What your teleworking agreement (acuerdo de trabajo a distancia) must say

Key rules

• Signing: Remote work is voluntary for both sides, and the written agreement must be signed before it starts.
• Copies: Your employer gives your workers' representatives a copy of the basic elements within 10 days of signing and sends the agreement to the employment office.
• Refusal: Refusing to work remotely is not a ground for dismissal.
• Changes: Any change needs written agreement from both of you before it applies.

The agreement must be in writing and signed first

Remote work is voluntary for both you and your employer. The written agreement must be signed before remote work begins. Without it, you have no agreed terms to rely on.

Your employer cannot dismiss you for refusing to work remotely. You can say no.

If you were already working remotely before the law took effect, the old arrangement was meant to be put in writing. For arrangements under a collective agreement (convenio), the agreement rules applied once that convenio stopped applying, or after one year. The parties could extend that period to a maximum of three years. The deadline for other existing arrangements has passed, so ask your employer for the written agreement now if you do not have one.

What it must say

Check that the agreement covers each of these:

• The equipment, tools and means you need, including consumables and maintenance.
• The expenses you may have, how they are worked out, when they are paid and how.
• Your working hours, any flexible hours and the times you must be available.
• The share of remote and on-site work and how it is split.
• The company workplace you are assigned to.
• The place where you will work remotely.
• The notice periods for going back to on-site work.
• How the company will monitor your work.
• What to do when there are technical problems.
• Instructions on data protection and information security.
• How long the agreement lasts.

If your convenio has rules on expenses, ask your employer which ones apply to you.

Who gets a copy

You must receive your own signed copy. Your employer must give your workers' representatives a copy of the basic elements within 10 days of signing, without personal data that could affect your privacy. Your employer must also send the agreement to the employment office (Oficina de Empleo), as is done with your contract.

Changing the agreement

Your employer cannot change the terms alone. Any change needs both of you to agree in writing, and it must be signed before it is applied. The same copy and notification steps apply to the change: representatives get a copy within 10 days and the employment office is notified.

Going back to on-site work

Going back is possible only if you and your employer agree. This is called reversibility. The agreement, or the convenio, sets the conditions, and the agreement must state the notice periods. This applies whether you were already remote or started from on-site work. Read those notice periods before you sign, because they decide how easily you can return.

The decision, timeline and checklist below walk you through the choices and steps.

Choosing between options

Do you want to go back to on-site work after starting remote work?

• Go back to on-site work: You and your employer both agree, following the conditions and notice periods in your agreement or collective agreement.

• Keep working remotely: One of you does not agree to a return, so the agreement stays as signed until you both agree to change it in writing.

Reversibility works only on the terms you both agreed: the agreement must state the conditions and notice periods, and a return needs agreement from both sides.

Timeline and deadlines

• Put the agreement in writing and sign it: before you start working remotely

• Your employer sends the agreement to the employment office: after signing, in the same way as your contract

• Agree any change to the agreement in writing with your employer: before the change is applied

• Your employer gives the representatives a copy of the change and notifies the employment office: within 10 days of signing the change

• Give notice to go back to on-site work, if you both agree to it: within the notice period your agreement sets

Documents you need

• The written teleworking agreement, signed by you and your employer before remote work starts, with all the minimum terms the law requires.

• Your own copy of the signed agreement, which your employer must give you.

• A copy of the basic elements of the agreement, without personal data that could affect your privacy, which your employer gives to your workers' representatives.

• The agreement as sent by your employer to the employment office (Oficina de Empleo), in the same way as your contract.

Checklist to review your teleworking agreement

Review your agreement before signing

• Make sure the agreement is in writing and that you sign it before you start working remotely.

• Check that it lists the expenses you may have, how they are worked out, when they are paid and how.

• Confirm the share of remote and on-site work and how it is split across the week.

• Check that it names the company workplace you are assigned to and the place where you will work remotely.

• Read how the company will monitor your work and what the procedure is for technical problems.

• Confirm the duration of the agreement.

• Ask for a signed copy to keep.

Frequently asked questions

Can my employer change the agreement later without asking me?

No, any change to the agreement or the working conditions it sets needs the written agreement of both of you, made before it is applied. Your employer then gives your representatives a copy of the change within 10 days and notifies the employment office.

Can I be dismissed for refusing to work remotely?

No, refusing to agree to remote work cannot be a ground for dismissal. Remote work is voluntary for both sides, so you can say no to a proposal and keep your current arrangement.

Can I go back to working on-site after I start remote work?

Yes, a return to on-site work is possible if you and your employer agree to it, under the conditions and notice periods your agreement or collective agreement sets.