Special agreement for internships

Order ISM/386/2024, of 29 April, which regulates the signing of a special agreement with the Social Security for the purpose of calculating the contribution for the periods of training placements and external academic placements regulated in the fifty-second additional provision of the revised text of the General Social Security Act, approved by Royal Legislative Decree 8/2015, of 30 October, carried out prior to its date of entry into force (consolidated legislation).

Applications for registration must be accompanied by the certificate(s) issued by the university or educational institution where the respective studies were pursued, stating whether or not the internship was paid or unpaid. In addition:

• In the case of paidinternships, the certification shall state the periods in which the internships were carried out, with an express indication of the start and end dates of each period.
  In this case, the certificate may also be issued by the companies or entities in which the paid internships were carried out, if they were responsible for financing the training, or by the entities that financed the training, if different.
• In the case of unpaidinternships, the certificate shall indicate the start and end dates of their duration or, failing this, the start and end dates of the four-month period in which the internship was undertaken and, if the internship does not cover all the days of this period, the number of days on which the internship was undertaken in each period. In the latter case, the number of days of the internship corresponding to each period may be replaced on the certificate by the number of hours of the internship that can be counted for these purposes, corresponding to the credits assigned to the corresponding subject. In the latter case, each 8 hours of the internship shall be considered, for these purposes, as a full day, with the fraction of a day that may result being counted as an extra day.

In both cases, the certification must be issued expressly for the purpose of signing this special agreement.

The accreditation of participation in training programmes, either as a scholarship holder or as a university graduate through the corresponding official doctoral studies, must have the extension and content indicated in the previous paragraphs. Notwithstanding the above, when the former special training agreement, regulated under DA 1ª RD 1493/2011, of 24 October, has been signed, the certificates already submitted at the time may be submitted again.

The application for registration under this special agreement shall be understood as being made in respect of all the internship and/or training periods that are included in the certificates provided together with the application.

Requests for deregistration from the special agreement must be accompanied by the documentation justifying the deregistration, unless it is a request for voluntary deregistration.

The special agreement will expire due to any of the following reasons:

• For non-payment of the full amount or, in the event of payment in instalments, of the instalments corresponding to three consecutive monthly payments or five alternative monthly payments, except in the case of duly accredited force majeure.
• If the subscriber becomes a pensioner for retirement or permanent disability under any of the Social Security schemes.
• Death of the subscriber.
• By decision of the person concerned. The request for deregistration of the special agreement can be made through the channels indicated in the section "Registration, Deregistration or change of data of the special agreement" in the section "Procedures and formalities". In this case, the termination of the special agreement shall take place as from the first day of the month following the date of such communication.

If the payment of the special agreement has been paid in instalments, its termination for any of these reasons will mean that only the periods of work experience corresponding to the monthly payments actually paid will be recognised as having been paid.

Person responsible for the obligation to contribute

The contribution is to be paid by the subscriber to the special agreement. Natural or legal persons who voluntarily assume this obligation with the express authorisation of the subscriber may act as substitutes.

Contribution basis

The monthly contribution basis for this special agreement shall be constituted by the minimum contribution basis for common contingencies corresponding to contribution group 7 of the Social Security General Scheme in force in each period for which it is calculated.
If there is more than one contribution basis in the same year, the contribution basis in force on 31 December shall be used.

Determination of the payment due

The contribution basis in force at the date of entry into force of Order ISM/386/2024 of 29 April for common contingencies in the Social Security General Scheme, i.e. 28.30%, shall be applied to the contribution basis.

Once the total amount of the contribution has been calculated, this amount will be reduced by applying the coefficient of 0.77, the result being the amount of the payment to be made.

Payment deadline

The payment of the contribution due under this special agreement may be made at the choice of the applicant:

• Once only, within the month following the month in which the special agreement was signed.
• In instalments, in a number of monthly payments of up to double the number of monthly payments for which the special agreement is recognised, with a maximum of 84 monthly payments.

In both cases, the payment must be made by direct debit.

The special agreement shall take effect as from the month following the month in which it is concluded, with regard to the payment of contributions. However, entitlement to the benefits covered by this special agreement shall become effective when the full amount of the contribution due under this special agreement has been paid.  If the payment of the special agreement has been made in instalments, the termination of the special agreement for any of the legally stipulated reasons will mean that only the periods of work experience corresponding to the monthly payments actually made will be recognised as having been paid.

The deadline for the resolution and notification of the application is six months, calculated from the date on which the application was formally submitted through any of the means provided for this purpose.

The lack of an express decision within the period provided for in the previous paragraph shall have the effect of granting the respective application by administrative silence.

The application for subscription to this special agreement can be submitted between 1 June 2024 and 31 December 2028, through the channels indicated in the section "Registration, deregistration or change of data of the special agreement" in the "Procedures and formalities" section.

The protective action provided by this agreement is governed by the general rules. You can find the information here.

• University, vocational training, artistic or sports training may be recognised for the purposes of this special agreement with a maximum of 1,825 days.
• Participation as trainees in non-degree programmes may be recognised for the purposes of this special agreement with a maximum of 1,825 days.
• Participation as university graduates through the corresponding official doctorate studies in training programmes of a research nature, both in Spain and abroad, may be recognised for the purposes of this special agreement for a maximum of 1,825 days.

If the applicants for the agreement have already signed or could have signed the special agreement regulated in the first additional provision of Royal Decree 1493/2011 of 24 October, they may sign this new special agreement for the maximum period indicated above corresponding to the periods of training completed and not counted, where applicable, for the signing of that special agreement and regardless of the periods recognised in the previous agreement.

They may enter into this special agreement:

1. Students on training internships and external academic internships:
   • University students, both to obtain official bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees, and to obtain the universities' own qualifications, whether a lifelong learning master's degree, a specialisation diploma or an expert diploma.
   • University students who have undertaken paid external academic internships affected by the annulment of Royal Decree 1707/2011 of 18 November by the Judgment of the Third Chamber of the Supreme Court of 21 May 2013.
     
   • Vocational training, except when the internship was provided under the intensive vocational training scheme.
   • Higher artistic education, professional artistic education and sports education in the education system.
     
2. Scholarship holders participating in training programmes not leading to a degree, whether or not of a research nature, who have already signed or could have signed a special agreement under the first additional provision of Royal Decree 1493/2011 of 24 October.
3. Those who, as university graduates and through the corresponding official doctoral studies, have participated in training programmes of a research nature, both in Spain and abroad.
   

This agreement may be signed by persons who meet the following conditions:

1.  Completion of training within the period required by the regulations:

• Internship students:
  • Unpaid internships, carried out before 1 January 2024.
  • Paid internships, carried out before 1 November 2011.
  • University students who have carried out paid external academic internships affected by the annulment of Royal Decree 1707/2011 of 18 November, prior to 28 June 2013.

• Scholarship holders participating in training programmes not aimed at obtaining a degree, whether or not of a research nature, carried out prior to 1 November 2011 , provided that they have signed or could have signed a special agreement under the first additional provision of Royal Decree 1493/2011 of 24 October.
• University graduates who, through the corresponding official doctoral studies, have participated in training programmes of a research nature, carried out prior to 4 February 2006.

2.   Submit the certificates of completion of the internship and/or participation in training programmes together with the application for the special agreement.

The certificates must be issued in accordance with the provisions of Order ISM/386/2024 of 29 April. More information in the section "Documents required for application".

3.   Submission of the application within the legally established deadline.

Finally, it is reported that:

• No contribution period is required prior to applying for the special agreement
• This special agreement may not be signed by retirement or permanent disability pensioners, except in the cases relating to the receipt of such benefits in which art. 2.2 of Order TAS/2865/2003 allows such.