Health and safety when you work from home in Spain

Key rules

• Home access: Your employer needs your consent, after written notice, to enter your home.
• Risk assessment: The assessment covers only the area of your home set aside for work.
• Work accident presumption: An injury during working time in your work area is presumed to be a work accident.
• Refusing a visit: If you refuse a visit, the assessment can be done by questionnaire, photos, video call or self-assessment.

Your employer's safety duties follow you home

If you work remotely under a remote-work agreement, your employer must protect your health and safety just as in the office. They must assess the risks of your job, plan measures to deal with them, and give you information and training.

The assessment has to look at the risks specific to remote work. These include:

• Ergonomic risks: your chair, desk, screen and posture.
• Psychosocial risks: stress, isolation and the feeling of being always on.
• Organisational factors: working hours, availability and your working environment.

Only the work area is assessed

The assessment covers the part of your home set aside for work. It does not cover your whole home. Agree with your employer which space that is, and use it consistently for work.

Your employer cannot walk into your home

Your home is protected. Your employer or their prevention service can visit only if the employer gives you written notice and you consent. You are free to say no.

If you refuse, the assessment can still happen by other means: a questionnaire, photos, a video call or a self-assessment you fill in. Refusing a visit does not mean the assessment is skipped.

When an accident counts as a work accident

An injury during your working time, in your home work area, is presumed to be an accidente de trabajo (work accident). You do not have to prove the link to work. The other side would have to show the accident had nothing to do with your job.

The presumption does not help in these cases:

• The accident happened outside your working hours.
• It happened in a part of the home that is not your work area.
• It came from a purely domestic or personal activity.

If you are hurt, tell your employer promptly and note the time, the place and what you were doing. Keep your working hours clearly recorded, since the time of the accident matters.

Read the warnings and FAQ below for common situations, such as a fall in the kitchen during work hours.

What to watch out for

• Your employer cannot enter your home without your consent: Your home is protected by the constitutional right to inviolability. Your employer or prevention service needs written notice and your consent before visiting. Refusing does not end their duty to assess risks. If you say no, offer another way to do the check: a questionnaire, photos, a video call or a self-assessment.

• No risk assessment means no ergonomic or psychosocial review: Your employer must assess the risks of your remote work, plan preventive measures, and give you information and training. This includes ergonomic, psychosocial and organisational risks. If this is skipped, problems such as a poor setup or long availability can go unaddressed. Ask your employer in writing for the assessment of your home work area and for the training.

• An accident outside your work area or hours may not count as a work accident: An injury during your working time in your home work area is presumed to be a work accident, but one outside work hours or from a purely domestic matter is not. Your employer can also rebut the presumption by showing the accident had no relation to work. Keep to a clear work schedule and a defined work area, and report any injury to your employer promptly.

Frequently asked questions

Can my employer make me let a prevention inspector into my home?

No, your employer cannot make you let anyone into your home, because your home is protected by the constitutional right to inviolability. A visit needs written notice from the employer and your consent. If you refuse, the risk check can be done by a questionnaire, photos, a video call or a self-assessment.

Does the risk assessment cover my whole home?

No, the risk assessment covers only the area of your home set aside for work. It looks at ergonomic, psychosocial and organisational factors, such as working time, availability and the workplace environment.

Is a fall in my kitchen during work hours a work accident?

It is presumed to be a work accident if it happens during your working time and in your home work area. The presumption can be rebutted if your employer shows the accident had no relation to work, for example during a personal activity.