Minimum wage (SMI) 2026: Real Decreto 126/2026 and the new amounts

Updated on 27 September 2026. The amounts set by Real Decreto 126/2026 remain in force until 31 December 2026, and the 2027 minimum wage has not yet been approved. We have corrected the approval date and added part-time work, domestic work, contracts of up to 120 days, income tax, garnishment and how to claim if you are not paid it.

On 17 February 2026 the Council of Ministers approved Real Decreto 126/2026, de 18 de febrero (Royal Decree 126/2026 of 18 February), which sets the national minimum wage (salario mínimo interprofesional, SMI) for 2026. It was published in the Official State Gazette (Boletín Oficial del Estado, BOE) on 19 February (BOE-A-2026-3815), came into force on 20 February and applies with effect from 1 January to 31 December 2026. The increase is 3.1% on 2025: the monthly minimum wage rises from 1,184 to 1,221 euros gross, paid 14 times a year.

How much is the SMI in 2026?

These are gross amounts, from which your Social Security contributions are deducted, and they refer to the full statutory working day in each activity.

According to its preamble, the figure follows the report submitted on 12 December 2025 by the Comisión Asesora para el Análisis del SMI (Advisory Committee on the Minimum Wage) and the aim of bringing the SMI to 60% of the average wage, in line with the European Social Charter. The Government sets it every year after consulting the most representative trade unions and employers' organisations (art. 27.1 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores (Workers' Statute), ET).

How it applies to your contract

Full-time work and extra payments

The minimum is guaranteed on an annual basis: 17,094 euros, usually paid as 12 monthly salaries of 1,221 euros plus two extra payments (pagas extraordinarias). If your employer spreads the extra payments over the year, no monthly payslip can be lower than 1,424.50 euros.

Part-time work

If you work fewer hours than a full-time worker, the SMI is paid pro rata (art. 1 of Real Decreto 126/2026). For example, with a contract of 20 hours a week against a full-time week of 40 hours, the minimum is 610.50 euros a month over 14 payments, that is, 8,547 euros a year.

Contracts of up to 120 days

If you have a fixed-term contract (contrato de duración determinada) and your work for the same employer does not exceed 120 days, which is the usual situation of seasonal workers, you receive the SMI plus the proportional share of Sundays, public holidays and two extra payments of 30 days each, with a floor of 57.82 euros per statutory working day (art. 4.1). Holidays are paid separately, pro rata, when you cannot take them while the contract lasts. This rule does not apply to intermittent permanent workers (fijos discontinuos), because their contract is open-ended.

Domestic work

• If you work by the hour and live out, the minimum is 9.55 euros per hour actually worked. That amount already includes extra payments and holidays, and it must be paid entirely in money (arts. 4.2 and 4.3 of the royal decree and art. 8.5 of Real Decreto 1620/2011 (Royal Decree 1620/2011 on domestic employment)).
• If you work full time or live in, the monthly SMI applies (1,221 euros over 14 payments), pro rata if you work shorter hours. The parties may agree a deduction for board and lodging, capped at 30% of total pay and always guaranteeing that at least the SMI is paid in cash (art. 8.2 of Real Decreto 1620/2011).

What does not count towards the minimum

• Pay in kind can never reduce the cash amount of the SMI (art. 1 of the royal decree and art. 26.1 ET).
• Subsistence allowances, travel expenses and other reimbursements or compensation payments are not salary (art. 26.2 ET), so they cannot be used to reach the minimum.

Offsetting and absorption: why the rise is sometimes not noticeable

The salary supplements set by your collective agreement or contract are added to the SMI, which serves as the basis for calculating them where they so provide (art. 2 of the royal decree). But the rise does not affect the structure or amount of your pay if, taken as a whole and on an annual basis, you already earn more than the minimum (art. 27.1 ET). Art. 3 of the royal decree compares what you receive for all items, on an annual basis and for full-time work, with the SMI plus those supplements, and that comparison figure never falls below 17,094 euros.

In practice:

• If your total annual pay for full-time work exceeds that comparison figure (at least 17,094 euros), your employer does not have to give you a rise even if your basic salary is below 1,221 euros: it can absorb the increase with other salary supplements (compensación y absorción).
• If you fall short, your employer must raise your pay by whatever is needed to reach the minimum (art. 3.3).
• Check your collective agreement (convenio colectivo): some declare certain supplements non-offsettable and non-absorbable.

When it approved the 2026 SMI, the Government explained that its agreement with the CCOO and UGT trade unions includes working on specific rules so that the rise is not cancelled out by offsetting or absorbing certain supplements. As at 27 September 2026, no such rule has been published in the BOE, and art. 27 ET has not changed. According to press reports, its approval has been postponed to 2027.

Regional rules and private contracts that use the SMI

The royal decree's sole transitional provision (disposición transitoria única) prevents the rise from automatically feeding through to other areas. Regional and local rules that use the SMI as an income benchmark for public benefits or services, and private contracts in force on 20 February 2026 that use it as a reference, continue to apply the 2025 amount (1,184 euros a month) during 2026, unless the rule or the parties provide otherwise.

This does not extend to wages: if your contract sets pay that, on an annual basis, is below the 2026 SMI, it must be raised to reach it.

The SMI and income tax: the 590.89-euro deduction

As a general rule, if the SMI is your only income, you end up paying no personal income tax (IRPF) thanks to the deduction for earned income (deducción por obtención de rendimientos del trabajo, additional provision 61 of the IRPF Act, as worded by Real Decreto-ley 5/2026 (Royal Decree-Law 5/2026), with effect from 1 January 2026):

• It amounts to 590.89 euros if your gross employment income does not exceed 17,094 euros.
• Between 17,094 and 20,048.45 euros it tapers: 590.89 euros minus 20% of the amount above 17,094. With 18,000 euros, for example, it would be 409.69 euros.
• You cannot have other non-exempt income of more than 6,500 euros, and the deduction cannot exceed the share of the tax due that relates to that employment income.

The deduction is applied in your annual income tax return, not in your payslip. Depending on your family situation, your employer may withhold a small amount: for example, if you have no children and no dependent spouse, the threshold below which no tax is withheld is 15,876 euros a year (art. 81 of the IRPF Regulations). In that case, filing a return lets you recover what was withheld, even if you are not required to file.

Other effects of the SMI: contributions, garnishment and FOGASA

• Contributions: in 2026 the minimum contribution base in the General Scheme (Régimen General) for contribution groups 4 to 7 is 1,424.40 euros a month (Orden PJC/297/2026, de 30 de marzo, the 2026 Social Security contributions order).
• Garnishment: the SMI cannot be garnished (art. 27.2 ET and art. 607 of the Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil (Civil Procedure Act), LEC). In 2026 the protected amount is 1,221 euros in an ordinary month, 2,442 euros (twice the SMI) in a month in which you receive an extra payment and 1,424.50 euros (the annual SMI divided by 12) if your extra payments are spread over the year, as art. 27.2 ET expressly provides (as amended by Ley 3/2023, de 28 de febrero, de Empleo (Employment Act)). A sliding scale applies to the excess, calculated on your net pay, starting at 30% (up to twice the SMI) and rising to 90%. With net pay of 1,600 euros in a month without an extra payment, the maximum garnishment would be 113.70 euros. Exception: these limits do not apply where the garnishment is to pay maintenance (pensión de alimentos, for example for your children or your spouse) set by a judgment, or by the decree or notarial deed recording the separation or divorce agreement (convenio regulador), nor to pay spousal support (pensión compensatoria) where the recipient asks for it and proves financial need (art. 608 LEC, as worded by Ley Orgánica 1/2025, in force since 3 April 2025). In those cases the court sets the amount that can be garnished, which may take part of the SMI.
• FOGASA: if your employer is insolvent, the Fondo de Garantía Salarial (Wage Guarantee Fund) pays outstanding wages up to a daily cap of twice the SMI including the proportional share of extra payments (about 93.67 euros in 2026), for a maximum of 120 days (art. 33 ET).

What to do if you are paid less than the SMI

1. Check your payslips: add up your gross annual pay, excluding allowances and reimbursements, and compare it with 17,094 euros (or the pro rata amount if you work part time). Also check that you were paid the difference for January and February 2026: the rise took effect from 1 January.
2. Claim it in writing from your employer, directly or through the workers' representatives.
3. File a request for conciliation (papeleta de conciliación) with the competent mediation service (in Madrid, the Servicio de Mediación, Arbitraje y Conciliación (SMAC, the regional conciliation service)). It is mandatory before you bring a claim (art. 63 of Ley 36/2011, reguladora de la jurisdicción social (Labour Jurisdiction Act), LRJS), except in the payment-order procedure in step 5, and it interrupts the limitation period (art. 65 LRJS). The medios adecuados de solución de controversias (MASC, alternative dispute resolution methods) of Ley Orgánica 1/2025, de 2 de enero (Organic Law 1/2025 on the efficiency of the public justice service) do not apply to employment matters (art. 3.2).
4. If there is no agreement, bring a claim for payment (reclamación de cantidad) before the Juzgado de lo Social (Employment Court). The amount owed carries 10% late-payment interest (art. 29.3 ET).
5. An option without conciliation: if you are claiming specific amounts that are due and payable, up to 15,000 euros, and your employer is not in insolvency proceedings (concurso), you can use the employment payment-order procedure (proceso monitorio laboral, art. 101 LRJS), which does not require prior conciliation (art. 64.1 LRJS).
6. Watch the deadline: you have one year from the date on which each amount could be claimed (art. 59.2 ET).
7. You can also report it to the Inspección de Trabajo (Labour Inspectorate): paying below the legal minimum may be a serious infringement (fine of 751 to 7,500 euros), and non-payment or repeated late payment of wages a very serious one (arts. 7.10, 8.1 and 40 of the Ley sobre Infracciones y Sanciones en el Orden Social (Social Order Infringements and Penalties Act)).

What will happen to the SMI in 2027?

Real Decreto 126/2026 has effect until 31 December 2026. As at 27 September 2026 the 2027 SMI has not been set, and the half-yearly revision that art. 27.1 ET provides for if inflation forecasts are not met has not been published either. In 2024, 2025 and 2026 the royal decree was approved in February with effect from 1 January, and employers had to pay arrears. Until a new rule is in place, the usual practice is to keep paying the 2026 amounts. We will update this article when it is published.

Frequently asked questions

Is the 1,221 euros net?

No, it is gross: your Social Security contributions are deducted from it. Income tax, on the other hand, is generally neutralised by the 590.89-euro deduction, although your payslip may show a small withholding that you get back when you file your tax return.

Is there an hourly SMI for all workers?

No. The royal decree only sets an hourly minimum for live-out domestic workers paid by the hour (9.55 euros). In all other cases, the minimum is calculated in proportion to your working hours on the basis of the monthly or annual amount.

Want us to check your payslip?

If your pay falls short of the minimum, you have not received the arrears from the start of the year, or you are unsure whether your employer can absorb the rise with your supplements, we can go through your payslips and your collective agreement with you: book a consultation.

Legislation and sources

• Real Decreto 126/2026, de 18 de febrero, setting the minimum wage for 2026 (BOE-A-2026-3815)
• Real Decreto 87/2025, de 11 de febrero, setting the minimum wage for 2025 (BOE-A-2025-2576)
• Estatuto de los Trabajadores (consolidated text), arts. 26, 27, 29, 33 and 59
• Ley 3/2023, de 28 de febrero, de Empleo (Employment Act), final provision 8.1 (current wording of art. 27.2 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores) (BOE-A-2023-5365)
• Ley 35/2006, IRPF Act (consolidated text), additional provision 61
• Real Decreto-ley 5/2026, de 17 de febrero (its art. 28 gives additional provision 61 of the IRPF Act its current wording)
• Real Decreto 439/2007, IRPF Regulations (consolidated text), art. 81
• Real Decreto 1620/2011, special employment relationship for domestic service, art. 8
• Ley de Enjuiciamiento Civil (consolidated text): art. 607 and art. 608
• Orden PJC/297/2026, de 30 de marzo, Social Security contribution rules for 2026
• Ley 36/2011, de 10 de octubre, reguladora de la jurisdicción social (consolidated text), arts. 63, 64, 65 and 101
• Ley Orgánica 1/2025, de 2 de enero, on the efficiency of the public justice service, art. 3.2
• Ley sobre Infracciones y Sanciones en el Orden Social (consolidated text)
• La Moncloa: summary of the Council of Ministers meeting of 17 February 2026