How many days of annual leave you get in Spain

Key rules

• Floor: A convenio or contract can improve your leave but never go below the legal minimum.
• Weekends: In a calendar-day count, weekends and holidays inside your leave are leave days, not extra days off.
• Carry-over: Unused leave normally cannot be carried into the next year, except after sick leave or birth-related leave.
• Cash: Your employer cannot pay you instead of giving leave while you work there; unused days are paid when the job ends.

How much leave you get

You get at least 30 calendar days of paid leave a year, or a proportional share if you worked less than a year. Your contract or your convenio can give you more. It can never give you less.

If you start or leave mid-year, the calculator below works out the days you have earned.

How the days are counted

The 30-day minimum counts calendar days. Weekends and public holidays inside your leave are part of the 30. They are not extra days off.

Many convenios count differently. They give a fixed number of working days, often 22. In that case weekends are not counted, and a public holiday on a working day is not deducted. A working-day count must still come to the equivalent of the 30-calendar-day minimum.

The convenio's counting method decides your exact days. Check it, and your contract, before you plan your dates. The FAQ below shows how to find which convenio applies to you.

Taking your leave within the year

Leave must be taken within the calendar year it relates to. You cannot carry unused days over just because you prefer to. Some convenios allow other arrangements, so check yours.

There are exceptions. If you could not take your leave for one of these reasons, you can take it after that leave ends, even if that falls in the next year:

• Sick leave linked to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding.
• Leave for birth, adoption or foster care.

If you missed leave because of ordinary sick leave, you can take it within 18 months from the end of the year it arose. The timeline below sets out these cases.

No money instead of leave

While you are employed, your employer cannot pay you in place of your leave. It is a right to rest, not a payment.

When your contract ends, any leave you earned but did not take must be paid in your final settlement, called the finiquito. Check that line on it.

Timeline and deadlines

How leave is counted and when it must be taken

• Find out how your leave is counted: Before you plan any leave: the minimum is 30 calendar days a year, or a proportional share if you worked less than a year

• Check your convenio for a working-day count: Before you plan any leave: many convenios set 22 working days instead, which must be at least equal to the 30 calendar days

• Take your leave inside the year it relates to: By 31 December of that year; you cannot normally carry days over by choice

Leave days you have earned if you start or leave mid-year

Work it out

What you enter

• Your yearly leave in days (days): Use 30 calendar days, or the figure in your contract or convenio (collective agreement) if it is higher.
• Calendar days you work for the company in the year (days): Count from your start date to 31 December, or from 1 January to your last day. Your contract or payslips show the dates.
• Leave days you have already taken this year (days): Your leave calendar, HR portal or payslips.

Figures used

• Days in a year: 365 days

Worked example (with Your yearly leave in days 30 days, Calendar days you work for the company in the year 200 days, Leave days you have already taken this year 10 days)

When the sum misleads

• If your agreement counts working days (for example 22), enter that number as your yearly leave and keep the result in working days. Do not mix it with calendar days.
• If you have taken more days than you have earned, the result shows 0. Your employer may deduct the extra days from your final pay.
• Part days: some employers round to the nearest day and some round up in your favour. Ask HR which they use.
• If you leave the job, unused earned days are paid in your final settlement.

Quick answers on leave and days off

Do weekends inside my leave count as leave days?

Yes, weekends inside your leave count as leave days when your leave is counted in 30 calendar days. Some convenios count working days instead, such as 22, and then weekends are not counted. Either way, the total must equal at least the 30-calendar-day minimum.

Do public holidays during my leave give me extra days off?

No, public holidays that fall inside your leave are not extra days off, unless your convenio says so. With calendar-day counting they simply count as leave days.

How do I find out which convenio sets my leave days?

Your employment contract and payslip normally name your convenio. If not, ask your employer or your worker representatives. You can also search by sector and province in the official register of collective agreements run by the Ministry of Labour.

How many days off do I get for moving home?

You get 1 paid day off for moving your habitual home, with notice and proof. Tell your employer in advance and keep the rental or registration papers to show it.

Check how your own convenio counts leave days, as the exact number depends on it.