Social Security

Financial Benefit

• The financial benefit consists of a benefit equivalent to 100% of the corresponding regulatory base. 

• In cases of multiple births and of adoption or foster care of more than one minor simultaneously, a special benefit is granted for each child or foster child, starting from the second and equal to the benefit for the first child, during a period of 6 weeks immediately following the birth or, in the case of adoption or foster care, as of the administrative decision or court ruling granting foster care or the court ruling granting the adoption.

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Regulating base

General rule:

• The regulatory base (RB) shall be the same as that established for |TD benefit arising from common contingencies, taking the start date of the leave as the reference point.

• When leave is taken simultaneously or consecutively by both parents, whether they are adoptive or foster parents, the benefit will be determined for each parent according to their respective RB.

In the case of part-time workers:

• The daily RB is calculated by dividing the sum of the contribution bases certified by the company in the 12 months prior to the date of the triggering event by 365.

• If the worker has been working for the company for a period shorter than a year, then the contribution base will be the result of dividing the total contribution base by the number of natural years to which that base corresponds.

In the case of artists and bullfighting professionals:

• The RB is the daily average that is calculated by dividing the sum of the contribution bases in the 12 months prior to the triggering event by 365, or the daily average of the certified contribution period, if this is less than one year.

• Under no circumstances may the resulting daily average, when calculated on a monthly basis, be less than the minimum contribution base which, at any given time, corresponds to the professional category of the worker. 

Notwithstanding the provisions of the foregoing paragraphs, the benefit may be granted by provisional decision of the INSS using the most recent contribution base included in the system's corporate databases.

If the contribution base from the month immediately prior to the start of leave was different to that used in the provisional decision, the benefit will be recalculated and a final decision issued. If the base has not changed, the provisional decision will become final 3 months after being issued.

If the leave is taken on a part-time working schedule:

• The reduction in the RB will be inversely proportional to the reduction in the working day.

In case of multiple employment or multiple activities:

• The RB is determined by calculating all of the contribution bases from each of the companies or activities and applying the current maximum limit in force for the purposes of contributions.

In the case of workers hired for training:

• The RB will be 75% of the minimum contribution base in force.

The RB will be adjusted in the following exceptional circumstances:

• When the minimum contribution base applicable to the worker in the scheme in question is changed, in order to update its amount as from the date on which this new minimum base comes into force.

• When there is an increase contribution base as a result of an increase in wages, arising from legal provision, collective agreement or court ruling, which will have its financial effects backdated to the date before the start of the leave.

• When the previous contribution base included in the system's corporate databases has been used to calculate the benefit and, subsequently, it is verified that this is not the same as the contribution base for common contingencies corresponding to the month prior to the start of leave or time off.

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Interruption and resuming the subsidy for hospitalisation

In the cases of premature birth and cases in which, for any other reason, the newborn must remain hospitalized after the birth, when the benefit is resumed, once the minor is discharged from hospital, the same amount will be received as was being paid before the interruption, except when it has been necessary to modify the regulatory base due to any of the legally provided for circumstances being present.

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Maternity, TD and Contract Termination

A beneficiary who continues to need healthcare after the period of maternity leave as a consequence of the birth, as she is unable to work:

• Will be considered as being in a situation of temporary disability (TD ) due to a common disease.

• Payment of the benefit corresponding to the new contingency begins at that time, if the requirements are met and there is no continuity solution.
  

Temporary disability begun prior to the birth, when the woman has not opted to take maternity leave:

• The temporary disability benefit continues until the birth, leaving the woman the option to take maternity leave. Maternity leave starts from the date of the birth. If the TD situation continues after maternity leave finishes, the calculation of the interrupted temporary disability benefit will be resumed, even if the contract has been terminated.

• If the interested party finds themselves in a situation of extension of TD effects they can also gain entitlement to the maternity benefit if, after the date of birth, they meet the requirements to do so, thereby interrupting the calculation of the situation of extension of effects, which will be resumed, if applicable, once the maternity benefit has expired.

TD due to common or occupational contingencies that occur during the maternity leave period:

The right to the temporary disability subsidy is not recognised during the maternity leave period. Following this period, if the interested party requires healthcare and is unable to work, the corresponding situation of temporary disability will begin, as long as the requirements are met.

However, if the TD process begins while receiving a maternity benefit under a part-time working schedule:

• Both subsidies may be collected simultaneously. In this case, the regulatory base will be calculated on top of the part-time working day contribution base, which is compatible with maternity benefit. For self-employed workers, the regulatory base for TD benefit will be reduced by 50%, where appropriate.
• Once the paternity benefit expires and the worker remains in a TD situation, the benefit for this contingency will continue at the amount corresponding to the full-time working day schedule, although for the purposes of calculating its duration and percentage, the date of discharge from hospital in the part-time working day schedule will be taken as the reference point.

Contract termination for female workers whose situation of TD arising from common or occupational contingencies is interrupted due to beginning maternity leave:

Termination of a contract when the maternity leave period has begun:

• Maternity benefits are collected until the end of this situation. When the leave period is taken under the part-time scheme, the maternity subsidy is collected in full from the date on which the contract was terminated.

• If the other parent is taking a period of leave under either the full-time or the part-time working day schedule, the relevant benefit will remain under the same terms under which it was being collected previously.

• If at the end of the mother's maternity leave her previous TD situation continues, the interrupted calculation and the payment of the corresponding benefit will be resumed, in accordance with the provisions of Article 222.1 of the LGSS.

Termination of a contract prior to beginning maternity leave, even though now the worker is not completely unemployed and is receiving the contributory-level financial benefit or if it was terminated during the temporary disability period prior to maternity:

• The worker has the right to the maternity benefit from the first day of leave, interrupting the temporary disability prior to birth and the payment of the corresponding subsidy, which is replaced by the maternity subsidy.

• A mother also has the right to maternity leave when there is no continuity solution between the temporary disability ending in medical discharge and the beginning of maternity, either due to the medical discharge from temporary disability and the beginning of the maternity leave occurring on the same day, or because the latter occurs the day after the former.

• If either of the parents' employment contract is terminated prior to the start of maternity leave, any benefit that may be applicable will be paid in full and the leave may not be shared between these parents under the part-time working day schedule.

TD that started after resuming the provision of services or professional activity, when the interested party has opted to interrupt the receiving of the maternity benefit in cases of premature birth and those in which the newborn must remain hospitalized following the birth:

• The temporary disability process is interrupted due to the child's release from hospital, with the corresponding resumption of the maternity subsidy.

• Upon completion of the maternity subsidy, if the temporary disability continues, the subsidy corresponding to this contingency will be resumed.

Contract termination while the worker is in a situation of maternity:

• The maternity benefit is still provided up to the end of the situation, at which time he or she moves to a legal unemployment situation and receives, if the necessary requirements are met, the corresponding benefit.

• In this case, the time she would have been on maternity leave is not discounted from the period for receiving the contributory-level unemployment benefit.

If the worker is receiving full unemployment benefit and changes to a situation of paternity:

• Unemployment benefits will be suspended as well as Social Security contributions and he will change to receiving paternity benefits, managed directly by his Management Body.

• After maternity benefits end, unemployment benefits will begin again and continue for the time that remains and at the same amount as at the moment of suspension.

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