How much sick pay you get and who pays it

Terms used

• Base reguladora — The base reguladora is the daily figure, based on your contributions, to which the sick pay percentage is applied.
• INSS — The INSS is Spain's national Social Security institute, which pays sick benefits from day 16.
• Mutua — The mutua is an insurance body that works with Social Security and may pay sick benefits instead of the INSS.
• Convenio — The convenio is the collective agreement for your sector or company, which can improve your sick pay.

Key rules

• Unpaid start: Social Security pays nothing for the first 3 days of common illness, though your agreement may.
• Who pays: Your employer pays first, then the INSS or mutua takes over from day 16.
• Top-up: A collective agreement may raise your pay, but not all do, and some limit it to certain cases.

The short answer

For common illness, you get nothing from Social Security for the first 3 days. After that you get a percentage of your base reguladora, and the payer changes as your leave goes on. Many collective agreements add a top-up, so check yours.

What you get, stage by stage

The timeline below shows the stages. In words:

• First 3 days: Social Security pays nothing. Your agreement or employer may pay a complement for these days, and many do.
• Days 4 to 15: your employer pays 60% of your base.
• Days 16 to 20: the INSS or mutua pays 60% of your base.
• From day 21: the INSS or mutua pays 75% of your base.

The mutua is the insurance body that handles benefits for many employers. These steps apply to employees in the general regime who are off with common illness. Work accidents are treated differently: they are paid from the day after the accident.

How your base is worked out

The base reguladora is your contribution base for common contingencies from the month before your leave started. It is divided by the number of days that month covers (30, 31 and so on), or by 30 if you are paid monthly. Overtime is not included. Variable pay counts only as far as it was actually contributed on.

The percentage is applied to that daily figure. Use the calculator below to estimate your pay on a given day.

Top-ups from your collective agreement

A convenio is the collective agreement for your sector or company. Many require the employer to top up your benefit, often to 100% of salary. Top-ups differ:

• Some start on day 1, others on day 4.
• Some apply only to hospitalisation, work accidents or a set number of months.

Do not assume you get 100%. Find your agreement through the reference on your payslip or contract. Then search for it in the Ministry of Labour's database or in the BOE or your regional gazette. Ask your company or union rep to confirm what applies this year. The checklist and documents below walk you through this.

If your employer does not pay

If your employer will not process or pay your sick leave, see the section below on what to do.

Choosing between options

Will you be paid only the legal rates, or do you also get a top-up?

• Legal rates only: Your collective agreement says nothing about sick pay, or you have no agreement. You get the 60% and 75% stages, and nothing for the first 3 days.

• Top-up from day 1: Your agreement requires the employer to top up from the first day, often to 100% of salary, so the first 3 days are covered too.

• Top-up from day 4 or with limits: Your agreement tops up only from day 4, or only for hospitalisation, work accidents or a number of months. Then the top-up applies only in those cases.

Check your collective agreement: if it contains a top-up clause, that clause decides what you get on top of the legal rates; if not, the legal rates apply.

Timeline and deadlines

• Waiting period: Social Security pays nothing, though your agreement or employer may pay a complement: first 3 days of common-illness leave

• Your employer pays 60% of your base: days 4 to 15

• The INSS or mutua pays 60% of your base: days 16 to 20

• The INSS or mutua pays 75% of your base: from day 21

Documents you need

• Your recent payslip, issued by your employer. It shows the reference to the collective agreement (convenio) that covers you.

• Your employment contract, issued by your employer. Use it to find the agreement reference if your payslip does not show one.

• The text of your collective agreement, published in the BOE or your regional gazette. It sets out any sick pay top-up.

Checklist

• Read whether it tops up sick pay, from day 1 or from day 4, and whether the top-up is limited to hospitalisation, work accidents or a number of months.

What if your employer will not process or pay your sick leave?

You do not have to chase your employer alone. You can ask the INSS to pay you directly, and you can complain to the labour authorities.

If your sick pay is not arriving

Your employer pays your sick pay during the first weeks and the state takes over later. How the payments are split is set out in the sick pay amounts page. If the employer does not pay what it owes, the INSS can pay you itself (pago directo) and recover the money from the employer. The INSS or your mutua also pays you directly if your contract has ended, if the employer is insolvent or has stopped paying, or if you are receiving unemployment benefit.

To ask for it:

1. Apply to the INSS online or in person at a CAISS office.
2. Bring your baja documents and proof that you were not paid, such as payslips or bank statements showing no payment.

If your employer will not process the baja

Complain to the Inspección de Trabajo y Seguridad Social. The employer can be fined for not paying or not processing your leave. You can also try conciliation at the SMAC, the regional mediation service. It is a required step before most labour claims go to court, and it often settles the matter.

If that fails: court

You can file a claim in the labour court (juzgado de lo social). Deadlines are strict:

• Unpaid wages and sick pay: the limit is one year for most claims.
• Disputes with the INSS: you usually need to file a written complaint (reclamación previa) within 30 days before going to court.
• Dismissal: you have 20 working days to file a claim.

If you are dismissed while on baja

Being on baja does not by itself make a dismissal void. If the real reason is your illness, a court can declare it null. You would then be reinstated with back pay, and possibly compensation. Other unjustified dismissals usually end in compensation, or in you being taken back, at the employer's choice. The 20-working-day limit applies either way, so act quickly.

For any of these steps, a union or a labour lawyer can check your deadlines at the start. Many unions help members for free.

Estimate your sick pay by day of leave

Work it out

What you enter

• Your monthly contribution base for common contingencies, in euros (EUR): Your payslip from the month before the leave, in the contribution base for common contingencies.
• Total days of leave you want to estimate (days): The start date on your baja and the date you expect to be back.

Figures used

• Unpaid first days of common illness: 3 days (as of 2026)
• Last day paid by your employer: 15 day (as of 2026)
• Last day paid at 60%: 20 day (as of 2026)
• Rate for days 4 to 20: 60 % (as of 2026)
• Rate from day 21: 75 % (as of 2026)
• Days used to get the daily base: 30 days (as of 2026)

Worked example (with Your monthly contribution base for common contingencies, in euros 2,100 EUR, Total days of leave you want to estimate 30 days)

When the sum misleads

• The first 3 days get nothing from Social Security, though many collective agreements pay a complement for them. Check your agreement.
• If your contribution base is above the yearly maximum, use the maximum instead. If it is below the minimum for your group, use the minimum.
• This sum is for common illness. After a work accident or occupational illness, pay is 75% of the base from the day after the accident, and your employer pays the day of the accident in full.
• Overtime is not part of the base for common illness, so leave it out of your monthly figure.
• Your collective agreement may top up these amounts.

Frequently asked questions

How is the base reguladora for my sick pay worked out?

Your base reguladora is your contribution base for common contingencies from the month before your leave, divided by the number of days in that month (30, 31 and so on), or by 30 if you are paid monthly. Overtime is left out, and variable pay counts only through what was actually contributed.

How do I find which collective agreement applies to me?

Look for the agreement reference on your payslip or employment contract. Then search for it in the Ministry of Labour's REGCON database, or in the BOE (Spain's official gazette) or your region's gazette.

Does a collective agreement always top my sick pay up to 100% of salary?

No, a top-up to 100% of salary is common but not automatic, because each agreement sets its own terms.