Statutory notice period
The minimum notice an employer must give. Contracts and collective agreements can lengthen it and only rarely shorten it, and the tenure bands are where cross-border assumptions usually go wrong.
Employer notice under the Workers' Statute depends on the ground for dismissal, not on tenure. Collective agreements and contracts may lengthen it.
| Service | Employer notice | Runs |
|---|---|---|
| Objective dismissal (economic, technical, organisational, production or capability grounds) | 15 calendar days | from delivery of the written notice; the employer may pay the days in lieu |
| Disciplinary dismissal | none |
The objective route also requires a written statement of cause and severance of 20 days' pay per year of service, capped at 12 months' pay, made available with the letter. During the notice the employee has 6 paid hours a week to look for new work.
Source: Texto refundido de la Ley del Estatuto de los Trabajadores, Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado. Checked on 2026-07-27.
Minimum paid annual leave
The statutory floor for paid holiday. The counting basis matters as much as the number, since some laws count a six-day week and others count working days or calendar weeks.
30 calendar days per year.
Counted in calendar days, so weekends inside the period count; public holidays sit outside the entitlement. Not replaceable by pay while employment continues.
Source: Texto refundido de la Ley del Estatuto de los Trabajadores, Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado. Checked on 2026-07-27.
Probation limit
The longest trial period the law allows an employer to agree, together with the notice that applies while it runs.
| Group | Maximum |
|---|---|
| Qualified technical staff (técnicos titulados) | 6 months |
| Other employees | 2 months |
| Other employees in firms under 25 staff | 3 months |
| Fixed-term contracts of up to 6 months | 1 month |
Notice while it runs: either side may end the contract during it without notice, cause or severance.
Statutory defaults that apply where the collective agreement does not set its own limits; the probation must be agreed in writing.
Source: Texto refundido de la Ley del Estatuto de los Trabajadores, Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado. Checked on 2026-07-27.
Employer social contributions
What the employer pays on top of gross salary into statutory schemes. Some countries charge a percentage of pay, others charge flat amounts, and a single headline rate hides caps, regional rules and industry-rated items.
Figures apply for 2026.
| Scheme | Rate, per cent of pay | Charged on |
|---|---|---|
| Common contingencies (pension, sickness, family protection), employer share | 23.6 | pay up to 5,101.20 EUR per month |
| Intergenerational equity mechanism (MEI), employer share | 0.75 | pay up to 5,101.20 EUR per month |
| Unemployment insurance, employer share, indefinite contracts6.70 for fixed-term contracts. | 5.5 | pay up to 5,101.20 EUR per month |
| Wage guarantee fund (Fogasa) | 0.2 | pay up to 5,101.20 EUR per month |
| Vocational training, employer share | 0.6 | pay up to 5,101.20 EUR per month |
| Workplace accidents and occupational diseaseRates per activity under the premium tariff; employer-only. | varies | pay up to the same ceiling |
| Solidarity contributionEmployer 0.96 on the slice up to 5,611.32, 1.04 up to 7,651.80 and 1.22 beyond, per month. | varies | pay above the monthly ceiling |
| Sum of the shares aboveEmployer shares for a typical indefinite contract, on pay up to the monthly ceiling, before the industry-rated and above-ceiling items. | 30.65 |
There is no separate employer health levy; healthcare sits inside the common contingencies. The figures come from the annual contribution order issued under a rolled-over budget, so a later budget law could revise them within the year.
Source: Orden PJC/297/2026, de 30 de marzo, cotización para el ejercicio 2026, Agencia Estatal Boletín Oficial del Estado. Checked on 2026-07-27.