meeting in Paris
Our colleague Alba Pich, from the tax area, attended the annual meeting of the international network IR Global in Paris, which was held from 21 to 24 September.
The event brought together 400 professionals from 90 different countries.
In addition, in the round tables and workshops in which he participated, innovative approaches to solving legal and tax problems were discussed, as well as the implementation of global business strategies that benefit our clients with international operations. These experiences enable us to offer more comprehensive and up-to-date advice, anticipating regulatory changes and improving the protection and competitiveness of the companies that rely on us.
We remain firmly committed to offering a service of excellence, taking advantage of the knowledge and connections acquired at this international event.
Agenda and collaborations
/ XII Forum of small audit firms
Our partner Joan Claret, from the Audit Area, moderated a technical session at the XII Forum of small audit firms that took place on 19 and 20 September in Punta Umbría (Huelva) under the slogan ‘New challenges: transparency, standards, digitalisation and sustainability’.
Joan Claret moderated the session ‘Challenges in local public sector auditing. Public-private collaboration’. The congress was organised by the REA Auditors of the General Council of Economists, the Andalusian Council of Economists’ Associations and the Huelva Association of Economists.
(In the picture, professionals from different BNFIX Global offices. From left to right: Ramón Madrid Martínez, Francisco Javier Meseguer, Txema Valdecantos, Ramon Madrid, José María Hinojal and Joan Claret).
/ Tribute to Joaquín Trigo
On 16 October, Foment del Treball hosted an emotional and well-deserved tribute to Joaquín Trigo, who was Director of Economics and Executive Director of the Catalan employers’ association between 1987 and 2011.
The event was attended by our partner Valentín Pich, as well as other personalities from the economic world who had the honour of knowing him, such as Antoni Fernández Teixidó, Lorenzo Bernaldo de Quirós, Joan Rosell, Juan Tugores, Almudena Semur and Valentí Puig, among others.
Read more about the tribute HERE
Press & Publications
/ SME Report of the Council and FAEDPYME – SMEs will maintain staff, sales and investments in 2024
More than 90 percent of Spanish SMEs expect to maintain or increase their number of employees, sales and investments in 2024. This is according to the SME Report, a study by the General Council of Economists of Spain (CGE) and the Foundation for the Strategic Analysis and Development of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (FAEDPYME) based on a survey of managers of 636 Spanish SMEs.
The report also highlights their difficulties in filling jobs, which they attribute to a shortage of candidates, lack of motivation and high labour costs. In order to improve human resources, the SME managers ask the authorities, among other measures, to encourage trades, promote a culture of hard work, better adapt the education system to the training needs of SMEs, offer recruitment aid and make labour legislation more flexible.
The report, HERE
/ An economic summer? Opinion column by Valentín Pich in La Vanguardia.
The ‘Dinero’ supplement of La Vanguardia on Sunday 13 October publishes the opinion column ‘Un veranillo económico?’ by our partner Valentín Pich, as president of the General Council of Economists. In it, he points out the positive Spanish economic scenario but recalls some weak points of our economy to which we should pay special attention, such as the public deficit, unemployment and housing.
In the same way, it would be more than necessary, for the good of our economy, to work to reach the maximum consensus on regional financing, to take advantage of European funds for ‘intelligent’ investments and to manage the phenomenon of immigration with common sense.
The column HERE
/ ‘European Union: Beginning of the New Year’: reflections by Carles Gasòliba
The European Union is embarking on a new academic year following the re-election of Ursula von der Layen as President of the Commission. And with the new academic year, new challenges in the fields of economics, energy, security and defence, international trade, digitalisation…
A new course in which to address the weaknesses and one of the main unresolved issues, the European Capital Union. The economist and expert consultant on European and EU issues, Carles Gasòliba, talks about all this and more, and has once again shared his reflections with us.
The reflections, HERE
/ ‘Experts and economists warn of the damage to productivity of the PP’s 4-day working day’: article in ‘El Economista’.
The PP’s proposal to introduce the 4-day working day has opened the debate on its advantages and disadvantages at an economic level. In this sense, Valentín Pich, as president of the General Council of Economists, warns in this article dated 3 October that this initiative could generate a negative view of work. He adds that young people could be encouraged to work fewer hours and days, which he considers problematic, and stresses that, although work-life balance is important, it must be adapted to the characteristics of each sector.
The article, HERE
BNFIX News
/ XXI BNFIX Global Meeting in Madrid
Facing new challenges together
More than a hundred professionals from the different BNFIX Global offices throughout Spain took part in the traditional Annual Meeting held in Madrid on 3 and 4 October. The event addressed technical and internal issues of interest to our professionals in the fields of auditing and consultancy, the history of Abante and the evolution of the network’s strategic plan. In addition, various presentations were given which were open to clients and collaborators and dealt with the present and future of auditing, sustainability standards, the functioning of human intelligence and formulas for business turnaround and restructuring.
These sessions can be viewed HERE