Parental Leave: How does paternity leave work in Spain?

In this article, we will cover:

• How paternity leave works in Spain
• How nursing leave works in Spain

How paternity leave works in Spain

• Employees are entitled to 16 weeks of paid parental (paternity) leave. During this leave, employees are not paid a salary but instead, are given a paternity benefit directly by the Social Security office.
  • In the case of a multiple birth, both the mother and the father are granted one additional week of parental leave (each) for each additional child.
• Regarding paternity or maternity leave, Social Security pays the employee a maximum daily subsidy of €137.98 (maximum of €4,139.40 for a 30-day month or €4,277.38 EUR for a 31-day month).
  • This benefit is exempt from income tax. 
  • It is possible for the Customer to decide to supplement the employee's salary so they 100% of their salary. If this is implemented for one employee, then it has to be applied equally to the rest of the employees.
• The first 6 weeks must be taken uninterrupted after the birth. The remaining 10 weeks must be taken before the baby is 12 months old. The parental leave must always be taken in full weeks.
  • During parental leave, the employees are entitled to the same statutory benefits, and they continue to accrue for PTO.
• In order to process paternity leave:
  • The employee must put in a leave request on Remote which must be approved by the Customer.
  • Email us at payroll-support@remote.com if the 16 weeks will be taken all at once, or just the first 6 mandatory weeks. We will need to inform the Social Security office accordingly.
  • Upload a copy of the birth certificate to your Remote platform and let us know at payroll-support@remote.com.
  • After which, we will inform the Social Security office and provide you with a paternity certificate to enable you paternity benefits.
• Eligibility: To be eligible for the paternity benefits, the employee needs to have paid social contributions for a total of 180 days.

How nursing leave works in Spain

• Following maternity/ paternity leave, employees can also take nursing leave. This leave can be used until the baby is 9 months old, and is considered normal working time, meaning that employees will receive their usual monthly salary.
• Employees must notify their employer beforehand once they choose how to consume this leave from several options:
  • Take one hour off from a normal working schedule
  • Take one hour off from a normal working schedule, split into two 30-minute leaves
  • Take the accumulated leave of 15 calendar days. Please note: The leave might be prorated depending on when to take it, as it is conditioned by the employee's return from maternity/paternity leave and the age of the baby. For example, if the employee requests this leave when the baby is six months old, the employee will only be able to take the proportional time off corresponding to the 3 months until the baby is 9 months old.

See Also: Parental Leave: How does maternity leave and maternity pay work in Spain?