Hire in Spain
Access Spain's growing tech talent market without navigating the Estatuto de los Trabajadores, the 2022 labour reform, sector CBAs, and the Social Security contribution system alone. Vectis handles it all — onboard in 48 hours.
Quick Facts
Spanish Employment Law Guide
A practical overview of Spain's Estatuto de los Trabajadores — from the 2022 labour reform and convenios colectivos to Social Security contributions, pagas extraordinarias, and strong dismissal protections.
Employment Contracts (ET)
- ✓Estatuto de los Trabajadores (ET) governs all employment — strong worker protections
- ✓Indefinite contract (contrato indefinido) presumed; fixed-term (temporal) strictly regulated since 2022 reform
- ✓2022 labour reform: fixed-term contracts limited to genuine temporary needs; max 90 days for production surges
- ✓Written contract required within 10 days; must be registered with SEPE (employment agency)
- ✓Probation: 6 months for qualified technicians; 2 months for others; cannot be set for experienced role transfers
Working Hours & Overtime
- ✓Standard: 40h/week; 9h/day maximum (unless CBA permits otherwise)
- ✓Mandatory 12h rest between shifts; 1.5 days weekly rest (usually Sat–Sun)
- ✓Overtime: limited to 80h per year; paid at agreed rate (+25% premium common in CBAs)
- ✓Time-tracking: employers must record daily working hours for all employees (since 2019)
- ✓Overtime beyond 80h/year may be converted to compensatory rest by mutual agreement
Leave Entitlements
- ✓22 working days (30 calendar days) paid vacation per year minimum
- ✓14 national public holidays + regional/local holidays (varies by autonomous community)
- ✓16 weeks maternity leave (extended to 16 weeks for both parents equally)
- ✓16 weeks paternity leave (fully paid and non-transferable since 2021)
- ✓Sick leave (IT): first 3 days employer-funded; from day 4, Social Security pays 60–75% of regulatory base
Wages & Extra Pay
- ✓SMI (Salario Mínimo Interprofesional): €1,134/month gross (2024)
- ✓Two mandatory extra salary payments (pagas extraordinarias): typically June and December
- ✓CBAs (convenios colectivos) frequently set minimums significantly above SMI
- ✓Overtime compensation or time-off-in-lieu must be agreed in writing
- ✓Pay transparency requirements under EU Pay Transparency Directive being implemented
Social Security (SS)
- ✓Employer Social Security: ~29.9–32.3% on gross salary (contingencias + unemployment + FOGASA)
- ✓Employee Social Security: ~6.47% (contingencias + unemployment + formation)
- ✓IRPF (income tax) withholding: graduated rate; employer withholds monthly on behalf of employee
- ✓Contribution bases capped and floored by the Social Security General Treasury (TGSS)
- ✓Monthly TC1/TC2 filings via Sistema RED online platform; delays incur automatic surcharges
Termination
- ✓Objective dismissal (economic, organisational, technical): 20 days per year (max 12 months) severance
- ✓Disciplinary dismissal (serious misconduct): no severance; must be challenged within 20 days
- ✓Unfair dismissal (improcedente): 33 days per year of service (max 24 months) OR reinstatement
- ✓Individual notice: 15 days for objective dismissal; collective redundancy requires 30 days + ERTE
- ✓SMAC (labour mediation) conciliation required before Labour Court litigation
How to Hire in Spain with Vectis
From offer letter to first payroll — fully compliant with the ET and applicable CBA.
Share the details
Role, salary, autonomous community, and start date. We identify the applicable convenio colectivo and confirm SMI compliance.
We draft the contract
Spanish-law employment contract under the ET and applicable CBA. Registered with SEPE. Available in Spanish and English.
Social Security registration
TGSS employer and employee registration, sistema RED setup, IRPF withholding configuration, and CBA benefit enrollment.
Monthly payroll & nómina
Monthly nómina (payslip) with SS contributions, IRPF withholding, pagas extraordinarias accrual, and TGSS filings via Sistema RED.
“Spain's 2022 labour reform made our in-house lawyers nervous about fixed-term contracts. Vectis identified the right indefinite contract structure, applied the correct CBA for our tech sector, and onboarded our Barcelona team in 2 days.”
Public Holidays in Spain
Spain has 10 national public holidays. Each autonomous community adds 2–3 regional holidays. Vectis tracks the correct regional calendar for each employee's location automatically.
Spain Hiring FAQs
Common questions about employing staff in Spain.
Ready to hire in Spain?
Vectis is your Employer of Record in Spain — managing ET compliance, convenio colectivo identification, Social Security, IRPF, pagas extraordinarias, and the 2022 fixed-term contract reform.
Hire in Spain compliantly — ET & CBA experts
No entity required. Onboard in 48 hours.