Qualifying period for Spanish sick pay
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Choose the cause and enter the days contributed in the last five years: you will see whether you qualify for the benefit or how many days you lack.
Do you meet the minimum contributions?
30 days short
180 days within the 5 years before the leave (LGSS art. 172.a).
| Days required | 180 |
| Without the minimum | no benefit, though the sick note is valid |
Days from extra payments count as contributed in your work history; check your work-history report.
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · Rules and agreements read in the BOE on 29 October 2026
To be paid for sick leave caused by an ordinary illness, you need at least 180 days of contributions within the 5 years before the leave starts: this is the qualifying period. The days need not be in a row or from the same job. If you have 150 days, you are 30 short and get no benefit, although the leave itself is valid and covers your absence from work. For a work accident, a non-work accident or occupational disease, no contribution days are required: being registered is enough. Nor are any required for disabling menstruation, pregnancy termination or loss, organ donation and, from 1 December 2026, menopausal disorders and gender violence. Leave from week 39 of pregnancy has its own age-based rule.
The general rule
Article 172 of the General Social Security Act requires 180 days contributed in the 5 years immediately before the qualifying event, which for sick leave is the date of the note. Days are counted back from that date, adding up every job and any periods on contributory unemployment benefit. A part-time contract counts its registered days, under the special counting rules for part-time work.
The simplest way to know how many days you have is the work history report (informe de vida laboral), which Social Security issues free of charge: add up the registered days of each period falling within the last five years counted from the date of the leave. If the total is over 180, there is no need to be more precise. If you are close, check periods on contributory unemployment benefit and short contracts, which are often forgotten. Paid holiday not taken when a contract ends also shows up as registered days.
| Cause or situation | Days required |
|---|---|
| Ordinary illness | 180 in 5 years |
| Non-work accident | None |
| Work accident or occupational disease | None |
| Disabling menstruation, pregnancy termination or loss, donation | None |
| Menopausal disorder and gender violence (from 1 December 2026) | None |
| Pregnancy from week 39 | Depends on age |
Week 39 of pregnancy
Leave from week 39 does not use the 180 days in 5 years but the age scale of birth leave. Under 21 nothing is required: the calculator confirms it. From 21 to 26, 90 days in the previous 7 years or 180 over a lifetime: with 60 and 200 days, the rule is met. From 26, 180 days in 7 years or 360 over a lifetime: with 120 and 300 days, 60 days are missing in the 7-year window. Royal Decree-law 31/2026 keeps this rule; dates and amounts are in week 39 leave.
Do you have enough days?
Do you meet the minimum contributions?
30 days short
| Days required | 180 |
| Without the minimum | no benefit, though the sick note is valid |
If you fall short
Without the qualifying period, the leave pays no benefit but is still a justified absence. If the issue is that you started work recently, each month registered adds about 30 days and the period is usually reached around the sixth month. If you are on unemployment benefit when you fall ill, different rules apply: see sick leave while unemployed. And if the leave comes from an accident, even one outside work, see non-work accidents: no contribution days are needed.