If you work in Spain, you're entitled to a minimum amount of paid holiday every year, regardless of your contract type (permanent, temporary, part-time). Here's what matters: how many days that is, how it's calculated if you don't work the full year, and what happens if you fall ill.
How many holiday days you're entitled to by law
The Workers' Statute sets a minimum of 30 calendar days a year, which in practice usually works out to around 22 working days, since weekends are excluded. Many collective agreements improve on this minimum, so it's worth checking yours — agreements with 23, 24 or more working days aren't unusual.
If you don't work the full year
If you start or leave a job partway through the year, holidays are calculated proportionally to the time worked. For example, if you work 6 of the 12 months, you're entitled to roughly 15 calendar days (half the legal minimum), or whatever your agreement sets.
When you can take your holidays
The dates are agreed between employer and employee, usually following the collective agreement or company practice. You must be told the dates at least two months before they start. If there's disagreement over dates, either party can take it to the labour courts, which handle these cases on a priority, expedited basis.
What happens if you get sick during your holidays
If you go on sick leave before your holidays start, you're entitled to take them at another time, even after the calendar year ends, as long as no more than 18 months have passed since the end of the year they were earned. If you fall ill during holidays already underway, Spanish law doesn't automatically grant the right to reschedule those days, unless the collective agreement says otherwise — worth checking.
Can holidays be paid out instead of taken?
No, unless the contract ends before holidays already earned have been taken. In that case, the employer must pay the proportional value of untaken holidays in the final settlement. While the contract is active, holidays can't be "sold" or accumulated indefinitely — they must be taken within the calendar year or, at most, within the first 18 months of the following year if sick leave was involved.
A note if you're coming from abroad
If you're used to fewer legally guaranteed holiday days, the 22-23 working days typical in Spain are among the more favourable conditions in the European labour market. Always check your specific collective agreement, since it can meaningfully improve on this legal minimum.