What every employer and worker should know about the 2026 interprofessional salary<\/h2>- The 2026 interprofessional salary<\/strong> in Spain is set at \u20ac1,221 per month over 14 payments<\/strong>, or \u20ac17,094 gross per year<\/strong>, under Royal Decree 126\/2026.<\/li>
- The daily rate is \u20ac40.70; temporary workers under 120 days earn a minimum of \u20ac57.82 per legal working day, and domestic employees paid by the hour receive \u20ac9.55.<\/li>
- The 2026 rate applies retroactively from 1 January, meaning employers who paid January wages at the 2025 rate must settle arrears immediately.<\/li>
- The 3.1% increase over the 2025 figure is exempt from personal income tax (IRPF) at the SMI level, though full social security contributions continue to apply.<\/li>
- Absorption of the increase against existing salary supplements remains permitted under current rules but is under active legislative review.<\/li><\/ul><\/div>
How the 2026 interprofessional salary reshapes payroll obligations across Spain<\/h2>
Every January, Spanish employers wait to see whether the Council of Ministers will lift the statutory wage floor and by how much.<\/p>
For 2026, the answer arrived slightly late.<\/p>
Royal Decree 126\/2026, published in the Bolet\u00edn Oficial del Estado on 19 February 2026, established the 2026 interprofessional salary<\/strong> at \u20ac1,221 per month with retroactive effect from 1 January, closing a brief period of uncertainty that followed the repeal of an interim extension in late January.<\/p>This guide sets out the official 2026 figures, the special rates for temporary and domestic workers, the compliance obligations for employers, and the wider implications for aut\u00f3nomos, digital nomad visa applicants and international businesses operating in Spain.<\/p>
How the 2026 interprofessional salary was set<\/h2>
The government initially extended the 2025 SMI through Royal Decree-Law 16\/2025 in December 2025, but Congress repealed that extension on 27 January 2026.<\/p>
The Directorate-General of Labour issued interpretative guidance on 28 January confirming that no employer could reduce wages below the 2025 floor during the transition, and that the eventual 2026 decree would carry retroactive effect from 1 January.<\/p>
Negotiations at the Social Dialogue table produced the final 3.1% figure, agreed with the principal trade union confederations CCOO and UGT.<\/p>
Union proposals had reached 7.5%, while employer organisations had opened at 1.5%.<\/p>
Since 2018, Spain’s minimum wage has risen from \u20ac735.90 to \u20ac1,221 per month, a cumulative 66% increase and one of the fastest-growing minimum wage frameworks in the European Union.<\/p><\/blockquote>
Official 2026 interprofessional salary rates<\/h2>
The 2026 interprofessional salary<\/strong> is defined under Article 1 of Royal Decree 126\/2026 as follows.<\/p>Monthly gross: \u20ac1,221.00<\/strong> across 14 payments.<\/p>Daily gross: \u20ac40.70<\/strong>.<\/p>Annual gross: \u20ac17,094.00<\/strong>, including two extraordinary payments.<\/p>Only monetary remuneration counts towards the SMI floor, and payment in kind can never reduce the full cash entitlement.<\/p>
Regional context: the interprofessional salary in Valencia<\/h3>
The SMI is a nationally uniform floor, applied identically across all autonomous communities, including the Valencian Community.<\/p>
Sectoral convenios colectivos<\/em> may set higher minimums but never lower ones, and Valencia’s labour market applies the same \u20ac1,221 monthly floor as Madrid, Barcelona or Bilbao.<\/p>The region’s high concentration of seasonal and hourly-paid workers in tourism, agriculture, hospitality and logistics means that the 2026 uplift affects a proportionally larger share of the workforce here than in more services-heavy provinces.<\/p>
Many of these roles are filled by foreign workers in Spain<\/a> whose contracts must respect the new wage floor regardless of nationality, contract type or duration.<\/p>Special worker categories under the 2026 interprofessional salary<\/h2>
Not every worker falls under the standard monthly framework.<\/p>
Two categories receive their own dedicated rates: temporary workers below the 120-day threshold and domestic employees paid by the hour.<\/p>
Temporary and casual workers<\/h3>
Where cumulative services to the same employer do not exceed 120 days, the SMI is calculated on a daily basis at \u20ac57.82 per legal working day<\/strong>.<\/p>This rate already includes the proportional share of Sundays, public holidays and the two extraordinary payments, and it applies equally to temporary and seasonal agricultural workers across the Valencian fruit and horticultural sectors.<\/p>
Domestic employees paid by the hour<\/h3>
Household staff, cleaners, external carers and similar workers receive a dedicated hourly minimum of \u20ac9.55 per hour worked<\/strong>, up from \u20ac0.29 in the 2025 rate.<\/p>Employers of domestic staff must register workers with Social Security under the Special System for Household Employees regardless of the number of hours worked each week.<\/p>
Failure to register carries sanctions under the Law on Infringements and Sanctions in the Social Order (LISOS, Royal Legislative Decree 5\/2000).<\/p>
How the 2026 interprofessional salary reshapes payroll obligations across Spain<\/h2>
Every January, Spanish employers wait to see whether the Council of Ministers will lift the statutory wage floor and by how much.<\/p>
For 2026, the answer arrived slightly late.<\/p>
Royal Decree 126\/2026, published in the Bolet\u00edn Oficial del Estado on 19 February 2026, established the 2026 interprofessional salary<\/strong> at \u20ac1,221 per month with retroactive effect from 1 January, closing a brief period of uncertainty that followed the repeal of an interim extension in late January.<\/p> This guide sets out the official 2026 figures, the special rates for temporary and domestic workers, the compliance obligations for employers, and the wider implications for aut\u00f3nomos, digital nomad visa applicants and international businesses operating in Spain.<\/p> The government initially extended the 2025 SMI through Royal Decree-Law 16\/2025 in December 2025, but Congress repealed that extension on 27 January 2026.<\/p> The Directorate-General of Labour issued interpretative guidance on 28 January confirming that no employer could reduce wages below the 2025 floor during the transition, and that the eventual 2026 decree would carry retroactive effect from 1 January.<\/p> Negotiations at the Social Dialogue table produced the final 3.1% figure, agreed with the principal trade union confederations CCOO and UGT.<\/p> Union proposals had reached 7.5%, while employer organisations had opened at 1.5%.<\/p> Since 2018, Spain’s minimum wage has risen from \u20ac735.90 to \u20ac1,221 per month, a cumulative 66% increase and one of the fastest-growing minimum wage frameworks in the European Union.<\/p><\/blockquote> The 2026 interprofessional salary<\/strong> is defined under Article 1 of Royal Decree 126\/2026 as follows.<\/p> Monthly gross: \u20ac1,221.00<\/strong> across 14 payments.<\/p> Daily gross: \u20ac40.70<\/strong>.<\/p> Annual gross: \u20ac17,094.00<\/strong>, including two extraordinary payments.<\/p> Only monetary remuneration counts towards the SMI floor, and payment in kind can never reduce the full cash entitlement.<\/p> The SMI is a nationally uniform floor, applied identically across all autonomous communities, including the Valencian Community.<\/p> Sectoral convenios colectivos<\/em> may set higher minimums but never lower ones, and Valencia’s labour market applies the same \u20ac1,221 monthly floor as Madrid, Barcelona or Bilbao.<\/p> The region’s high concentration of seasonal and hourly-paid workers in tourism, agriculture, hospitality and logistics means that the 2026 uplift affects a proportionally larger share of the workforce here than in more services-heavy provinces.<\/p> Many of these roles are filled by foreign workers in Spain<\/a> whose contracts must respect the new wage floor regardless of nationality, contract type or duration.<\/p> Not every worker falls under the standard monthly framework.<\/p> Two categories receive their own dedicated rates: temporary workers below the 120-day threshold and domestic employees paid by the hour.<\/p> Where cumulative services to the same employer do not exceed 120 days, the SMI is calculated on a daily basis at \u20ac57.82 per legal working day<\/strong>.<\/p> This rate already includes the proportional share of Sundays, public holidays and the two extraordinary payments, and it applies equally to temporary and seasonal agricultural workers across the Valencian fruit and horticultural sectors.<\/p> Household staff, cleaners, external carers and similar workers receive a dedicated hourly minimum of \u20ac9.55 per hour worked<\/strong>, up from \u20ac0.29 in the 2025 rate.<\/p> Employers of domestic staff must register workers with Social Security under the Special System for Household Employees regardless of the number of hours worked each week.<\/p> Failure to register carries sanctions under the Law on Infringements and Sanctions in the Social Order (LISOS, Royal Legislative Decree 5\/2000).<\/p>How the 2026 interprofessional salary was set<\/h2>
Official 2026 interprofessional salary rates<\/h2>
Regional context: the interprofessional salary in Valencia<\/h3>
Special worker categories under the 2026 interprofessional salary<\/h2>
Temporary and casual workers<\/h3>
Domestic employees paid by the hour<\/h3>
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