Check whether your employment contract is fair

Minimum wage (SMI) for each year

Each year the Government sets the salario mínimo interprofesional (SMI, the national minimum wage) by royal decree (art. 27.1). It is for full-time working hours and counts what you are paid over a year: no wage can fall below it, unless you work fewer hours.

In 2026, the SMI is 1.221,00 € a month in 14 payments, 17.094,00 € a year, or 1.424,50 € a month if you are paid in 12 payments. It is set by Real Decreto 126/2026, published in the BOE on 19 February 2026 and with effect from 1 January 2026.

The SMI for each year, full-time

The figure in 12 payments is the annual one divided by 12: the royal decrees give the 14-payment figure and the annual one.

Part-time, the minimum is paid in proportion to your working hours (art. 1 of each SMI royal decree): with 20 hours a week instead of 40, half. The review works out the proportion using the full-time hours of your collective agreement if you enter them; if not, using the 40 hours set by law.

Where work for the same company does not exceed 120 days, each SMI royal decree sets a minimum per legal working day that includes the share of Sundays, public holidays and extra payments: 57,82 € in 2026 (art. 4.1). The review applies it when the contract pays by the day.

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 27.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 12.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force

What counts towards the SMI

The SMI is compared with what you are paid over a year: the base salary, the fixed supplements and the extra payments (pagas extra), even if they are spread over the monthly payslips.

Pay in kind, such as housing or a vehicle, cannot exceed 30 % of what you are paid nor bring what you are paid in money below the SMI figure (art. 26.1).

When the SMI goes up, a wage that, taken as a whole and calculated over the year, was already higher does not have to go up (art. 27.1).

The review adds up the base salary, the fixed supplements and the extra payments. It leaves out variable supplements, overtime, allowances (dietas) and pay in kind, and says so. If you don't know whether a supplement is fixed or variable, it gives both calculations.

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 27.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 26.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force

Contract types since the 2022 reform

Since 30 March 2022, an employment contract is presumed to be permanent (indefinido). A temporary contract is only allowed for production circumstances or to replace another person, and it has to state precisely its cause, the circumstances that justify it and how they relate to its length (art. 15.1):

• For production circumstances: up to 6 months, or up to one year if your sectoral collective agreement extends it, with a single extension within that maximum (art. 15.2).
• For occasional, foreseeable situations of short duration, the company can use it for up to 90 days in the calendar year, which cannot be consecutive (art. 15.2). In the agricultural and agri-food sectors, Ley 1/2025 extends that limit to 120 days.
• Replacement contract (de sustitución): to cover for a person entitled to have their job kept for them, with their name and the cause in the contract, or for up to 3 months, or the shorter period in your collective agreement, to cover a post during a selection or promotion process (art. 15.3).
• Fixed-discontinuous (fijo discontinuo): it is permanent, for seasonal work or work that recurs with periods of no activity. The contract states the period of activity, the working hours and how they are distributed, even if only as an estimate (art. 16.2).
• Training contracts (formativos): the work-and-study contract (formación en alternancia) lasts between 3 months and 2 years, and the professional practice contract (práctica profesional) between 6 months and one year (art. 11).
• Contracts for a specific project or service (obra o servicio) and temporary contracts for production circumstances (eventuales) disappeared with the reform: those made before 31 December 2021 follow their previous rules up to their maximum length (transitional provision 3.ª of Real Decreto-ley 32/2021), and those made from 31 December 2021 to 30 March 2022 do as well, but for no more than 6 months (transitional provision 4.ª).

The law requires in writing, among others, internship contracts and training and apprenticeship contracts, part-time, fixed-discontinuous, relief (relevo) and remote-work contracts, and temporary contracts of more than four weeks (art. 8.2).

For a contract that started before 30 March 2022, the review checks everything else and says that its fixed-term status is not reviewed in this version.

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.2 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.2 (Ley 1/2025, de 1 de abril) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.3 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 16.2 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 11.2.g (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 11.3.c (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.1, y disposiciones transitorias 3.ª y 4.ª del Real Decreto-ley 32/2021 (Real Decreto-ley 32/2021, de 28 de diciembre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 8.2 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force

When a temporary contract becomes permanent (fijo)

A temporary contract has to meet article 15 of the Estatuto: a production or replacement cause stated precisely, and its maximum length. The review does not decide your case: it quotes what the law says. If your contract does not meet it:

With several contracts: if within a period of 24 months you have had contracts for more than 18, consecutive or not, with the same company or group of companies, through two or more contracts for production circumstances, including through an ETT (temporary employment agency):

And if a contract that the law requires in writing was not made in writing:

You can ask the public employment service in writing for a certificate of the temporary contracts you have had (art. 15.9). With your employment history (vida laboral), the review adds up your contracts for the limit of 18 months within 24.

When the calculation depends on something that is not known, such as which pre-reform contract counts, the review gives both readings and does not quote the conversion to permanent status until they agree.

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.4 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.5 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 8.2 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 15.9 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force

Trial period

A trial period (período de prueba) is only allowed if it is agreed in writing, within the limits set by your collective agreement. If the agreement says nothing, these are the maximums (art. 14.1):

• 6 months for qualified technical staff (técnicos titulados).
• 2 months for everyone else.
• 3 months for those who are not qualified technical staff in a company with fewer than 25 people on the payroll.
• 1 month in a temporary contract of 6 months or less, unless the collective agreement says otherwise.

No trial period is allowed if you had already done the same duties at the company, under any contract (art. 14.1).

In a work-and-study training contract (formación en alternancia) there is no trial period (art. 11.2.l); in a professional practice contract, 1 month at most, unless the collective agreement says otherwise (art. 11.3.e). And anyone who stays on at the company after a training contract does not do a new trial period (art. 11.4.g).

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 14.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 11.3.e (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 11.2.l (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 11.4.g (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force

Working hours and rest

The maximum working week remains 40 hours of actual work a week, averaged over the year (art. 34.1). In addition:

• No more than 9 ordinary hours a day, unless your collective agreement or a company agreement distributes them differently (art. 34.3).
• At least 12 hours between the end of one working day and the start of the next (art. 34.3).
• A weekly rest of a day and a half in a row, which can be accumulated over periods of up to 14 days (art. 37.1).
• A break of at least 15 minutes when the continuous working day exceeds 6 hours (art. 34.4).
• Night workers do not exceed 8 hours a day on average over 15 days and do not do overtime (art. 36.1).
• No more than 80 hours of overtime a year, not counting those compensated with time off within the following 4 months. Overtime is paid at least at the ordinary hourly rate or compensated with time off, and it is voluntary unless agreed in the collective agreement or the contract (art. 35).

The company records the start and end of your working day every day (art. 34.9). Some sectors and shift changes have special rules on working hours and rest (Real Decreto 1561/1995); the review names them when they may apply.

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 34.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 34.3 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 37.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 34.4 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 36.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 35.2 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 35.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 35.4 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 34.9 (Real Decreto-ley 8/2019, de 8 de marzo) in force
• arts. 2 a 10 bis, 19 a 21 y 32 (Real Decreto 1561/1995, de 21 de septiembre, sobre jornadas especiales de trabajo) in force

Part-time

A part-time contract states the hours of work and how they are distributed; if it does not, it is presumed to be full-time, unless proven otherwise (art. 12.4.a). The company records your hours every day and gives you the monthly summary with your payslip (art. 12.4.c).

Part-time workers do not do overtime, except to prevent or repair urgent damage (arts. 12.4.c and 35.3).

Additional hours (horas complementarias) are agreed in writing and only with 10 hours a week or more on average over the year. They do not exceed 30 % of the ordinary hours, or the percentage set by the collective agreement, between 30 % and 60 %, and you are given at least 3 days' notice of them, unless the collective agreement sets less (art. 12.5).

In a permanent contract, the company can also offer you voluntary additional hours, up to 15 %, or 30 % if the collective agreement sets it (art. 12.5.g).

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 12.4.a (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 12.4.c (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 12.5 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 12.5.g (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force

Holiday and extra payments

Holiday is at least 30 calendar days a year, paid; the collective agreement or the contract may give more (art. 38.1). In a contract of less than a year the proportional part applies, although art. 38.1 does not say so expressly.

While the contract continues, holiday cannot be exchanged for money (art. 38.1).

There are two extra payments (pagas extra) a year: one at Christmas and the other in the month set by the collective agreement or by an agreement between the company and the workers' representatives. Their amount is set by the collective agreement, which may also spread them over the twelve monthly payments (art. 31).

In addition, there are up to 14 public holidays a year, paid and not made up (art. 37.2).

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 38.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 31 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 37.2 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force

Clauses

Some clauses have limits in the law:

• Non-compete after the contract: no more than 2 years for technical staff and 6 months for everyone else, and only if the company has an effective interest and pays you adequate financial compensation (art. 21.2).
• Full dedication to a single company: agreed with express financial compensation (art. 21.1).
• Retention commitment (permanencia): only after professional specialisation paid for by the company, for no more than 2 years and always in writing (art. 21.4).
• Waivers: rights that the law recognises as mandatory (derecho necesario) cannot be waived, either before or after you acquire them (art. 3.5). If a clause is not valid, it is replaced by what the law says and the rest of the contract remains valid (art. 9.1).
• Remote work: with regular remote work, Ley 10/2021 makes the company bear the costs of equipment, tools and means (art. 12).

The review looks at the wording of each clause you confirm: its length, whether it provides for compensation and whether it is in writing. It does not assess whether a compensation is adequate or whether the company has an effective interest.

Laws

• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 21.2 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 21.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 21.4 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 3.5 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 9.1 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• art. 12.1 (Ley 10/2021, de 9 de julio, de trabajo a distancia) in force

What the company has to give you in writing

Since 5 October 2026, Real Decreto 723/2026 says that the company has to give you in writing the essential elements of your employment relationship (art. 3.2):

• Who the parties are
• Start date and, if temporary, end date or length
• Company address and workplace
• Your duties and, if temporary, its cause
• Job category or professional group and job description
• Base salary, each supplement, and when and how it is paid
• Working hours, schedule, shifts, overtime and holiday
• Trial period and its length
• Training
• Temporary employment agency and client company
• Algorithmic systems that make decisions about your work
• Equality plan and anti-harassment protocol
• Measures for the equality of LGTBI people
• How the contract ends and its notice periods
• Collective agreement, with its code and publication date
• Mutua (occupational insurer), voluntary benefit improvements and pension plans
• When the contract can be changed

If your employment started on or after that day, it had to give them to you before you started (art. 7.1). If it was already under way, you can ask for them in writing and the company has 30 business days (días hábiles) to give them to you (sole transitional provision). It does not apply to employment of four weeks or less (art. 2.2).

Some points may refer to the law or the collective agreement. The review asks you about each one and says which are missing.

Laws

• art. 3.2 (Real Decreto 723/2026, de 9 de septiembre) in force
• art. 7.1 (Real Decreto 723/2026, de 9 de septiembre) in force
• disposición transitoria única (Real Decreto 723/2026, de 9 de septiembre) in force
• art. 2.2 (Real Decreto 723/2026, de 9 de septiembre) in force

How to find your collective agreement

Since 5 October 2026, the company has to inform you in writing which collective agreement applies, with its code and its publication date (art. 3.2.o of the Real Decreto 723/2026).

Your collective agreement sets your pay by job category, your bonuses (pluses), your working hours and many of the periods on this page, and it binds the company within its scope (art. 82.3).

Collective agreements are published in the BOE, if they are national, or in the official gazette of your region or province, and they are in REGCON, the Ministry of Labour's public register of collective agreements, where you can search them by name, sector or code.

The review does not read collective agreements or their pay tables: if you enter the pay for your category under your agreement, it compares it as a figure you provided.

Laws

• art. 3.2 (Real Decreto 723/2026, de 9 de septiembre) in force
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 82.3 (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015, de 23 de octubre) in force
• REGCON, register of collective agreements

Frequently asked questions