Working in Spain day to day: office hours, lunch and holidays

The author worked in Spain, and this guide sticks to the part that surprises Americans most once the visa is sorted: how the working week itself is organized. In the US, much of this depends on the employer's handbook. In Spain, a large share of it is set by law in the Workers' Statute (Estatuto de los Trabajadores), then filled in by your sector's collective agreement (convenio colectivo) and your own contract. Knowing which layer decides what saves a lot of confusion in the first months.

Three layers: law, collective agreement, contract

1. The Workers' Statute sets national minimums and maximums: weekly hours, rest between shifts, vacation, public holidays, trial periods and pay slips.
2. The collective agreement for your sector or company adds detail: your actual weekly hours, salary scales, the number and timing of extra payments, notice periods and often the schedule pattern.
3. Your contract sets your role, salary and anything agreed individually, within the limits of the two layers above.

Ask HR on day one which convenio applies to you and get a copy. Many of the answers to "is this normal?" are in it.

Working hours

Article 34 of the Workers' Statute sets the core rules:

• Working hours are those agreed in the collective agreement or contract.
• The maximum ordinary working week is 40 hours of actual work, averaged over the year.
• Ordinary hours may not exceed nine a day, unless the collective agreement or a company agreement sets another distribution, always respecting the rest between working days.
• There must be at least 12 hours between the end of one working day and the start of the next.
• Without an agreement, the company may distribute 10% of annual hours irregularly through the year, giving you at least five days' notice of the resulting day and time.

### Breaks and lunch

The law does not fix a lunch hour. What it does say: when a continuous working day lasts more than six hours, there must be a break of at least 15 minutes. Whether that break counts as working time depends on your collective agreement or contract.

So the shape of your day, whether a continuous schedule or a day split by a longer midday break, comes from your agreement, your contract and the company's work calendar. Article 34 also requires the company to draw up an annual work calendar and post a copy in a visible place in each workplace. Look for it; it tells you the year's schedule and holidays.

### Clocking in

Article 34.9 requires every employer to keep a daily record of working hours, including the exact start and end time for each worker. Records are kept for four years and are available to workers, their representatives and the Labor Inspectorate. This applies to office jobs too, so expect a time-recording system from your first day.

### Flexibility for family life

Article 34.8 gives workers the right to request adaptations to the length and distribution of their working day, the organization of working time and the way they work, including remote work, to balance family and working life. The request must be reasonable and proportionate to both your needs and the company's.

### The right to disconnect

Article 20 bis recognizes workers' rights to privacy in the use of digital devices provided by the employer and to digital disconnection. The details are set by Spain's data protection and digital rights legislation, which the article refers to.

Weekly rest

Article 37 gives a minimum weekly rest of a day and a half without interruption, which can be accumulated over periods of up to 14 days. As a general rule it covers Saturday afternoon or Monday morning plus all of Sunday.

Vacation: 30 calendar days minimum

Article 38 sets paid annual vacation at whatever the collective agreement or contract says, but never less than 30 calendar days, and it cannot be replaced by cash. The dates are agreed between you and the employer, following any vacation planning rules in the collective agreement. The company sets a vacation calendar, and you must know your dates at least two months in advance.

If you fall ill during your planned vacation, the law lets you take those days later, within limits set out in article 38.

Public holidays

Article 37.2 caps paid public holidays at 14 a year, two of which are local. National holidays that must always be respected are Christmas Day, New Year's Day, 1 May (Labor Day) and 12 October (Spain's National Day). Regions can substitute some national holidays with their own traditional ones.

Each year the Directorate General of Labor publishes the holiday list in the BOE. The resolution of 17 October 2025 sets 2026. The national holidays observed in every region in 2026 are:

• 1 January, New Year's Day
• 3 April, Good Friday
• 1 May, Labor Day
• 15 August, Assumption
• 12 October, National Day of Spain
• 8 December, Immaculate Conception
• 25 December, Christmas Day

Others vary by region: 6 January (Epiphany), Holy Thursday on 2 April, 2 November (the day after All Saints, which falls on a Sunday in 2026), 7 December (the Monday after Constitution Day) and regional days such as 11 September in Catalonia. On top of these come up to two local holidays set by each town and published in the regional or provincial gazette.

The government's general access portal lists the national calendar for each year, and the 2027 calendar was already published in October 2026. Check your region and town before planning trips.

Pay

• Article 29 says pay periods for regular salary cannot exceed one month, and you receive an individual pay slip (recibo de salario) documenting each payment. You can ask for advances on work already done.
• Article 31 gives a right to two extra payments a year, one at Christmas and the other in a month set by collective agreement. The agreement may instead spread them across the 12 monthly payments. When comparing offers, check whether a salary is quoted in 12 or 14 payments.

Trial periods and resigning

• Article 14 allows a written trial period. Without a collective agreement rule, it may not exceed six months for qualified technicians and two months for other workers (three months in companies with fewer than 25 workers).
• If you resign, article 49 requires the notice set by your collective agreement or local custom.

First steps as a new employee

The Spanish consulate's employee visa page notes that once in Spain you must register with Social Security before starting work, and apply for your foreigner identity card within one month of that registration.

A short checklist:

1. Get a copy of your collective agreement.
2. Find the work calendar posted in your workplace.
3. Check your 2026 regional and local holidays.
4. Agree vacation dates early, with the two-month notice rule in mind.
5. Confirm whether your salary is paid in 12 or 14 installments.

Common questions

How many hours a week can I be asked to work in Spain? The Workers' Statute sets a maximum ordinary working week of 40 hours of actual work, averaged over the year, and normally no more than nine ordinary hours a day.

How much vacation do employees get in Spain? At least 30 calendar days of paid vacation a year under article 38 of the Workers' Statute, with dates known at least two months in advance.

How many public holidays are there in Spain? Up to 14 paid public holidays a year, two of them local. The national list for each year is published in the BOE; for 2026 it is the Directorate General of Labor resolution of 17 October 2025.

Do I get a lunch break by law? The law requires a break of at least 15 minutes when a continuous working day exceeds six hours. The length and timing of a lunch break come from your collective agreement, contract and company calendar.