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Written Agreements

Employment contracts may be concluded orally or in writing. Employment relationships will be presumed to exist between any party who provides a service to an organization and the counterpart who receives the service in exchange for a fee.

When the employment relationship lasts more than four weeks, the employer must inform the worker in writing, and under the terms and deadlines established by law, of the essential contract terms and conditions for the performance of the work (provided that such elements and conditions do not appear in the employment contract formalized in writing). Essential employment conditions include the following:

• Working hours
• Schedule
• Shift work regime
• Remuneration system
• Work and performance system.

The employer must also notify the employee of any modifications to the above working conditions.

Oral Agreements

Spain's employment contracts may be written or oral. However, employees are entitled to have their employment conditions established in a written agreement if they so request, even if their employment has commenced.

When the employment relationship lasts more than four weeks, the employer must inform the worker in writing, and under the terms and deadlines established by law, of the essential contract terms and conditions for the performance of the work (provided that such elements and conditions do not appear in the employment contract formalized in writing). Essential employment conditions include the following:

• Working hours
• Schedule
• Shift work regime
• Remuneration system
• Work and performance system.

The employer must also notify the employee of any modifications to the above working conditions.

Implied Agreements

A contract can be implied based on the actions of the parties involved. If a person performs work for remuneration, then an employment contract will be implied.

Spain's regulations on work hours state that employees must:

• Not work more than 40 hours a week (based on an annual average)
• Not work more than nine hours a day
• Be given at least 12 hours of rest before starting work the next day.

Remote Work

Spain defines remote work as work conducted by an employee outside the workplace for at least 30% of the work day, occurring over a minimum period of 3 months. The employee and employer must meet certain conditions for remote work to take place.

January 1: New Year’s Day (Nao Nuevo); January 6: Epiphany (Dia de los Reyes Magos); April 15: Good Friday (Viernes Santo); May 1: Labor Day (Día del Trabajo); August 15: Assumption (Asunción de la Virgen); October 12: National Day / Columbus Day; November 1: All Saints’ Day (Fiesta de Todos los Santos); December 6: Constitution Day (Día de la Constitución); December 8: Immaculate Conception (La Immaculada); December 25: Christmas (Navidad); March 19: Father’s Day (coincides with St Joseph’s Day); November 1st All Saints Day on . December 26: St. Stephen’s Day; Varies: Islamic Feast of the Sacrifice or Eid al Adha.

A probationary period may be arranged in writing, subject to duration limits established in collective agreements. In the absence of duration limits set in a collective agreement, the probationary period's duration may not exceed 6 months for qualified technicians and two months for other employees. In companies with fewer than 25 employees, the probationary period may not exceed 3 months for employees who are not qualified technicians.

In the case of temporary contracts of a fixed duration concluded for a period not exceeding 6 months, the probationary period may not exceed one month unless otherwise provided in a collective agreement. Training contracts may not include a probationary period.

The agreement that establishes a probationary period will be null and void if the employee has already previously held the same position in the company under any type of contract.

Notice Period

Individual dismissals on objective grounds are subject to a notice period of 15 days, while no notice is required for dismissals on disciplinary grounds. Where notice periods apply, the employer can also decide to pay in lieu of notice. In case of termination of fixed-term employment contracts with a duration exceeding one year, the employer must generally give a minimum notice period of 15 days in advance of the termination date. If an employee resigns, regardless of whether they were hired under an open-ended or fixed-term contract, they must give the employer the notice defined by any applicable collective agreement or by custom and practice in the workplace concerned (generally, the notice period ranges from 15 days to one month, though some collective agreements require a notice period of three months).

Severance Benefits

In Spain, in the event of dismissal for an objective reason (economic or organizational reasons, worker's capacity, etc.), an employee receives severance pay when the written contract termination notice is delivered. The amount of severance pay varies depending on the category of dismissal.

• Objective dismissal: A tax-free payment is provided in the amount of 20 days' salary per year of service, up to 12 months' salary.
• Disciplinary dismissal: If the dismissal is proven in court to be fair, the employee is entitled to no severance. If it is deemed unfair, the appropriate tax-free severance is 33 days' salary per year of service up to 24 months' pay.

Minimum Wage

Minimum wages, effective January 1, 2025, are summarized below (these do not include any benefits paid in-kind):

• The minimum wage for any activity in agriculture, industry, and services (regardless of the sex or age of the workers) is set at EUR 39.47 (euros) per day or EUR 1,184 per month.
• The minimum wage for temporary workers on contracts of up to 120 days is EUR 56.08 per working day.
• The minimum hourly wage for domestic staff in the home is EUR 9.26 per hour worked.

According to the Workers' Statute, all employers are required to provide salaries without any discrimination based on gender. Employers are also required to keep a record of the average values of wages, salary supplements, and non-salary earnings, disaggregated by sex and distributed by professional groups, categories, or jobs of equal value, and including arithmetic mean and median.

Overtime, Holiday & Vacation Pay

In Spain, regular working hours can last no more than nine hours per day and 40 hours per week, averaged over a reference period of 12 months. Work carried out beyond the hours of the ordinary working day is considered overtime work. Through a collective agreement or individual employment contract, the employer may either pay the employee at least their normal remuneration for working the overtime hours or compensate them by granting equivalent paid rest time. In the absence of any such agreement, overtime is compensated with equivalent rest periods within the following four months after which it was worked.

An employee may not work more than 80 overtime hours per year. The provision of overtime work is voluntary unless its performance has been agreed to in a collective agreement or individual employment contract. Overtime work is prohibited for night workers.

Visas

In Spain, the following are the most common national long-stay visa categories:

• Spanish tourist Schengen visa (valid only up to 90 days)
• Spain visa for business purposes (may require an employer to provide a contract)
• Visa for medical purposes
• Visa for cultural, sports, film crew, or religious purposes
• Visa for members of official delegations
• Visa for study, training, research, or other types of internship purposes
• Visa for the wife or husband of a Spanish citizen
• Spanish airport transit visa
• Visa for under-age children.

Long-term visas (work, residences, studies, family reunification, etc.) must be requested at the Consulate by prior appointment. EU citizens and those from visa-waiver countries do not need a visa to enter Spain.

Work Permits

A Work and Residence Permit is issued by Spain's Labor Authorities and allows employers to recruit outside the European Union (EU). After receiving the Work and Residence Permit from the employer, the employee can apply in person for a Work Visa.

Required documents for the employee include:

• Copy of a valid passport
• Certificate of criminal records issued by the home country
• Official medical certificate
• Three passport-size photographs
• Fiscal registration number (NIE or CIF) and the Social Security registration number of the employer
• Offer of employment
• Job and company description
• Proof of the employer’s solvency.