Holiday entitlement in Spain

Overview

Spanish law guarantees every employee a minimum amount of paid annual leave, regardless of nationality or contract type. Your convenio colectivo can set a higher entitlement, but never lower.

Requirements

• Applies to all employees; part-time workers accrue holiday pro-rated to their hours
• The legal minimum is 30 calendar days per full year worked (around 22 working days)

Step-by-step process

• Check your contract and convenio colectivo for your actual entitlement, which may exceed the 30-day legal minimum
• Agree holiday dates with your employer in advance — Spanish practice typically concentrates leave around August, though this varies by sector
• If you're on sick leave when holiday was scheduled, confirm with your employer that those days can be rescheduled rather than lost
• Track any unused holiday, since Spanish law generally requires leave to be taken within the same calendar year (with limited carry-over exceptions)

Required documents

• Your employment contract and applicable convenio colectivo

Common mistakes

• Assuming holiday not taken by year-end can always be paid out instead — in an ongoing employment relationship this isn't generally allowed; it's only paid out when the contract ends
• Not knowing that time on sick leave (incapacidad temporal) still accrues holiday entitlement

Practical tips

• If illness overlaps with pre-scheduled holiday, the missed vacation days can generally be taken later — for ordinary illness, within 18 months of the end of the year they were generated
• New employees mid-year accrue holiday pro-rated from their start date, not a full year's entitlement immediately

How Tuchati can help

If your employer is disputing your holiday entitlement or how sick leave affects it, Tuchati can help you understand what the law actually guarantees.