“A society that guarantees time for creation also guarantees its own freedom.”
1) Diagnosis
Spain’s cultural ecosystem faces structural precarity:
- High levels of intermittence and self-employment.
- Lack of stable income between projects.
- Dependence on competitive calls and short-term grants.
- Bureaucratic overload and territorial imbalance.
The result: creative exhaustion, economic censorship and loss of talent.
2) Objectives of Arts Basic Income (ABI)
Ensure stable creative time.
Remove insecurity that prevents continuous research and creation.Reduce structural precarity.
Integrate culture into welfare policies as a right, not an exception.Strengthen the public cultural fabric.
Promote sustainability, equity and transparency.Measure the real impact of cultural investment.
Base policy on measurable indicators: time, wellbeing, community, fiscal return.
3) Programme design
a) Nature
- Individual, stable monthly income, non-contributory base.
- Compatible with social security, grants, prizes and commissions.
- Yearly evaluation under public criteria.
b) Reference amount
Between €1,000–€1,200/month, regionally adjusted.
(Reference: Ireland BIA programme, German KulturGrundeinkommen.)
c) Duration
Initial 24-month pilot, extendable after mid-term review.
d) Eligibility
- Artists and cultural workers resident in Spain with verifiable track record.
- Random selection among qualified applicants (fair lottery model).
- Intersectional lens: gender, territory, diversity, accessibility.
e) Evaluation
Indicators on:
- Creative time and continuity.
- Wellbeing and health.
- Reinvestment in practice.
- Community impact and fiscal return.
Independent evaluation by universities and cultural observatories.
4) Implementation roadmap
| Phase | Period | Description | Key institutions |
|---|---|---|---|
| I. National pilot | 2026–2028 | 500 beneficiaries distributed regionally. | Ministry of Culture, ICAA, Autonomous Communities. |
| II. Regional expansion | 2028–2030 | Integration of regional pilots. | Regions, universities, sectoral agents. |
| III. National consolidation | 2030–2032 | Permanent programme and legal framework. | Government of Spain, Parliament, EU. |
5) Governance and transparency
- Monitoring committee with representatives of artists, researchers, administration and citizens.
- Semiannual public reports (indicators, expenditure, returns).
- Open data portal and methodologies.
- Open licences: AGPL-3.0 / CC BY-SA 4.0.
6) Expected impact
- +40 % increase in effective creative time.
- −20 % reduction in stress and anxiety.
- +30 % reinvestment in materials and training.
- Higher diversity (gender, region, discipline).
- 1.4 € fiscal return per euro invested.
7) Timeline
8) Related reading
- Argument pack → /en/argument
- Evidence → /en/evidence
- Archive → /en/archive