Hire in Spain in 3 easy steps
Spain may be famous for its easy-going culture, siestas and beaches, but did you know it’s also a hotbed of highly skilled international remote talent? Here’s how you can hire employees in Spain while saving a ton of money and staying away from a complex web of legal hassles.
Onboard your talent in Spain in 10 minutes
If you’re considering hiring your next candidate in Spain, you’ve landed in the right place. After helping hundreds of businesses onboard their remote hires, we have achieved excellent expertise in the country. Our team of experts and tech solutions will make this incredibly easy for you.
Visa support for employees
Access an easy work permit sponsorship process on the platform during onboarding.
Guidance & payroll management
Receive process support by an experienced team of experts & pay your talent on time and in their local currency.
Net salary calculator
Calculate net salary in Spain post deductions and compare it with the salary in other countries instantly.
Accelerated onboarding
Fast-track your talent onboarding while ensuring 100% compliance with local regulations.
Hire in Spain through an EOR
Easily onboard your remote talent in Spain through our Employer of Record (EOR) solution. Our subsidiaries and network partners make this process fast and 100% compliant.
Why WorkMotion is your best choice for hiring in Spain
We have helped onboard hundreds of employees in Spain for our customers who needed qualified and cost-effective talent. We are also the only player in the market that provides work permits and visa support for hiring employees in Spain. We handle all the paperwork and data submission, while you receive constant support and timely notifications at every step.
A quick overview of Spain
Time zone
UTC+1
Paid leave
23 days
Minimum wage
€1080
Currency
EUR
Public holidays
14 days
Payroll frequency
Monthly
What makes Spain’s talent great?
Spain’s economy is mainly based on tourism. This means there’s a big number of university graduates with skills but don’t often find a job they desire. Qualified candidates in Spain are looking for jobs but do not necessarily want to move out of the country. The obvious answer here is finding remote work.
Cost-effective for you, life-effective for talent in Spain. A clear win win.
Basic facts
Spain is a country in the Southwest corner of Europe. The Spanish economy is the fourth-largest in the Eurozone and the fifth-largest in the European Union. Spain is well known for its vast monuments, snow capped mountains, stone castles, sophisticated cities, and cultural diversity. The total land area is 505,990 square kilometers, with 12,500 square kilometers of islands. Spain is bordered to the west by Portugal; to the northeast, it borders France, from which it is separated by the small principality of Andorra and by the great wall of the Pyrenees Mountains.
Capital
Madrid
Population
47.33 M
VAT - standard rate
21%
Statutory holidays
The national holidays mentioned below are valid for the year 2024.
There are 14 bank holidays (dias festivos), made up of eight national holidays which are non-substitutable and six chosen by the region and local municipality.
Contract sharing time
The approximate time for sharing the contract with an employee in Spain ranges from a few minutes to 1 day assuming no special requests or changes to our standard employment contract. Any such requests or changes would need to undergo internal or external review, directly leading to a time delay. If all talent data is available, the contract can be generated immediately.
Note
This number is subject to change and is only an estimation of the Contract Sharing Time. The estimated Contract Sharing Time begins from the moment that WorkMotion has received all required information from both the client and the employee.
| Date | Holiday Name |
|---|---|
| January 1 | New Year |
| January 6 | Epiphany day |
| March 31 | Good Friday |
| May 1 | Labor day |
| August 15 | Assumption of the Virgin |
| October 12 | Hispanic national holiday |
| November 1 | All saints' day |
| December 6 | Spanish constitution day |
| December 9 | Immaculate conception |
| December 25 | Christmas day |
What you need to know
- WorkMotion in Spain has a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with Convenio colectivo estatal de empresas de consultoría y estudios de mercado y de la opinión pública. The provisions in the CBA are followed in lieu of the statutory minimum set by the labor code.
- All talents hired through WorkMotion in Spain are only offered indefinite contracts of employment. WorkMotion does not offer fixed-term contracts anymore.
- It is a statutory requirement for companies to grant remote workers a home office allowance to cover the expenses they encounter in carrying out their work from home.
Labour conditions
Working Hours
Overtime
Probation Period
Termination Notice Period
Working Hours
40
hours
is the maximum working time per week
12
hours
is the rest period between two working days
09
hours
are the maximum working hours per day
15
minutes
is the break needed after six hours of work
08
hours
is the maximum no. of hours workers under the age of 18 may work
Overtime
80
hours
Overtime work is voluntary. The maximum number of overtime hours must not exceed 80 hours in a year. Overtime is compensated for either in the pay cheque (which in no case may be less than the value of the ordinary hour) or by rest periods over the next four months.
Probation Period
Termination may be done at any time so long as the applicable notice period is respected.
| Education level / Enterprise size | Probation period |
|---|---|
| Qualified technicians (college and junior college graduate specialists) | Must not exceed 6 months |
| Other workers | Must not exceed 2 months |
| Enterprises with less than 25 workers | Must not exceed 3 months for workers who are not qualified technicians |
| Fixed-term contracts not exceeding 6 months | Must not exceed 1 month |
Termination Notice Period
The length of the probation period depends on several factors such as the education level of the incumbent and the size of the enterprise:
| Cause | Notice Period | Other details |
|---|---|---|
| Objectively based | 15 days | An employee may take 6 hours of paid leave per week to find alternative employment |
| Disciplinary dismissal | No notice period | The termination must be notified in writing, stating the reason and date for the termination |
| Resignation | No statutory minimum notice period | General practice is 15 days |
Leave / time off
Annual
Sick
Parental
Other Types
Unpaid
Annual
In Spain, the annual paid holiday period, which may not be replaced by economic compensation, is no less than 30 calendar days (22 working days). Some collective agreements establish higher minimums for annual leave.
Sick
Employees are entitled to sick pay in Spain if they have contributed to the social security system for at least 180 days in the five years prior to the illness. The sickness benefits are paid as follows:
| Duration of sick leave | Benefit | Paid by |
|---|---|---|
| First 3 days | No pay | Not applicable |
| Day 4 – 15 | 60% of the calculation basis | Employer |
| Day 16 – 20 | 60% of the calculation basis | The social security system “Sistema nacional de la seguridad social” |
| Day 21 onwards | 75% of the calculation basis | The social security system |
From April 1, 2023, the talent’s obligation to submit sick leave and medical discharge certificates to the company will no longer apply for the first 365 days of sickness. Instead, the Social Security Administration and WorkMotion Spain will communicate about medical certificates between them. Also, in temporary incapacity cases, the doctor may schedule a medical check in a shorter period than initially indicated.
Parental
Workers are entitled to a leave of not more than three years to care for each child, whether conceived or adopted. During the first year of parental leave, a worker is entitled to job protection. After this period, the employee will be referred to a job of the same professional group or equivalent category.
Maternity leave
16
weeks
is a maternity leave in Spain
- Six weeks are mandatory and must be taken after the baby’s birth.
- 10 weeks can be taken in full or half days:
The enjoyment of each weekly period or accumulation of periods must be communicated at least 15 days in advance. The full-time or part-time enjoyment of this period will require an agreement between the company and the worker.
During maternity leave, workers receive a maternity benefit administered by Social Security. The maternity benefit is the public welfare benefit to compensate the lost income for the employee due to the birth of a child, adoption, guardianship, or foster care.
To be entitled to maternity leave, the employee should qualify the following:
| Age of the Beneficiary | Minimum Period of Contribution |
|---|---|
| Under 21 years old | None |
| Between 21 and 26 years old | 90 days of contribution during the prior 7 years, or 180 days in total |
| Over 26 years old | 180 days of contribution during the prior 7 years, or 360 days in total |
If the employee does not fulfill all these requirements, she will be entitled to receive a birth grant.
Paternity leave
16
weeks
The other parent (other than the biological mother) is entitled to up to 16 weeks of leave from social security.
- The first 6 weeks are mandatory and must be taken after the baby’s birth.
- The 10 weeks can be taken before the child attains the age of one.
Other Types
Paid leave is provided for the following reasons:
| Leave | Days |
|---|---|
| Marriage | 15 days |
| Bereavement, accident, serious illness, hospitalization | 2 days |
| Surgical intervention without hospitalization that requires home rest | 2 days |
| Death of relatives up to the second degree of consanguinity or affinity | 2 days |
| If travel is required for the above purposes | 4 days |
| Transfer of the habitual domicile | 1 day |
| Inexcusable duty of a public and personal nature, including the exercise of active suffrage | As per legal or conventional norms |
| Performing trade union duties | As per legal or conventional norms |
| Prenatal check-ups and preparation for childbirth and preparing for adoption | For the time necessary |
Unpaid
Handicapped family member leave
The Workers’ Statute Act guarantees employees unpaid leave of up to two years to take care of a close family member on account of an accident, illness or disability where the dependent cannot fend for themselves and do not carry out any paid activity.
Voluntary leave
A worker with at least one year’s seniority in the undertaking has the right to be granted the possibility of being placed on voluntary leave for a period of not less than four months and not more than five years. This right may only be exercised again by the same worker if four years have elapsed since they took the voluntary leave previously.
Statutory benefits
Under the general regime, social security contributions are paid on salaries and wages. Benefits include the:
- Old age pension, sickness, and disability.
- Unemployment insurance.
- Wage guarantee fund.
- Professional training.
- Accident insurance.
- Intergenerational equity mechanism.
| Benefits | Employer Contribution | Employee Contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Old age pension, sickness, disability & Intergenerational Equity Mechanism | 24.1% | 4.8% |
| Unemployment insurance | 5.5% | 1.55% (1.6% for fixed-term contracts |
| Wage guarantee fund | 0.2% | - |
| Professional training | 0.6% | 0.1% |
| Accident insurance (e.g. office work) | 1.5% | - |
Health insurance
In Spain, people insured under the Sistema Nacional de la Seguridad Social (National Social Security System) and their beneficiaries are entitled to healthcare. Foreigners not registered or authorized as residents in Spain have the right to health protection and to healthcare under the same conditions as people with Spanish nationality. The state healthcare coverage contains:
- Medical care: access to public healthcare centers and hospitals.
- Emergencies: access to emergency care and hospitals.
- Rehabilitation.
- Excluded from the coverage are dental and vision services.
Accident insurance
People who have suffered injuries or damage from an accident at work or occupational disease, can apply for benefits. In the event of an accident at work, the amount of the daily allowance is calculated at 75% of the daily calculation basis from the day after the accident. This allowance is paid by Mutua [mutual insurance company] or the Instituto Nacional de la Seguridad Social (INSS).
The employer pays a variable rate for occupational risk insurance. The rate ranges from 1.5% for office work, for example, to 8.5% for mining work or 7.6% for the construction sector.
Wage guarantee fund
The wage guarantee fund is an autonomous entity that acts in case of insolvency of the employer, paying outstanding wages to the workers.
Intergenerational equity mechanism
This tax has the objective of distributing the cost of pensions among different generations of workers . In this way, the Government intends to fatten the pension piggy bank and ensure the collection of baby boom pensions. Employers contribute 0.5% whilst employees contribute 0.1%.
Unemployment insurance
A contributory benefit, commonly known as “el paro”, is awarded to people who are unemployed but committed to working and who have contributed for a minimum of 360 days during the six years before becoming unemployed.
Professional training
The vocational training system for employees aims at improving workers’ skills and company productivity as well as helping to meet labor market needs.
Public pension
In Spain, the retirement pension depends on the age of the beneficiary and the contributions accumulated throughout their working life. Workers covered by the social security system will, upon reaching the pensionable age, be entitled to receive the corresponding retirement pension as long as they meet the requirements established in each case.
The minimum age for the retirement pension is currently:
- 65 if the individual can prove they have paid at least 37 years and 3 months of contributions.
- 66 years if the individual has contributions less than 37 years and 3 months.
All employees hired by WorkMotion’s Spanish partners are automatically insured via the Spanish Social Security system (“Sistema Nacional de la Seguridad Social”).
Disclaimer
The information contained in this Country Guide is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter. The contents of this Country Guide contain general information and may not reflect current legal developments or address your situation. You should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of any content included in this Country Guide without seeking the advice or representation of a licensed attorney. WorkMotion Software GmbH disclaims all liability for actions you take or fail to take based on any content included in this Country Guide.
Information provided in this Country Guide is provided “as is” without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including without limitation warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. WorkMotion Software GmbH periodically adds, changes, improves, updates, or removes information without notice, and assumes no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in the contents of this Country Guide. This Country Guide may contain links to other websites. WorkMotion Software GmbH disclaims all liability for the privacy practices or the content of such websites.