Keeping your paro through renewals, job offers and sanctions

Terms used

• Paro — Paro is unemployment benefit paid by SEPE to people who lose their job and meet the conditions.
• SEPE — SEPE is Spain's public employment service, which pays and manages unemployment benefit.
• Cl@ve — Cl@ve is the government's digital identity system used to access public services online.
• Compromiso de actividad — The compromiso de actividad is the commitment you sign when claiming paro to seek work and follow the employment service's actions.
• Reclamación previa — A reclamación previa is the written appeal you file with SEPE before going to the social courts.

Key rules

• Renewal: Renew your jobseeker demand on the dates printed on your card, or it is cancelled and you are sanctioned.
• Travel: Notify SEPE before any trip abroad; going without notice can suspend your paro and make you repay.
• Job offers: Refusing a suitable job or training without a good reason costs 3 months of benefit the first time.
• Repayment appeal: You have 30 days to appeal a repayment demand with a reclamación previa.

The short version

You keep your paro by doing four things: renewing your jobseeker demand on time, following your activity commitment, telling SEPE before you travel, and not refusing a suitable job or training without a good reason. Missing any of these can cost you months of benefit.

Renew your jobseeker demand

Renew on the dates printed on the card or document you received when you registered. This is normally every 3 months. Keep that document safe.

Depending on your region, you can renew online with Cl@ve or a digital certificate, by app, by phone or in person at the employment office. Check which channels your regional employment service offers.

If you miss a renewal, your demand is cancelled (a "baja"). For paro recipients it also counts as a minor infringement. See the sanction scale below.

Keep your activity commitment

When you applied, you signed the compromiso de actividad. It means you promised to:

• look for work actively;
• take part in the guidance, training, retraining and job-insertion actions the employment service proposes;
• follow the personalised itinerary agreed with the service;
• report any change that affects your benefit, such as work or income.

Travelling abroad

Tell SEPE before you leave, not after.

• A personal trip of up to 15 calendar days is allowed once a year if you notify SEPE in advance. It must not become a pattern.
• A stay abroad of up to 90 days for job search, professional training or cooperation needs SEPE's prior authorisation.
• Leaving without notice or authorisation, or going over these limits, suspends or ends your benefit. You may also have to repay the payments for the trip period.
• Moving abroad permanently ends paro. Special EU rules let some people export their benefit for up to 3 months, which can be extended. Ask SEPE about this before you go.

Job offers and training

A job is suitable if:

• it matches your profession or earlier work, or it is any job once you have been on paro for 1 year;
• the working day and pay are legal, and at least the applicable collective agreement or minimum wage;
• the commute is under 30 km, unless travel takes more than 25 percent of your day;
• if part-time, it fits what you registered for.

Good reasons to refuse include health, family care, and conditions below legal levels. Tell SEPE your reason in writing.

The sanction scale

• Minor infringements, such as not renewing: you lose 1 month of benefit the first time, 3 months the second and 6 months the third.
• Serious infringements, such as refusing a suitable job or training without a good reason: you lose 3 months the first time and 6 months the second. The third ends your benefit.
• Very serious infringements, such as fraud, working without telling SEPE, or false statements: you lose 6 months of benefit the first time and are excluded after that, and you must repay what you received.

If a sanction is applied, ask for the reason in writing and check which level it falls under.

If SEPE says you must repay

Benefit paid without entitlement, for example because of unreported work or income or an error, must be repaid. SEPE sends a resolution stating the amount. You can repay voluntarily, have it deducted from future benefits, or pay in instalments.

To challenge it, file a reclamación previa within 30 days. If you do nothing, repayment is normally due within 30 days, and after that SEPE can collect through the executive route. SEPE can demand repayment for up to 4 years.

Timeline and deadlines

• Renew your jobseeker demand on the dates printed on your card: normally every 3 months

• Tell SEPE about a personal trip abroad of up to 15 calendar days: before you leave, once per year

• Get SEPE's authorisation for a stay abroad of up to 90 days for job search or training: before you leave

• Expect a loss of 3 months of benefit for a first unjustified refusal of a suitable offer or training: after the first refusal

• Expect a loss of 6 months of benefit for a second unjustified refusal: after the second refusal

• Appeal a repayment demand with a reclamación previa: within 30 days of the notice

• Repay the amount SEPE asks for: within the period in the notice, normally 30 days

Documents you need

• The card or document you received when you registered as a jobseeker, which prints your renewal dates. It is issued by your employment office, and you need it to know when to renew, normally every 3 months.

• Your Cl@ve access or a digital certificate, if you want to renew online. Otherwise you can renew by app, phone or in person, depending on your region.

Checklist

• Look for work actively and keep up the personalised itinerary agreed with the employment service.

• Accept a suitable job offer, or give a justified reason such as health or family care.

• Learn the sanction scale: not renewing costs 1 month of benefit first, 3 months second and 6 months third.

What to watch out for

• Refusing a suitable job or training: An unjustified refusal costs you 3 months of benefit the first time and 6 months the second time. A third refusal ends your paro entirely. Before refusing, check whether the offer is suitable. If you have a valid reason, such as health or family care, say so in writing.

• Fraud, hidden work or false statements: Working while receiving paro without telling SEPE, or making false statements, is a very serious infringement. It costs you the benefit for 6 months the first time, ends it for later offences, and you must repay what you received. Report any work or income to SEPE before it starts.

• Missing a renewal: Not renewing your demand cancels it and costs you 1 month of benefit the first time. Later failures are more serious. Put the dates printed on your card in your calendar and renew on time.

Frequently asked questions

Can I travel abroad for a holiday while I receive paro?

Yes, you can travel abroad for up to 15 calendar days per trip for personal reasons, once per year, if you tell SEPE before you leave. The trip must not become a repeated pattern. If you leave without notice or stay longer, your paro is suspended or ends, and payments for the trip period may have to be repaid.

Can I go abroad for more than 15 days to look for work?

Yes, you can stay abroad up to 90 days for job search, professional training or cooperation, but only with SEPE's authorisation before you go.

What happens if I have to repay paro I should not have received?

SEPE sends you a resolution stating the amount, and you normally have 30 days to repay it. You can repay voluntarily, have it deducted from future benefits, or pay in instalments. If you disagree, you can file a reclamación previa (a first written appeal) within 30 days.