How career breaks and childcare years count toward your pension

Terms used

• Excedencia por cuidado de hijos — The excedencia por cuidado de hijos is unpaid leave from work to look after your child, with your job kept for you.
• Complemento de brecha de género — The complemento de brecha de género is a fixed monthly top-up to a pension, paid per child to the parent whose contributions suffered more.
• Vida laboral — The vida laboral is the official record of your contribution history in Spain's social security system.
• INSS — The INSS is Spain's national social security institute, which handles pensions.

Key rules

• Birth or adoption: Each birth or adoption can credit up to 112 days of contributions.
• Childcare gap: Up to 270 days per child can be credited for a childcare career gap, capped at 5 years.
• Child leave: Leave to care for a child counts as contributed time for up to 3 years per child.
• Gap filling: Empty months are filled at 100% of the minimum base for the first 48 months, then 50%.

The short answer

Caring periods are partly credited, and gaps in your record are filled in when your pension base is calculated. You do not lose that time entirely. But the credit is not the same as working full time, so the details matter.

Credit for a birth or adoption

Each birth or adoption can give you up to 112 days of credited contribution. That is 14 days plus extra for multiple births. For births before the reform, this credit went to the mother. The timeline below shows how it fits with the other credits.

Credit for a career gap caused by childcare

If you stopped or cut back work to look after a child, up to 270 days per child can be credited. The total cannot go above 5 years.

Leave and reduced hours

How much counts depends on the type of break:

• Leave to care for a child (excedencia por cuidado de hijos): counts as contributed time for up to 3 years per child. Large families get longer.
• Reduced hours for childcare: credited at 100% of the full-time contributions for up to 2 years per child. In some cases the limit is 3 years.

If you reduce hours to care for other relatives, contributions are credited up to the legal limits. Ask the INSS, Spain's social security office, to check the limits for your case.

How gaps are filled

Months with no contributions inside the period used to calculate your pension are filled with the minimum contribution base. For the first 48 months, the fill is 100% of that minimum base. After that, it is 50%. A 2023 reform is raising this gradually for women, because of the gender gap. Ask the INSS which version applies to your retirement date.

The gender-gap supplement

The complemento de brecha de género is an extra monthly amount added to your pension for each child. It goes to the parent whose career suffered more. It replaced the earlier maternity supplement from 2021. For pensions awarded from 2023, it is paid in a revised form, up to the second child. The amounts are revalued every year.

It can apply to retirement, permanent disability and widow pensions.

What to do now

• Keep proof of births, adoptions and leave periods, such as your leave approval from your employer.
• Ask the INSS for your contribution record (vida laboral) and check how your caring periods appear.
• Use the FAQ below for common questions on days per child, unpaid leave and reduced hours.

Timeline and deadlines

• Birth or adoption credit: Up to 112 days of contribution credit per child, with extra days for multiple births

• Childcare career gap credit: Up to 270 days per child, to a maximum of 5 years

• Gaps in your record when the base is calculated: The first 48 months of gaps are filled at 100% of the minimum base, and later months at 50%

Frequently asked questions

How many days of credit do I get for each child?

You can get up to 112 days of contribution credit per child for a birth or adoption, with extra days for multiple births. Separately, a career gap spent on childcare can be credited up to 270 days per child, to a maximum of 5 years.

Does unpaid leave to care for a child count towards my pension?

Yes, leave to care for a child counts as contributed time for up to 3 years per child, and more under the large family rules. Leave to care for a family member counts for up to 1 year, longer for large families.

Do reduced hours for childcare lower my pension?

No, the reduced hours are credited at 100% of the full-time contributions for up to 2 years per child. In some cases the reduction is credited for 3 years.

What is the gender-gap supplement?

The gender-gap supplement is a fixed monthly amount per child added to the pension of the parent whose contributions suffered more. It replaced the earlier maternity supplement in 2021, and the amount is revalued every year.