Paid leave in Spain 2026: table of article 37 of the Workers’ Statute after RDL 5/2023
Paid leave is the absence that causes the most arguments in an SME: how many days for a parent’s hospitalisation, whether the leave starts on the day of the event or the next, whether a registered partner counts as a spouse, whether going to the doctor is paid. The reform by Royal Decree-Law 5/2023 changed several of these entitlements and created new ones, and since then many circulating tables remain out of date. This is the full table of article 37 of Spain’s Workers’ Statute in force as of 16 September 2026, with its conditions, what the collective agreement improves and how to record each leave so that payroll and the working-time record match.
Table of paid leave under article 37.3 of the Workers’ Statute
| Leave | Duration | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Marriage or registration as a domestic partnership | 15 calendar days | Since RDL 5/2023 it includes registration as a domestic partner |
| Serious accident or illness, hospitalisation or surgery without hospitalisation requiring home rest | 5 days | Of the spouse, domestic partner or relatives up to the second degree by blood or marriage, including blood relatives of the domestic partner, and of any other person living in the same household who requires the worker’s effective care |
| Bereavement | 2 days, 4 if travel is required | Of the spouse, domestic partner or relatives up to the second degree by blood or marriage |
| Moving habitual residence | 1 day | No further conditions |
| Unavoidable public and personal duty | The time strictly necessary | Includes voting; if it exceeds 20 % of working hours over three months, the company may place the worker on leave of absence |
| Trade union or representative functions | As set by law and agreement | Under the terms legally or conventionally established |
| Prenatal examinations and childbirth preparation; information and preparation sessions and reports for adoption, guardianship or fostering | The time strictly necessary | When they must take place during working hours |
And outside paragraph 3, but also in article 37:
| Leave | Duration | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Family force majeure (art. 37.9) | Up to 4 days a year, paid according to agreement | For urgent family reasons involving relatives or household members in case of illness or accident that make the worker’s immediate presence indispensable; may be taken by the hour |
| Care of a nursing child (art. 37.4) | 1 hour of absence a day, divisible into two, or a half-hour reduction, until 9 months; may be accumulated into full days according to agreement | Individual right of both parents; extendable to 12 months with proportional salary reduction if both exercise it for the same duration |
| Premature birth or hospitalisation of the newborn (art. 37.5) | 1 hour of paid absence a day; in addition, a reduction of up to 2 hours with salary reduction | While the hospitalisation after birth lasts |
Leave under paragraph 3 is taken with pay, with prior notice and justification. Unless the agreement says otherwise, it is counted in calendar days where the rule speaks of calendar days (marriage) and in working days in the other cases according to consolidated case law, and starts counting on the first working day if the triggering event occurs on a non-working day.
What is not paid leave
- The worker’s own medical appointments: the Statute does not recognise them as general paid leave. It depends on the agreement, which often sets a number of hours a year or requires a certificate; if it says nothing, it is time to be made up or deducted, unless agreed otherwise. We explain it in medical absences in the SME.
- Reduced hours for legal guardianship (art. 37.6): until the child turns 12, or to care for people with disabilities or relatives up to the second degree who cannot look after themselves, between one eighth and half of the working day, with proportional salary reduction. It is a right, not paid leave.
- Adaptation of working hours (art. 37.8): the right to request changes in the duration and distribution of working time or the way of working, including remote work, with good-faith negotiation for a maximum of fifteen days. Not leave either.
- Personal days or discretionary days: they only exist if the agreement or the company grants them.
- Sick leave: it is temporary incapacity, with its own benefit regime.
What the collective agreement may improve
Article 37 sets minimums. Collective agreements frequently improve the duration (more days for hospitalisation), extend the persons covered (third-degree relatives, household members), set when the leave starts counting, recognise leave the law does not contemplate (own medical appointments, accompanying relatives to the doctor, personal days) and regulate taking it by the hour. Before applying the legal table you must read the agreement: it is what the Inspectorate and the court will apply.
How to record leave without errors
- Types in the system that distinguish each legal leave and each agreement improvement, because the treatment in payroll and in the working-time record differs.
- Request with prior notice from the worker via the app, with the triggering event and dates, and manager approval.
- Certificate attached within the period set by the agreement: hospitalisation certificate, family record book or domestic partnership certificate, proof of the public duty. No diagnosis: the company neither needs it nor may ask for it.
- Correct counting: calendar or working days depending on the leave and the agreement, start on the first working day when the event occurs on a holiday, and hours for leave taken by the hour.
- Reflection in the working-time record as paid absence of the corresponding type, not as time worked or as a gap.
- Communication to payroll: paid leave does not deduct salary; reduced hours for guardianship does, proportionally; nursing-care leave accumulated into full days is paid.
- History: each leave with its request, certificate, approval and dates, to answer the Inspectorate or a claim.
How LapsoWork solves it
The leave and absence module lets you set up each type of leave with its duration, its unit (calendar days, working days or hours) and whether it is paid, according to the Statute and your agreement; the employee requests it from the app attaching the certificate, the manager approves it with automatic notification, the team calendar shows the absence and time tracking reflects it as paid absence. At month end, the absence report by person and type goes to the accountant or the payroll program. All included in the Basic plan at €2 per employee per month, as you can see on our pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
How many days of leave for hospitalisation of a relative in 2026?
Five days, under article 37.3.b) of the Workers’ Statute after Royal Decree-Law 5/2023, for serious accident or illness, hospitalisation or surgery without hospitalisation requiring home rest of the spouse, domestic partner or relatives up to the second degree, including blood relatives of the domestic partner, and of any person living with the worker who requires their care. The agreement may improve it.
Does a domestic partnership give the same leave as marriage?
Yes, since RDL 5/2023: registration of the domestic partnership gives the 15 calendar days of marriage leave, and the domestic partner is equated with the spouse for leave for hospitalisation, serious illness and bereavement, including their blood relatives.
Is going to the doctor paid leave?
Not in general under the Workers’ Statute. It depends on the collective agreement, which often grants a number of hours a year with a certificate; if it does not regulate it, it is time to be made up or deducted, unless agreed with the company. Prenatal examinations and childbirth preparation are paid leave.
What is family force majeure leave?
That of article 37.9 of the Statute: up to four days a year, paid according to agreement, for urgent family reasons involving relatives or household members in case of illness or accident that make the worker’s immediate presence indispensable. It may be taken by the hour.
Is paid leave counted in calendar or working days?
Marriage leave is set in calendar days. For the others, the consolidated interpretation of the courts is that they are counted in working days and start counting on the first working day if the triggering event occurs on a non-working day, unless the agreement sets another rule.
Conclusion
Paid leave under article 37 of the Statute is limited and defined, but RDL 5/2023 changed its durations and persons covered, and the agreement usually improves it. Having the current table, reading the agreement and recording each leave with its type, certificate and counting avoids most disputes and leaves the evidence ready for the Inspectorate. If you want that table to live in your employees’ app, try LapsoWork free for 30 days.