Penalties for failing to comply with time tracking in 2026: current table and what the new Royal Decree proposes
The penalties for failing to comply with time tracking in Spain are today those set by the Law on Infringements and Penalties in the Social Order (LISOS): not recording working time is a serious infringement that the Labour Inspectorate fines with between €751 and €7,500, almost always accompanied by a claim for unpaid overtime. The Royal Decree on the digital working-time record the Government is processing proposes changing that scheme and penalising per affected worker, with up to €10,000, but as of 15 September 2026 it has still not been published in the BOE. In this article we separate what is in force from what is proposed, give the full table of amounts, explain what the Inspectorate checks when it visits an SME and how to avoid a report.
Legal framework: what is in force and what is being processed
- Article 34.9 of the Workers’ Statute (Royal Decree-Law 8/2019): the obligation to record every day each worker’s working time, keep the records for four years and make them available to workers, their representatives and the Inspectorate. In force since 12 May 2019.
- LISOS, article 7.5: classifies breaches of the working-time record rules as a serious infringement; article 40 sets the amounts, updated by Royal Decree 306/2024 with effect from 1 May 2024.
- Law 10/2021 on remote work: specific obligations for teleworking, also penalised under the LISOS.
- Royal Decree on the digital working-time record: being processed. It will require an exclusively digital, tamper-proof record accessible remotely by the Inspectorate, and proposes penalties per worker. The Council of State issued an unfavourable opinion on 23 March 2026 and the Ministry of Labour announced on 9 September that it would approve it “immediately”, without a date. We explain its content in the new digital clock-in law: where it stands.
Current penalty table for the working-time record
No record, an incomplete record or an unreliable record are a serious infringement. The Inspectorate grades the penalty according to criteria such as the number of workers affected, repeat offending, intent or the harm caused.
| Infringement | Grade | Amount | Common scenario |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serious (art. 7.5 LISOS) | Minimum | €751 – €1,500 | Incomplete record or occasional failures for a few workers |
| Serious | Medium | €1,501 – €3,750 | Existing system but unreliable or with repeated failures |
| Serious | Maximum | €3,751 – €7,500 | No record for all or most of the workforce |
Very serious infringements under the LISOS (for example, obstructing the Inspectorate or certain Social Security conduct) carry amounts of €7,501 to €30,000 at minimum grade, €30,001 to €120,005 at medium grade and €120,006 to €225,018 at maximum grade. Not recording working time is not, in itself, a very serious infringement.
What does multiply the cost is what usually accompanies the report:
- Unrecorded, unpaid overtime: the Inspectorate estimates it, the company must pay it with its contributions and, if it exceeds the legal limit, there is an additional serious infringement.
- One report for each unmet obligation detected during the visit: working-time record, remote-work agreement, work calendar not displayed, and so on.
- The worker’s employment claim, which with a record against the company or no record at all usually succeeds.
What the Royal Decree proposes: penalties per worker
The text being processed changes the logic from “one fine per company” to “one fine per worker whose record does not comply”, with amounts of up to €10,000 per worker. Under that rule, an SME with 30 employees clocking in on paper could in theory face a maximum far above the current table. It is the change that has been publicised most and also the one the Council of State questioned, together with the entry-into-force period of only twenty days. Until it is published in the BOE, it does not apply: reports are issued under the LISOS table.
Other penalties the Inspectorate cross-checks with time tracking
Whistleblowing channel (Law 2/2023), companies with 50 or more employees
| Infringement (legal entities) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Very serious: no internal reporting system, reprisals against the informant or breach of confidentiality | €600,001 – €1,000,000 |
| Serious | €100,001 – €600,000 |
| Minor | €1,001 – €100,000 |
The competent authority is the Independent Whistleblower Protection Authority, which may also impose a public reprimand and a ban on subsidies for up to four years. See the detail in penalties for not having a whistleblowing channel.
Remote work (Law 10/2021)
| Infringement | Amount |
|---|---|
| No written remote-work agreement | €751 – €7,500 (serious) |
| Failure to compensate remote-work expenses | €751 – €7,500 (serious) |
| Failure to guarantee the right to digital disconnection | €751 – €7,500 (serious) |
We explain the obligations in remote work in Spain: legal obligations.
What the Inspectorate checks when it visits an SME
- The records of a sample of workers for the latest period: that there is a record for every working day, that it matches the contractual hours and that there are no inconsistencies.
- The reliability of the medium: whether the record can be edited without a trace, whether corrections are traceable and whether it is kept for four years. An editable record with no trace is not considered reliable.
- The cross-check with payroll: hours recorded versus hours paid. Differences are unpaid overtime.
- Interviews with workers: whether they clock in every day, whether they have been asked to sign “blank” or corrected records, whether they work hours they are not paid for. Their statements carry weight.
- The other obligations seen in the same visit: work calendar displayed, remote-work agreements, whistleblowing channel if there are 50 or more employees.
How to avoid the report
- A digital record with traceability, even though the Royal Decree is not published: it is what the Inspectorate considers reliable and what will save you switching systems against a deadline.
- Brief training for line managers: many reports stem from a supervisor asking staff to clock in “in bulk” or correct by hand.
- A written internal policy the employee knows on joining: how to clock in, what to do if they forget, how to request corrections, how overtime is compensated.
- Periodic review of a sample of employees’ records to spot gaps and deviations before the Inspectorate does.
- Respond to the requirement: many visits end in a requirement with a deadline to remedy, not in a penalty. Remedying on time and with evidence reduces or avoids the report.
Frequently asked questions
What is the fine for not keeping a working-time record?
Today it is a serious infringement under article 7.5 of the LISOS, fined between €751 and €7,500 depending on the grade (minimum, medium or maximum), with the amounts updated by Royal Decree 306/2024. Payment of unrecorded overtime is usually added to the fine. The penalty of up to €10,000 per worker is a proposal in the digital working-time record Royal Decree, still unpublished.
Is the fine per company or per worker?
Under current rules, the penalty is per infringement, graded according to the number of workers affected among other criteria, and the Inspectorate may issue one report per unmet obligation. The Royal Decree being processed proposes penalising each worker whose record does not comply, but that rule is not in force.
Can I argue that I am a small SME and did not know?
Ignorance is no defence: the obligation to record working time has been in force since May 2019 and is the same for every company. Good faith and prompt remedy can lead to a requirement instead of a penalty, or to the minimum grade.
How long until a working-time record infringement is time-barred?
Employment infringements are time-barred three years after the date of the infringement, under article 4 of the LISOS. The obligation to keep working-time records lasts four years.
What if the Inspectorate comes because an employee complained?
It is a frequent origin of visits. If the record does not exist or is unreliable, the worker’s overtime claim is added to the administrative penalty, and with the record against the company it usually succeeds. A digital record with traceability is the best defence on both fronts.
Conclusion
Failing to comply with time tracking costs today between €751 and €7,500 per serious infringement, plus the overtime the Inspectorate estimates and the reports for the other obligations it reviews in the same visit. The digital working-time record Royal Decree proposes penalties per worker of up to €10,000, but it remains unpublished. Complying costs €720 a year for 30 employees with LapsoWork’s Basic plan, and leaves the record ready for whatever text comes. To have it in 48 hours, try LapsoWork free for 30 days; to compare first, see our price table of time tracking software for 30 employees.