Updating Your Housekeeper's Salary in Spain (2026)

Why do you need to update the salary in 2026?

Each year the Spanish government reviews the minimum wage (Salario Mínimo Interprofesional, or SMI) — the legal minimum pay that also applies to housekeepers. Royal Decree 126/2026 of 18 February (published in the Official State Gazette, BOE, on 19 February 2026) raised it by 3.1%, backdated to 1 January 2026. If the salary registered with Social Security (Seguridad Social) is below the new minimum, you are legally required to update it; otherwise you risk surcharges on your contributions and penalties for a labour offence.

Important: this guide covers changing the salary on an existing registration. If you have not yet registered your housekeeper, first check how to register a domestic worker with Social Security.

How much you must pay: the 2026 minimum wage for housekeepers

These figures are for full-time work (40 hours a week). If your housekeeper works fewer hours, calculate the salary on a pro-rata basis using the formula 1,221 € × (weekly hours ÷ 40). For example, for 20 hours a week the minimum would be 610.50 € a month. Remember that the 9.55 €/hour under the hourly system already includes the proportional share of extra payments and holiday pay. You can find the always-up-to-date breakdown in our guide to how much a housekeeper earns in Spain in 2026.

How to update the salary with Social Security, step by step

• Log in to Import@ss, the online portal of the Social Security General Treasury (Tesorería General de la Seguridad Social).
• Identify yourself as an employer using Cl@ve, a digital certificate, your electronic ID (DNI electrónico) or by SMS (if your mobile number is registered in the Social Security database).
• Open the 'Modification of employment details for domestic work' service, within the Domestic Employment section, and select your worker's active registration.
• Enter the new salary: the gross monthly figure or the hourly rate, updated to the 2026 minimum wage. Also check the hours worked and indicate whether the extra payments are spread across the year.
• Review all the details, then sign and submit the change for official registration.
• Download and keep the receipt in case you need to prove it during an inspection.

The salary change must also be reflected in the monthly payslip. See how to prepare a housekeeper's payslip and how this rise affects your Social Security contributions. If you have agreed to pay the two extra payments separately, remember that each one accrues and is prorated over its corresponding six-month period; we explain this in our guide to a housekeeper's extra payments.

Deadline for reporting the salary change

The change must be reported within 3 calendar days of the date it takes effect. If you miss that window, you can exceptionally request the change of details up to the 3rd day of the following month. Reporting it on time avoids contribution shortfalls and surcharges.

Back pay: the 2026 minimum wage rise is backdated to January

Because Royal Decree 126/2026 takes effect from 1 January 2026, any months you have already paid at the previous rate generate back pay owed to your worker. You must pay that difference and settle it. The Treasury recalculates contributions on the new contribution base, so it is best to update as soon as possible to keep the settlement of differences to a minimum.

What if I don't have a digital certificate or Cl@ve?

You can complete the procedure without electronic identification by submitting form TA.2/S-0138 (the application to register, deregister or amend a worker's details in the Special System for Domestic Employees) through the 'Submit applications' service in Import@ss, or in person by appointment at a Social Security office.

What happens if you don't update the salary

Paying below the minimum wage or failing to report the change has consequences. Paying contributions late carries a late-payment surcharge of between 10% and 20% of the amount owed, plus interest for late payment, and the Treasury can claim it for up to 4 years back. On top of that, not honouring the minimum wage is a serious offence under the LISOS (the Spanish law on labour offences and penalties, Royal Legislative Decree 5/2000 of 4 August), punishable by fines of 751 € to 7,500 € per worker. There is no '10% surcharge on the salary', as is sometimes claimed: the surcharge applies to the unpaid contributions. Keeping the registration up to date protects both the employing family and the worker.

At Maids & Co we handle all the administrative work — registrations, salary changes, payslips and settling back pay — so you stay compliant without the hassle. See our prices and leave the paperwork to the professionals.