A lot of people who work in Spain are unsure as to how many days’ notice are required when handing in your notice or resigning. The actual period can vary depending on which particular sector you are working in so you should get expert advice before handing in your notice to make sure you don’t get penalised for non-compliance with the regulations.

The first thing to be noted is that if you are still within the trial period, you can hand in your notice at any time without further ado. The same applies however with regard to the company terminating the contract.

If you have already gone through the trial period, Article 49.1 of the Workers’ Statute indicates the following in relation to resignation: “the minimum notice is as indicated in the trade agreement (agreements that regulate work conditions within different sectors) or what is customary in the field”. You would need to find out therefore which trade agreement is applicable to your company and what it has to say with regard to minimum notice. Generally speaking this can vary from 15 days (the most common) to up to 2 months. It must also be borne in mind that if the notice given is less than that stipulated by the trade agreement (or custom), you may be required to pay an indemnity to the company to the value of one day’s salary for each day under the required notice period. In the case in which there is no applicable trade agreement or if no reference is made to a minimum period of notice, you can assume that 15 days’ notice would be required.