How to apply for a permanent incapacity pension (incapacidad permanente)

Terms used

• INSS — The INSS is Spain's national social security institute, which decides permanent incapacity claims.
• CAISS — A CAISS is a social security service office where you can apply in person with an appointment.
• EVI — The EVI is the INSS medical evaluation team that examines you and proposes your incapacity grade.
• Mutua — The mutua is the work-accident and illness insurer that many employers use, and it can start or ask to review a claim.
• Reclamación previa — The reclamación previa is a formal complaint to the INSS that you must file before going to court.
• Demanda — A demanda is the written claim you file with the labour court.

Key rules

• Decision time: The social security office has 135 days to decide, and silence after that counts as a refusal.
• Challenge deadlines: After a refusal you have 30 days to file a reclamación previa, and then 30 days to go to court if it is rejected.
• Late claims: There is no deadline to apply, but back payments cover only three months before your application.
• Employer: Your employer cannot start a permanent incapacity claim for you.

The short version

You send your claim to the INSS. A medical team examines you. The INSS then issues a written decision, and you can challenge it. The timeline below shows the order and the checklist covers the steps.

Step 1: Send your claim to the INSS

You can apply online through the Seguridad Social electronic office. You can also apply in person at a CAISS, but you need an appointment. You file the permanent incapacity application form with your ID, your medical reports and a description of your work history. The documents list below has the full set.

Is there a deadline to apply? No. The right does not expire. But back payments reach only three months before your application date, so a late claim loses money for the earlier period.

Who can start the process

You can start it yourself. The INSS can also start it when your maximum sick leave of 365 days, plus any extension, runs out. Your mutua can start it, and so can other bodies such as the Tesorería. Your employer cannot start it.

Step 2: The medical examination

The INSS opens your file. Its medical evaluation team, the EVI, examines you and reviews your medical file. It then issues a medical opinion that proposes a grade of incapacity. In some regions, such as the Basque Country and in part Catalonia, the regional body does this evaluation instead. Check with the office handling your file.

Step 3: The decision

The INSS provincial office decides in writing, usually after a evaluation commission has met. It has 135 days to decide. In practice it often takes two to five months, and sometimes longer. If it says nothing after 135 days, treat that as a refusal.

Step 4: If you are refused

You have 30 days to file a reclamación previa. The 30 days run from the date you receive the decision, or from the end of the 135 days if there was no answer. The INSS has 45 days to answer your complaint.

If it rejects the complaint or stays silent, you have 30 days to file a demanda in the labour court. The court may order further medical expert reports.

Read the decision as soon as it arrives. Missing these 30-day limits can end your chance to challenge.

After you are granted a pension

If you are under retirement age, the decision sets a review date. You, the INSS or the mutua can ask for a review. A review can change your grade, or suspend or end the pension. No review can happen after retirement age.

If you are thinking of asking for a worsening of your grade in the first two years, ask the INSS whether your case allows it.

Timeline and deadlines

• Send your application to the INSS, Spain's social security institute: as soon as your condition is likely to be lasting; there is no fixed deadline, but back payments cover only the three months before you apply

• If the INSS says nothing, treat it as a refusal: after the 135 days have passed

• File a reclamación previa, a formal complaint to the INSS, against the refusal: within 30 days of the decision or of the end of the 135 days

• Take your case to the labour court (Juzgado de lo Social) with a demanda: within 30 days of a refusal or of the INSS's silence on your complaint

Medical and income evidence for incapacity and non-contributory claims

Medical and income evidence

• Permanent incapacity claim: the official application form (solicitud de incapacidad permanente), filed with the social security office (INSS).

• Permanent incapacity claim: your ID card, NIE or passport.

• Permanent incapacity claim: medical reports from your treating doctors or hospitals, describing your diagnosis, treatment and limitations.

• Permanent incapacity claim: a report of your work history or a description of your job. The INSS checks your contribution records itself.

• Non-contributory pension: the application form, filed with your regional social services body (Imserso in Ceuta and Melilla), plus your ID card or NIE and bank details.

• Non-contributory pension: a certificate of registration at your address (empadronamiento) and proof of residence.

• Non-contributory pension: a certificate of household composition, and income declarations or tax returns for you and your household.

• Non-contributory disability pension only: an official disability certificate showing a degree of at least 65%. You get it from your region's social services (centro base) after a medical and social assessment. The contributory incapacity pension does not need it.

Checklist

• Choose how to apply: online through the Seguridad Social electronic office, or in person at a CAISS (social security service centre).

• Book an appointment at a CAISS if you apply in person.

• Go to the medical examination with the evaluation team (EVI), which also reviews your medical file.

• Watch for the written decision from the INSS provincial office, which follows the team's medical opinion.

• Read the decision as soon as it arrives and decide whether to challenge it, since challenge deadlines run from the notification.

What to watch out for

• Silence from the INSS counts as a refusal: If the INSS has not decided within 135 days, your claim is treated as refused, even though no letter arrives. Waiting longer does not help you. Count 135 days from your application date and, once they pass, act on the refusal by filing a reclamación previa.

• Missing the 30-day deadlines: After a refusal you have 30 days to file a reclamación previa, and then 30 days to go to court if it is rejected. Late filings can end your challenge. Note the date on the decision letter, file within 30 days, and get advice from a lawyer or union adviser early.

• Applying late costs you money: Back payments cover only the three months before your application. Each month you wait beyond that is lost for good if you are later granted the pension. Apply as soon as your doctors consider your condition lasting, instead of waiting for a further sick leave period.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a deadline to apply for a permanent incapacity pension?

No, there is no fixed deadline to apply for a permanent incapacity pension, because the right does not expire. But back payments only go back three months before your application date. Apply as soon as your doctors say your condition is likely to be lasting.

Who can start a permanent incapacity procedure besides me?

Besides you, the INSS can start the procedure itself once your maximum sick leave runs out, and a mutua (the work accident insurer) or the health service can also trigger it. Your employer cannot start it. If you are on long sick leave, you may get a call from the INSS without having applied.

Can my incapacity grade be reviewed after it is granted?

Yes, your grade can be reviewed for improvement or worsening, but only before retirement age. The resolution sets a review date, and you, the INSS or the mutua can ask for a review.

Is the medical evaluation always done by the INSS?

No, in regions that manage these functions themselves, a regional body does the medical evaluation instead of the INSS team. The Basque Country is an example, and Catalonia in part. Ask at your local social security office which body handles your claim.