Training contract (formación en alternancia) in Spain: pay and limits

The training-alternance contract lets you work and study at the same time, with a salary and a tutor. But it has a trap that is easy to miss: the pay percentage in the law is a collective-agreement fallback, and below it there is another floor, the minimum wage in proportion to the time you actually work. With the 2026 figures, that floor beats the percentage in most cases.

It is a contract for working and studying at once

Article 11 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores (Workers Statute) distinguishes two training contracts. The training-alternance contract (paragraph 2) aims to combine paid work with studies in vocational training (formación profesional), university or the catalogue of training specialities of the National Employment System. The professional-practice contract (paragraph 3) is for people who already have the qualification.

This article is about the first. It can be used with people who lack the qualification required for the practice contract. It can also be used with people who hold another qualification, as long as they have not had a previous training contract in a course of the same level and sector. If the contract is made under level 1 and 2 professional certificates or employment-training programmes, it can only be signed with people up to 30 years old.

It lasts between three months and two years

The duration is whatever the training plan or programme sets, with a minimum of three months and a maximum of two years (11.2.g). It can run as a single contract on a non-continuous basis over several academic years if the plan provides for it. If it was signed for less than the maximum and you have not yet obtained the qualification, the contract can be extended by agreement until you get it, without exceeding two years.

Only one alternance contract can be signed per course, degree, professional certificate or itinerary in the catalogue (11.2.h). It can be done with several companies on the same course if they cover different activities and the total duration does not go over the maximum.

You work at most 65% and 85% of full time

Actual working time cannot exceed 65% of the maximum working week in the first year or 85% in the second. The base is the maximum working week in the company’s collective agreement or, if there is none, the legal maximum (11.2.i). The rest of the time is for training.

The activity must be directly related to the training that justifies the contract. You must also have two tutors: one appointed by the training centre and one by the company, with suitable training or experience (11.2.c and d).

What they cannot ask of you

Article 11.2 forbids:

• Complementary and overtime hours, except the emergency ones in article 35.3 (11.2.k).
• Night work and shift work. There is one exception: they can be done when the training cannot take place at other times because of the nature of the activity.
• A trial period (11.2.l).
• Using this contract if you have held that same post in the same company for more than six months under any other contract (11.2.j).

Pay has two floors

Pay is whatever the collective agreement sets for these contracts. If the agreement is silent, the law sets the minimum (11.2.m):

• 60% of the agreement’s salary for the professional group and level, in the first year.
• 75% in the second year.
• Always in proportion to the time actually worked.
• And never below the minimum wage (SMI) in proportion to the time actually worked.

To compare with the 2026 minimum wage, Royal Decree 126/2026 uses an annual reference of €17,094 (article 3). An example with a collective agreement paying €18,000 a year full-time for that group:

Split into 14 payments, the first-year floor is €793.65 gross per payment. The figure that prevails is the proportional SMI, not the 60% or 75%. If your payslip falls below it, ask for an explanation in writing. The monthly calculation and extra payments are in minimum wage 2026 in Spain.

There is no 12-day compensation when it ends

Article 49.1.c gives temporary contracts 12 days’ pay per year of service, except training contracts. If your training contract ends on its date, the law gives you no such compensation. You are still entitled to your finiquito (final settlement) for what you have earned, as in any contract: how it is calculated.

If you carry on in the company on another contract, it is worth knowing how a temporary one becomes permanent: when a temporary contract becomes permanent. Article 15.7 requires the company to tell people on training contracts about vacancies.

If the work recurs in seasons, compare this arrangement with a fijo discontinuo contract in Spain before relying on the contract’s label.

Why your case may be different

• The collective agreement can set its own pay. If it does, that applies, provided it is above the proportional SMI. The 60% and 75% only apply if the agreement is silent.
• Your training plan sets the calendar. Duration and hours depend on the individual plan drawn up by the centre with the company.
• The practice contract works differently. It is signed within three years of finishing studies (five if you have a disability), lasts from six months to a year and can have a trial period of up to one month unless the collective agreement says otherwise.
• The SMI changes every year. The figures here are for 2026, so check the January update.

What to check before you sign

1. That the contract includes the individual training plan and the names of the two tutors.
2. That the working percentage does not exceed 65% or 85% of full time.
3. That you are not put on night shifts or overtime.
4. That pay, in proportion to the time worked, does not fall below the proportional SMI.
5. That the duration is within the limits and there is no trial period.

This page is general information. If deadlines or money are at stake, speak to an employment lawyer (abogado laboralista) or a union.