Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
The annual Business Demography data collection covers variables which explain the characteristics and demography of the business population. The methodology allows for the production of data on enterprise births (and deaths), that is, enterprise creations (cessations) that amount to the creation (dissolution) of a combination of production factors and where no other enterprises are involved (enterprises created or closed solely as a result of e.g. restructuring, merger or break-up are not considered).
A summary of the available indicators is listed below. The data are available at EU, country and regional level, with breakdowns for type of activity, legal form and size class.
For the population of active enterprises: • Number of active enterprises • Number of enterprise births • Number of enterprise survivals up to five years • Number of enterprise deaths • Related variables on employment: 'employees' and 'persons employed' (employees and self-employed persons)
For the population of active employer enterprises: • Number of enterprises having at least one employee • Number of enterprises having the first employee • Number of enterprises having no employees anymore • Number of enterprise survivals up to five years • Related variables on employment: 'employees' and 'persons employed' (employees and self-employed persons)
For high-growth enterprises, the following indicators are available at EU and country level: • Number of high-growth enterprises (growth by 10% or more) • Number of employees of high-growth enterprises • Number of young high-growth enterprises (up to five years old high-growth enterprises) • Number of employees of young high-growth enterprise
3.2. Classification system
From 2008 onwards NACE Rev.2 classification (Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community) is used for all indicators.
Starting with reference year 2021, BD data cover the economic activities of market producers within the NACE Rev. 2 Sections B to N, P to R and Divisions S95 and S96. The total economy is presented as Industry, construction and services (code BTSXO_S94).
For the reference years 2008-2020, data for the Sections P, Q, R and S were provided on a voluntary basis and K64.2 was not covered.
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
BD constitutes an important and integrated part of the EU Regulation 2019/2152 on European Business Statistics (EBS Regulation).
BD source is the Statistical Business Register adapted to meet in strict sense the definition of active enterprise (employment and/or turnover and/or investment) included in the Commission Implementing Regulation 2020/1197.
The following units have been excluded from the population of active enterprises:
- Units performing economic activities out of coverage.
- Units belonging to Institutional Sectors S13 (General government) and S15 (Non-profit institutions serving households), as they are non-market oriented.
- Units detected as 'ancillary units'.
Nevertheless, employment of ancillary units has been counted in order to get the total employment of the enterprise they are serving.
Birth or death dates were not used to decide if units were active.
There are no relevant differences in the methodology applied with respect to that reflected in the 'Eurostat-OECD Manual on Business Demography Statistics'.
3.5. Statistical unit
Enterprises.
3.6. Statistical population
The target population is the market business economy, including all active enterprises. In the additional datasets on employer business demography, the threshold is set to one employee at any time of the reference period. The following thresholds are used:
1 employee - population of employer enterprises,
10 employees in the beginning of the growth period - population of high-growth enterprises (10%).
3.7. Reference area
ES, Spain.
Data refer to the totality of the national territory.
Branches of foreign enterprises are included.
3.8. Coverage - Time
1998-2021
Data referred to 2021 have a break in time series due to a methodological change (the new definition of active enterprise).
Data from 2008 to 2020 use NACE Rev. 2 classification. Nevertheless, there are data on enterprise births from 2004 to 2007 using also NACE Rev. 2 classification.
Data from 1998 to 2007 use NACE Rev. 1.1 classification.
Nevertheless, see remarks in 15.2.
3.9. Base period
Not applicable.
• The number of active, birth, death and survival enterprises, as well as high-growth enterprises is expressed in units. • The number of employees is counted as head counts and is expressed in units. • The number of persons employed is the sum of the number of employees and the estimate of self-employed persons. • The number of self-employed persons is an estimate of the number of persons who were at some time during the reference period the sole owners or joint owners of the statistical unit in which they work, expressed in terms of full-time equivalents. • Derived indicators are expressed in units or percentages.
Year 2021.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
Before reference year 2021, EU Regulation 2008/295 on structural business statistics, Annex IX, was providing a legal basis for the BD data collection. The Commission implementing EU Regulation 2014/439 ensured data collection on employer enterprises (with at least one employee), high-growth enterprises (more than 10% annual growth over three years) and their employment.
Up to reference year 2006 data have been collected under gentlemen's agreement within the context of the development of Structural Business Statistics.
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
Not applicable.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
Law 12/1989, of 9 May, on the Public Statistical Services (LFEP) are the basic legal regulations for carrying out the statistical activity in the State General Administration. This law prescribes that the National Statistical Institute is not able to disseminate or make available in any way, individual or aggregated data ready to identify previously non-known data of persons or entities.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
Fewer than 6 enterprises is the threshold for the number of enterprises below which the related employment variables are confidential.
The number of enterprises itself is not publishable if the related employment variables are confidential.
Dominance criteria are not applied.
There are not specific rules to be considered in the secondary confidentiality treatment. We are confident about the output resulting from the software (CIF) we use.
Secondary confidentiality prescribes that at least 2 cells must to be confidential in one aggregate containing at least one confidential cell.
7.2.1. Confidentiality rules (primary and secondary)
Data treatment
Remarks
Confidentiality rules applied
yes
Threshold of number of enterprises (Number)
Fewer than 6
Number of enterprises non confidential, if number of employments is confidential
no
Dominance criteria applied
no
If dominance criteria is applied, specify the threshold (in %) and the method of applying the dominance rules
Secondary confidentiality applied
yes
If secondary confidentiality is applied, explain the rules and the methods used
At least 2 cells must to be confidential in one aggregate containing at least one confidential cell.
We use CIF software.
7.2.2. Measures taken to reduce the number of confidential cells
Remarks
Measures taken to reduce the number of confidential cells
no
If measures have been taken, describe them briefly
Impact of these measures
not applicable
8.1. Release calendar
National data on Business Demography are scheduled to be released in the month of November each year.
The advance release calendar that shows the foreseen release dates for the coming year is disseminated in the last quarter of each year. That calendar is available on the web of our NSI.
Nevertheless, Business Demography data published at national level are a bit different from the data sent to Eurostat.
Activity codes published are a bit different from the codes sent to Eurostat. We only publish divisions of NACE Rev. 2 (at two digits level), as we consider that level relevant enough. Moreover, employment data are not published as they could come into conflict with data from other statistical domains.
At present, only data coming from the dataset EBSBDS_ALL_A are published. Nevertheless, it should be pointed out that data on active enterprises, births and provisional deaths are broken down regionally at NUTS2 level.
8.2. Release calendar access
The release calendar is published at the beginning of December of the previous year.
This calendar is disseminated on our NSI Internet website (Publications calendar).
BD department provide any information which is not available in the published publication and/or in the published on-line databases, to everyone with a specific request.
Annual.
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
For the reference year there is Paper/pdf Publication of News release.
For the reference year there is a Thematic publication (Graph annex) as Paper/pdf Publication.
As for previous reference years, there is available an English version of the paper press release. Likewise, there are English versions of methodological documents.
Data sent to Eurostat can be used in European aggregates or be released also as national data.
10.5.1. Metadata - consultations
Not requested.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
The statistical metadata are available on the website (electronic version).
There are two methodological documents. The first is the 'Standardised Methodological Report', and the second is a document on 'General Methodology'. Both documents are available in English version.
Quality assurance framework for the INE statistics is based on the ESSCoP, the European Statistics Code of Practice made by EUROSTAT. The ESSCoP is made up of 16 principles, gathered in three areas: Institutional Environment, Processes and Products. Each principle is associated with some indicators which make possible to measure it. In order to evaluate quality, EUROSTAT provides different tools: the indicators mentioned above, Self-assessment based on the DESAP model, peer review, user satisfaction surveys and other proceedings for evaluation.
The quality of this statistical operation previously lays in achieving high quality standards in the Statistical Business Register (SBR). The compilation process of this statistical register has established mechanisms for the detection and correction of errors. These controls are carried out from a static perspective (internal consistency of data regarding a specific reference period) as well as from a dynamic perspective (time analysis of the aggregates). The computer tools used, allow detecting all the possible formal quality errors of the information.
Besides, in this statistical operation specific control proceedings are applied, as those intended to detect false births and false deaths of enterprises, that refer to simple redistributions of production factors. In order to improve the quality when delimiting populations of enterprise births and deaths, all enterprises with 100 and more employees are comprehensively monitor and analysed, along with those enterprises having less employment but having a turnover of more than 10 millions euros. The relative weight of this population in the business frame justifies the development of special control operations in order to suitably classify movements associated with these units. Thus, standard procedures are supplemented with validation operations aimed at capturing pertinent information regarding the causes associated with the phenomena of birth and death, which normally requieres querying specialised databases (Mercantile Register and others) or access to websites. Additionally, on the population of births and deaths of simple enterprises with more than 19 and less than 100 employees (and having turnover higher than euros 3,000,000) and of complex enterprises with more than 39 and less than 100 employees (and having turnover higher than euros 6,000,000), a random cleaning is applied based on the results of a survey that CBR Unit set in 2001 in order to measure the proportion of false births and deaths of enterprises.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
Regarding Relevance, the Dissemination unit in our NSI keep track of the number of downloaded on-line publications on Business Demography data, and of the number of entries/accesses to the BD databases on our website.
Regarding Accuracy, around 7,1 % of units making up our SBR were deleted in order to apply in strict sense the definition of active unit. Moreover, we are confident about our matching procedures as they are applied after excluding ancillary units, joint ventures, pre-existing units with agrarian main activity and reactivations.
Regarding Timeliness and punctuality, it should be pointed out that there are no time lags when receiving data from the main administrative sources. On the other hand, all dataflows have been transmitted in the day of the legal deadline or one day ahead.
Regarding Coherence and comparability, it should be remarked that data for 2021 have a break in time series as a methodological change has been applied (the definition of active enterprise). Nevertheless, for that reference year the coherence with SBS domain have been enhanced.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
Our main internal users of BD data are social media, researchers, and students.
Our main external users of BD data could be Eurostat, OECD, and United Nations.
Nevertheless, Business Demography data published at national level are a bit different from the data sent to Eurostat.
Activity codes published are a bit different from the codes sent to Eurostat. We only publish divisions of NACE Rev. 2 (at two digits level), as we consider that level relevant enough. Moreover, employment data are not published as they could come into conflict with data from other statistical domains.
At present, only data coming from the dataset EBSBDS_ALL_A are published. Nevertheless, it should be pointed out that data on active enterprises, births and provisional deaths are broken down regionally at NUTS2 level.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
Never was organised a punctual or a regular survey related to the users' satisfaction regarding the availability and the quality of our BD data.
12.3. Completeness
All required characteristics and breakdowns are available.
CETO-FLAGS were not used.
12.3.1. Data completeness - rate
100%.
13.1. Accuracy - overall
Not requested.
13.2. Sampling error
Not applicable.
13.2.1. Sampling error - indicators
Not applicable.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Around 7,1 % of units making up our SBR were deleted in order to apply in strict sense the definition of active unit. Moreover, we are confident about our matching procedures as they are applied after excluding ancillary units, joint ventures, pre-existing units with agrarian main activity and reactivations. Nevertheless, the proportion of false matches was never checked. And regarding ‘non-matches’, a survey addressed to units with 20 or more employees was carried out in the framework of the Feasibility Study. Statistical information obtained from that survey has served as base to delimit real births and deaths.
13.3.1. Coverage error
Not requested.
13.3.1.1. Over-coverage - rate
Not requested.
13.3.1.2. Common units - proportion
Not requested.
13.3.2. Measurement error
Not applicable.
13.3.3. Non response error
Not applicable.
13.3.3.1. Unit non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.3.2. Item non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.4. Processing error
No significant processing errors have appeared in the final data collection process.
13.3.5. Model assumption error
Not requested.
14.1. Timeliness
There are no time lags when receiving data from the main administrative sources.
National BD data are released 23 months after the end of the reference period.
14.1.1. Time lag - first result
Not requested.
14.1.2. Time lag - final result
Not requested.
14.2. Punctuality
All dataflows have been transmitted in the day of the legal deadline or one day ahead.
14.2.1. Punctuality - delivery and publication
Not requested.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
Not requested.
15.1.1. Asymmetry for mirror flow statistics - coefficient
Not applicable.
15.2. Comparability - over time
a) First reference year available (calendar year):
The first reference year (calendar year) for which data are available is 1998.
b) Breaks in time series and reasons for the breaks:
It should be remarked that data for 2021 have a break in time series as a methodological change has been applied (the definition of active enterprise). Moreover, starting with reference year 2021, BD data cover the economic activities of market producers within the NACE Rev. 2 Sections B to N, P to R and Divisions S95 and S96, and Activities of holding companies (NACE Rev. 2 code 6420) are included under coverage for the first time.
Likewise, we would like to point out that from the reference year 2008 onwards, NACE Rev. 2 is applied to define activity coverage and aggregates. Before that year, NACE Rev. 1.1 was used. Nevertheless, enterprise births data are also available according to NACE Rev. 2 for the reference years 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.
On the other hand, the exclusion of units belonging to Institutional Sector S15 (Non-profit institutions serving households) was applied the first time to data referred to 2005. Nevertheless, the main impact affects NACE Rev. 1.1 Section O (NACE Rev. 2 Section S), which is only considered for pilot studies (see Section 3 of Annex IX in Regulation (EC) No 295/2008).
Moreover, it should be also pointed out that from 1998 to 2012, legal units were used as approach to the statistical unit enterprise. From 2013 to 2017 (transition period), there was a partial implementation of the statistical concept of enterprise. Finally, from the reference year 2018, it was reached a fully implementation of the statistical unit enterprise, and the Institutional Sector S13 (General government) was also excluded. The impact of the fully implementation of the statistical unit enterprise is deemed as not very relevant.
c) Outliers in time series:
It could be said that there are no outliers in time series, and breaks in time series are explained just above.
15.2.1. Length of comparable time series
One is the number of reference periods in time series from the last break.
Reasons of changes on the length of comparable time series are explained in 15.2.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
For the reference year 2021, due to EBS Regulation 2019/2152 and its Implementing Act 2020/1197 (mainly as regards the definition of active enterprise), BD department and SBS department have reached an agreement on a common number of active enterprises. Nevertheless, still remain some differences related to figures on employment (employees and self-employed persons, and employees).
Likewise, for the reference year 2021, there are inconsistences with the number of enterprises, and number of persons employed in Business Register, as a result of the agreement mentioned before. Those inconsistences did not exist in previous reference years.
15.3.1. Coherence - sub annual and annual statistics
Not applicable.
15.3.2. Coherence - National Accounts
Not requested.
15.4. Coherence - internal
Not requested.
Not requested.
17.1. Data revision - policy
At present, there are no revisions foreseen to Business Demography data.
17.2. Data revision - practice
Regarding the differences between the preliminary and final data on enterprise deaths, it could be said that differences are rather irrelevant as our estimate method is quite efficient. Moreover, there are no revisions foreseen.
17.2.1. Data revision - average size
There are no revisions foreseen.
18.1. Source data
a) Type of data source:
The sources for updating the Statistical Business Register are as follows.
1. Tax system sources:
- Impuesto de Actividades Económicas (IAE) / Economic Activities Tax.
- Retenciones sobre las Rentas de Trabajo Personal (RTP) / Deductions on PAYE.
- Operadores Intra y Extracomunitarios / Customs declarers.
- Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido (IVA), Impuesto de Sociedades (IS) e Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Físcas / Value Added Tax (VAT), Corporations Tax and PAYE.
- Grupos fiscales de Sociedades / Corporations tax groups.
2. Social Security sources:
- Cuentas de Cotización de la Seguridad Social (CC) del Régimen General / Contribution Accounts to the General System of Social Security.
- Trabajadores autónomos (Registro de trabajadores activos en Cuenta Propia) / Register of Self-employed System.
3. Statistical sources:
- Operaciones estadísticas corrientes: estructurales, coyunturales y de registro / Usual statistical operations: structural, short-term and register support.
4. Legal sources and others:
- Registro Mercantil Central (Movimientos del Registro Mercantil) / Central Mercantile Register (Movements on the Mercantile Register).
- Inventario de Empresas y Entidades Públicas de la Intervención General del Estado / List of Government Enterprises and Entities from the State Auditing Office.
- Empresas en Balanza de Pagos y Central de Balances del Banco de España / Enterprises registered in Balance of Payments and Central of Balance Sheets from the Central Bank.
- Ficheros de Sectorización del Banco de España / Central Bank Institutional Sectors Files.
5. Commercial sources:
- Dun and Bradstreet WorldBase.
- Informa Shareholders Database.
b) Coverage of SBR (Statistical Business Register):
Our Statistical Business Register is made up according to Regulation (EC) No 177/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 February 2008 establishing a common framework for business registers for statistical purposes and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93. Therefore, our Statistical Business Register covers all the required activities and legal forms.
All units operating in our country should be included in SBR. Thresholds are not considered.
c) Matching, profiling or imputation:
Treatment and processing of administrative sources lead to obtain the core system of legal units operating in our country. After this, an automatic profiling procedure is applied in order to get enterprises as statistical units.
SBR source has starting date for all units. Those units becoming exits in the reference year have real or estimated closing date. Nevertheless, the status of activity is the most important variable in order to get real enterprise births and deaths. According to this variable, all units are classified as incoming/entries, outgoing/exits, standing units or reactivations.
The most relevant change in SBR was just implemented for the reference year 2018 when applying an automatic profiling procedure over the system of legal units in order to get the enterprises as statistical units. That change stands for the reference year 2021.
18.1.1. Concepts and sources
SBR contain all information needed for BD statistic compiling. There are no missing data.
Imputations or estimations are not needed.
18.2. Frequency of data collection
Annually.
18.3. Data collection
Data source of BD referred to year 2021 is our SBR updated with date of 1 January 2022, being result of registered flows during 2021.
Due to it is not a survey, no data collection exists on respondent units. The statistical operation consists of a specific use of information just contained in SBR.
18.3.1. Data matching
a) Data matching process and tools:
Data matching processes and tools have not changed since the Feasibility Study. Procedures have been executed in the same order and by considering the same matching variables. To do data matching we apply a SAS programme created to that purpose.
We follow the recommended pair-wise approach. In this way, the matching process includes matches on name, economic activity, and location. The first match is the comparison of economic activity (4-digit level of NACE Rev. 2) and location. For the second match we use name and economic activity (4-digit level of NACE Rev. 2). And for the third match we use name and location. Nevertheless, matching process is applied only on simple enterprises (consisting of only one legal unit), because we consider that complex enterprises (consisting of more than one legal unit, or even of only one legal unit) are just matched, as they are a result of an automatic profiling procedure.
b) Matching:
No matching was carried out in addition to that specified in the methodological guidelines. Therefore, additional matching creteria were not applied.
Regarding matching on location and the treatment of multi-site units, it should be pointed out that enterprise is the statistical analysis unit of business demography, and data source is our statistical business register. Nevertheless, matching process is applied only on simple enterprises (consisting of only one legal unit), because we consider that complex enterprises (consisting of more than one legal unit, or even of only one legal unit) are just matched, as they are a result of an automatic profiling procedure. Moreover, we are not dealing with a register of local units, where some legal units appear in different places. Therefore, there is only one location for each legal unit of each simple enterprise. Obviously, ancillary and other linked legal units are removed from the process to delimit active, births and deaths enterprise populations, although their employment is counted in order to get the employment of the enterprise unit.
Regarding units moving in or out scope, it should be remarked that provisional simple (consisting of only one legal unit) births and deaths populations are compared with the population of all simple enterprises recorded in the whole of our business register covering all NACE Rev. 2 sections and classes, when applying matching procedures, in order to exclude units moving in scope. Moreover, units moving out of scope are excluded in the first steps to delimit real enterprise births and deaths, as units whose main economic activity is out of coverage are not considered. In summary: units moving in scope are not added; units moving out of scope are excluded (when compiling enterprise births and deaths).
In the first steps to delimit the stock of active enterprises (dataflow EBSBDS_ALL_A), 533,888 units were excluded as they performed economic activities out of scope (NACE Rev. 2 divisions 01, 02, 03, 84, 94, 97, 98 and 99).
Likewise, 11,433 units belonging to Institutional Sectors S13 and S15 (non-marked oriented) were also excluded.
Reactivations (considered only for simple enterprises) are excluded from birth and death populations before the matching process.
We have not encountered any problems when carrying out the matching procedures.
18.3.2. Manual checks
Regarding large births and deaths manually investigated, the treatment was as follows:
BIRTHS in dataflow EBSBDS_ALL_A: A total of 210 large enterprises (involving 402 legal units) were manually controlled. Following matching process, 61 (all) enterprises (involving 162 LEUs) with 100 or more employees and 123 (all) enterprises (involving 210 LEUs) having more than 10000000 euros of turnover, were investigated. Then, according to the statistical information obtained from the survey carried out in the Feasibility Study, units with 20 or more employees were subjected to a random allocation process. After this, 26 enterprises (involving 30 LEUs) previously allocated as real births, with more than 50 employees and fewer than 100, were manually checked.
Provisional DEATHS in dataflow EBSBD_ALL_A: A total of 157 large enterprises (involving 176 LEUs) were manually controlled. Following matching process, 57 (all) enterprises (involving 64 LEUs) with 100 or more employees and 54 (all) enterprises (involving 65 LEUs) having more than 10000000 euros of turnover, were investigated. Then, according to the statistical information obtained from the survey carried out in the Feasibility Study, units with 20 or more employees were subjected to a random allocation process. After this, 46 enterprises (involving 47 LEUs) previously allocated as real deaths, with more than 50 employees and fewer than 100, were manually checked.
Employer Enterprise BIRTHS BY GROWTH in dataflow EBSBDS_EMP_A: A total of 116 large enterprises (involving 138 LEUs) were manually controlled, after matching process. They were all the enterprises with more than 50 employees.
Employer Enterprise DEATHS BY DECLINE in dataflow EBSBDS_EMP_A: A total of 50 large enterprises (involving 95 LEUs) were manually controlled, after matching process. They were all the enterprises with more than 50 employees.
High-Growth Enterprises in dataflow EBSBDS_FHG_A: 91 enterprises equivalent to legal units (having more than 449 employees if they belong to an enterprise group, or having more than 249 employees if they do not belong to an enterprise group, both at the end of the growth period) were manually controlled, additionally to 434 units selected to be investigated (considering growth factor or size at the beginning of the growth period) when producing preliminary data (series 9P) for the same reference year (2021).
This approach has not covered all the births and deaths with 20 or more employees.
A sample was investigated by a survey in the Feasibility Study, and the estimated proportions of false real births/deaths remained constant for the following data collections. Enterprises surveyed had 20 or more employees. This approach did not cover the enterprises with large turnover, but no employees.
Regarding the cases of confirmed real births and deaths, the proportions are as follows:
BIRTHS in dataflow EBSBDS_ALL_A: As it is said above, 210 large enterprises were manually investigated, and 125 (59.5 %) of them were confirmed as real births.
Provisional DEATHS in dataflow EBSBD_ALL_A: As it is said above, 157 large enterprises were manually checked, and 72 (45.9 %) of them were confirmed as real deaths.
Employer Enterprise BIRTHS BY GROWTH in dataflow EBSBDS_EMP_A: 116 large enterprises were investigated, and 90 (77.6 %) of them were confirmed as real employer births by growth.
Employer Enterprise DEATHS BY DECLINE in dataflow EBSBDS_EMP_A: 50 large enterprises were investigated, and 33 (66.0 %) of them were confirmed as real employer deaths by decline.
High-Growth Enterprises in dataflow EBSBDS_FHG_A: 91 enterprises were manually checked, and 48 (52.7 %) where confirmed as real high-growth enterprises. Previously, when producing preliminary data (series 9P), 434 enterprises where manually controlled, and 314 (72.3 %) of them were confirmed as real high-growth enterprises.
In general, checked units from Construction sector were certainly considered as real deaths.
For the reference year 2021, manual controls were not applied on survivals. In previous reference years a few cases were checked. Those cases showed very low figures in employment in the year of birth and very high figures in employment in the survival year.
18.4. Data validation
Before sending dataflows to Eurostat, content and structural validation checks are performed.
Consistence between BD data is checked as well as coherence with SBS the same indicators.
18.5. Data compilation
In our SBR the number of self-employed persons is an estimate according to activity code and legal form. This estimate is used in BD.
Preliminary deaths estimates are made by a random selection of units that could be considered as non-reactivated two years after the reference period and deleting previously the reactivations happened in the year following to the reference year, as they are just known. We take into account the number of reactivations two years after the previous reference period, in order to consider possible trends. Our estimate method is quite efficient.
As regards computation of annual average of employees, BD data take into account quarterly information coming from Social Security Register in order to calculate an annual average. Other register coming from Social Security System provide the number of days that workers make contributions to the System, and that information can also be used to calculate the annual average. Moreover, data about number of employees collected in surveys (including SBS survey) as annual average are other option to be considered for BD.
Again, it should be remarked that in our SBR the number of self-employed persons is an estimate according to activity code and legal form, and estimates do not depend neither on the number of employees nor on the length of operative periods. These estimates are used in BD. Estimates are obtained considering some standards and specifications related to the Spanish legal frame. Several rules coming from National Accounts System and Labour Force Survey are also taken into account.
When calculating the annual average of employees recorded in SBR, several sources are taking into account. These sources are used according to a priority order. SBR has recorded the number of employees coming from Social Security Register as a datum of a point in time (mainly the end of the reference year). SBR has also recorded the number of employees coming from Surveys as an annual average. Periods considered could be quarters or months.
18.5.1. Imputation - rate
Not requested.
18.6. Adjustment
Not applicable.
18.6.1. Seasonal adjustment
Not requested.
On our web, Business Demography data appear as ‘Harmonized Business Demography’, and five kinds of information can be consulted: Press release, Detailed results, Graph annex, Standardized Methodological Report and General methodology.
The annual Business Demography data collection covers variables which explain the characteristics and demography of the business population. The methodology allows for the production of data on enterprise births (and deaths), that is, enterprise creations (cessations) that amount to the creation (dissolution) of a combination of production factors and where no other enterprises are involved (enterprises created or closed solely as a result of e.g. restructuring, merger or break-up are not considered).
A summary of the available indicators is listed below. The data are available at EU, country and regional level, with breakdowns for type of activity, legal form and size class.
For the population of active enterprises: • Number of active enterprises • Number of enterprise births • Number of enterprise survivals up to five years • Number of enterprise deaths • Related variables on employment: 'employees' and 'persons employed' (employees and self-employed persons)
For the population of active employer enterprises: • Number of enterprises having at least one employee • Number of enterprises having the first employee • Number of enterprises having no employees anymore • Number of enterprise survivals up to five years • Related variables on employment: 'employees' and 'persons employed' (employees and self-employed persons)
For high-growth enterprises, the following indicators are available at EU and country level: • Number of high-growth enterprises (growth by 10% or more) • Number of employees of high-growth enterprises • Number of young high-growth enterprises (up to five years old high-growth enterprises) • Number of employees of young high-growth enterprise
31 March 2023
BD constitutes an important and integrated part of the EU Regulation 2019/2152 on European Business Statistics (EBS Regulation).
BD source is the Statistical Business Register adapted to meet in strict sense the definition of active enterprise (employment and/or turnover and/or investment) included in the Commission Implementing Regulation 2020/1197.
The following units have been excluded from the population of active enterprises:
- Units performing economic activities out of coverage.
- Units belonging to Institutional Sectors S13 (General government) and S15 (Non-profit institutions serving households), as they are non-market oriented.
- Units detected as 'ancillary units'.
Nevertheless, employment of ancillary units has been counted in order to get the total employment of the enterprise they are serving.
Birth or death dates were not used to decide if units were active.
There are no relevant differences in the methodology applied with respect to that reflected in the 'Eurostat-OECD Manual on Business Demography Statistics'.
Enterprises.
The target population is the market business economy, including all active enterprises. In the additional datasets on employer business demography, the threshold is set to one employee at any time of the reference period. The following thresholds are used:
1 employee - population of employer enterprises,
10 employees in the beginning of the growth period - population of high-growth enterprises (10%).
ES, Spain.
Data refer to the totality of the national territory.
Branches of foreign enterprises are included.
Year 2021.
Not requested.
• The number of active, birth, death and survival enterprises, as well as high-growth enterprises is expressed in units. • The number of employees is counted as head counts and is expressed in units. • The number of persons employed is the sum of the number of employees and the estimate of self-employed persons. • The number of self-employed persons is an estimate of the number of persons who were at some time during the reference period the sole owners or joint owners of the statistical unit in which they work, expressed in terms of full-time equivalents. • Derived indicators are expressed in units or percentages.
In our SBR the number of self-employed persons is an estimate according to activity code and legal form. This estimate is used in BD.
Preliminary deaths estimates are made by a random selection of units that could be considered as non-reactivated two years after the reference period and deleting previously the reactivations happened in the year following to the reference year, as they are just known. We take into account the number of reactivations two years after the previous reference period, in order to consider possible trends. Our estimate method is quite efficient.
As regards computation of annual average of employees, BD data take into account quarterly information coming from Social Security Register in order to calculate an annual average. Other register coming from Social Security System provide the number of days that workers make contributions to the System, and that information can also be used to calculate the annual average. Moreover, data about number of employees collected in surveys (including SBS survey) as annual average are other option to be considered for BD.
Again, it should be remarked that in our SBR the number of self-employed persons is an estimate according to activity code and legal form, and estimates do not depend neither on the number of employees nor on the length of operative periods. These estimates are used in BD. Estimates are obtained considering some standards and specifications related to the Spanish legal frame. Several rules coming from National Accounts System and Labour Force Survey are also taken into account.
When calculating the annual average of employees recorded in SBR, several sources are taking into account. These sources are used according to a priority order. SBR has recorded the number of employees coming from Social Security Register as a datum of a point in time (mainly the end of the reference year). SBR has also recorded the number of employees coming from Surveys as an annual average. Periods considered could be quarters or months.
a) Type of data source:
The sources for updating the Statistical Business Register are as follows.
1. Tax system sources:
- Impuesto de Actividades Económicas (IAE) / Economic Activities Tax.
- Retenciones sobre las Rentas de Trabajo Personal (RTP) / Deductions on PAYE.
- Operadores Intra y Extracomunitarios / Customs declarers.
- Impuesto sobre el Valor Añadido (IVA), Impuesto de Sociedades (IS) e Impuesto sobre la Renta de las Personas Físcas / Value Added Tax (VAT), Corporations Tax and PAYE.
- Grupos fiscales de Sociedades / Corporations tax groups.
2. Social Security sources:
- Cuentas de Cotización de la Seguridad Social (CC) del Régimen General / Contribution Accounts to the General System of Social Security.
- Trabajadores autónomos (Registro de trabajadores activos en Cuenta Propia) / Register of Self-employed System.
3. Statistical sources:
- Operaciones estadísticas corrientes: estructurales, coyunturales y de registro / Usual statistical operations: structural, short-term and register support.
4. Legal sources and others:
- Registro Mercantil Central (Movimientos del Registro Mercantil) / Central Mercantile Register (Movements on the Mercantile Register).
- Inventario de Empresas y Entidades Públicas de la Intervención General del Estado / List of Government Enterprises and Entities from the State Auditing Office.
- Empresas en Balanza de Pagos y Central de Balances del Banco de España / Enterprises registered in Balance of Payments and Central of Balance Sheets from the Central Bank.
- Ficheros de Sectorización del Banco de España / Central Bank Institutional Sectors Files.
5. Commercial sources:
- Dun and Bradstreet WorldBase.
- Informa Shareholders Database.
b) Coverage of SBR (Statistical Business Register):
Our Statistical Business Register is made up according to Regulation (EC) No 177/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 February 2008 establishing a common framework for business registers for statistical purposes and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93. Therefore, our Statistical Business Register covers all the required activities and legal forms.
All units operating in our country should be included in SBR. Thresholds are not considered.
c) Matching, profiling or imputation:
Treatment and processing of administrative sources lead to obtain the core system of legal units operating in our country. After this, an automatic profiling procedure is applied in order to get enterprises as statistical units.
SBR source has starting date for all units. Those units becoming exits in the reference year have real or estimated closing date. Nevertheless, the status of activity is the most important variable in order to get real enterprise births and deaths. According to this variable, all units are classified as incoming/entries, outgoing/exits, standing units or reactivations.
The most relevant change in SBR was just implemented for the reference year 2018 when applying an automatic profiling procedure over the system of legal units in order to get the enterprises as statistical units. That change stands for the reference year 2021.
Annual.
There are no time lags when receiving data from the main administrative sources.
National BD data are released 23 months after the end of the reference period.
Not requested.
a) First reference year available (calendar year):
The first reference year (calendar year) for which data are available is 1998.
b) Breaks in time series and reasons for the breaks:
It should be remarked that data for 2021 have a break in time series as a methodological change has been applied (the definition of active enterprise). Moreover, starting with reference year 2021, BD data cover the economic activities of market producers within the NACE Rev. 2 Sections B to N, P to R and Divisions S95 and S96, and Activities of holding companies (NACE Rev. 2 code 6420) are included under coverage for the first time.
Likewise, we would like to point out that from the reference year 2008 onwards, NACE Rev. 2 is applied to define activity coverage and aggregates. Before that year, NACE Rev. 1.1 was used. Nevertheless, enterprise births data are also available according to NACE Rev. 2 for the reference years 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007.
On the other hand, the exclusion of units belonging to Institutional Sector S15 (Non-profit institutions serving households) was applied the first time to data referred to 2005. Nevertheless, the main impact affects NACE Rev. 1.1 Section O (NACE Rev. 2 Section S), which is only considered for pilot studies (see Section 3 of Annex IX in Regulation (EC) No 295/2008).
Moreover, it should be also pointed out that from 1998 to 2012, legal units were used as approach to the statistical unit enterprise. From 2013 to 2017 (transition period), there was a partial implementation of the statistical concept of enterprise. Finally, from the reference year 2018, it was reached a fully implementation of the statistical unit enterprise, and the Institutional Sector S13 (General government) was also excluded. The impact of the fully implementation of the statistical unit enterprise is deemed as not very relevant.
c) Outliers in time series:
It could be said that there are no outliers in time series, and breaks in time series are explained just above.
