ERTE Application Form Spain (Expediente de Regulación Temporal de Empleo)

An ERTE Application Form Spain (Expediente de Regulación Temporal de Empleo) is the formal request submitted by an employer (empresa) to the Autoridad Laboral (Labour Authority) of the competent autonomous community, and simultaneously to the Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal (SEPE), to obtain authorisation for a temporary suspension of employment contracts (suspensión de contratos) or a temporary reduction of working hours (reducción de jornada) affecting some or all of the company's workforce, without terminating the employment relationships. The ERTE framework is established in Article 47 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores (Real Decreto Legislativo 2/2015 — ET), developed by the Real Decreto 1483/2012, de 29 de octubre, por el que se aprueba el Reglamento de los procedimientos de despido colectivo y de suspensión de contratos y reducción de jornada, and substantially expanded by the extraordinary measures introduced under Real Decreto-Ley 8/2020, de 17 de marzo, de medidas urgentes extraordinarias para hacer frente al impacto económico y social del COVID-19, particularly Article 22 (ERTE por fuerza mayor) and Article 23 (ERTE por causas ETOP).

The ERTE serves two distinct purposes: the ERTE de suspensión (suspension of employment contracts) under Article 47.1 ET, which temporarily exempts the employer from paying salary while workers receive SEPE unemployment benefit (prestación por desempleo contributiva) funded by their prior contributions; and the ERTE de reducción de jornada (working hours reduction) under Article 47.2 ET, which reduces working hours by between 10% and 70% of the ordinary working day, with the employee receiving SEPE benefit for the suspended portion of their hours. Both variants allow the employer to maintain the employment relationship and preserve the workforce while addressing a temporary business difficulty.

Spanish law distinguishes between two types of ERTE based on the cause: (1) ERTE por fuerza mayor (force majeure ERTE) under Articles 47.5 ET and 22 RDL 8/2020 — applicable where the temporary suspension is caused by events beyond the employer's control (floods, fires, pandemics, armed conflict, supply chain disruption due to extraordinary events), requiring authorisation by the competent Autoridad Laboral within 5 working days; and (2) ERTE por causas ETOP (economic, technical, organisational, or production causes) under Articles 47.1 and 47.2 ET — applicable where the suspension or reduction is justified by verifiable economic circumstances (pérdidas actuales o previstas, reducción del volumen de negocios), technical changes, organisational restructuring, or changes in production processes, requiring a mandatory 15-day consultation period with workers' representatives (período de consultas) before submission to the Autoridad Laboral.

During an ERTE, affected employees receive a prestación por desempleo contributiva (contributory unemployment benefit) from the SEPE, calculated at 70% of the base reguladora for the first 180 days and 50% thereafter, without the normal consumption of their accumulated unemployment contribution entitlement — a special ERTE feature that preserves the workers' future unemployment rights. The SEPE manages direct payment to workers (pago directo) or, more commonly, delegated payment through the employer (pago delegado), who advances the SEPE benefit with the company's payroll and is subsequently reimbursed by the SEPE.

The ERTE framework was extensively used during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 to 2022 — at its peak in April 2020, over 3.4 million Spanish workers were covered by ERTEs, representing the largest coordinated labour market stabilisation measure in Spanish economic history. Post-pandemic, the Ley 10/2021, de 9 de julio, de trabajo a distancia, and the Mecanismo RED (Mecanismo de Flexibilidad y Estabilización del Empleo) established by the Ley 31/2021, de reforma laboral, created permanent structural ERTE mechanisms intended to replace the emergency framework as the standing tool for managing cyclical and sectoral employment adjustments in Spain.

An ERTE Application Form Spain is needed whenever a company experiences a temporary, verifiable difficulty that makes it impossible or economically unsustainable to maintain full employment activity at normal working hours, and the employer seeks to use the ERTE mechanism to preserve jobs while adjusting labour costs.

The ERTE application is needed when a company faces a sudden, verifiable reduction in orders, revenue, or production — for example, a tourism operator experiencing off-season demand collapse, a manufacturer whose primary client has suspended orders, or a retail business facing prolonged construction works blocking customer access — where the reduction is temporary (expected to be reversible within weeks or months) and restructuring through redundancy would be disproportionate.

An ERTE Application is needed when a force majeure event (fuerza mayor) — fire, flood, structural damage to premises, essential supply disruption, pandemic restrictions, or government-ordered closure — prevents normal operations at the affected workplace. The force majeure ERTE under Article 47.5 ET requires urgent authorisation from the Autoridad Laboral within 5 working days and does not require a prior consultation period with workers.

The ERTE is needed when a company undergoes a temporary technological transition — for example, a factory installing new production equipment requiring temporary shutdown, or a service company migrating IT infrastructure requiring reduced staffing — where normal production cannot be maintained during the transition period and temporary suspension is the proportionate response.

An ERTE Application is needed when a company in a sector subject to seasonal fluctuation (hostelería y restauración, agricultura, construcción, eventos) needs to reduce its workforce during predictable low-demand periods without losing trained staff — the ERTE de reducción de jornada allows flexible adjustment of hours rather than contract termination.

The ERTE is needed when a company activates the Mecanismo RED de Flexibilidad y Estabilización del Empleo under the Ley de Reforma Laboral (Ley 32/2021) — the RED mechanism, activated by the Spanish Council of Ministers for specific sectors or during cyclical emergencies, provides enhanced SEPE benefit rates and reduced employer social security contributions for companies using ERTE-equivalent measures within the RED framework.

An ERTE Application is required before activating an ERTE de reducción de jornada in response to a temporary disruption in the supply chain (cadena de suministro) — for example, semiconductor shortages affecting automotive production, logistics delays affecting manufacturing, or port disruptions affecting import-dependent industries — which became prevalent in the 2021 to 2023 post-pandemic supply chain crisis.

A valid ERTE Application Form Spain under the Estatuto de los Trabajadores (RDL 2/2015) Article 47 and the Real Decreto 1483/2012 must contain the following elements to be accepted by the Autoridad Laboral and the SEPE.

Employer Identification: Company name (denominación social), NIF/CIF, registered address, contact person for the procedure, CCC (Código de Cuenta de Cotización) of the TGSS, CNAE activity code, and legal representative details with DNI and evidence of representation authority.

Type of ERTE: Specification of whether the application is for ERTE de suspensión (full suspension of contracts) or ERTE de reducción de jornada (partial hours reduction), and the legal basis — fuerza mayor (Article 47.5 ET) or causas ETOP — económicas, técnicas, organizativas o de producción (Articles 47.1/47.2 ET).

Affected Workers: A census (relación nominal) of all workers affected by the ERTE — full name, DNI/NIE, contract type, working hours, TGSS affiliation number, professional category, and the specific measure applying to each (suspension or hours reduction percentage). For ERTE de reducción de jornada, the exact percentage reduction and new hours must be specified.

Cause Justification and Documentation: A detailed factual account of the cause (memoria justificativa), supported by documentary evidence. For economic causes: audited financial statements, revenue data, order books, and market forecasts evidencing current or foreseeable losses. For technical, organisational, or production causes: technical reports, production data, and expert assessments. For force majeure: police report (atestado policial), insurance claims, municipal damage reports, or official communications from competent authorities.

Consultation Period Documentation (ETOP causes only): Minutes (actas) of all meetings held during the mandatory 15-day consultation period with the comité de empresa, delegados de personal, or sindicatos — showing good faith negotiation under Article 47.3 ET. Final agreement (acuerdo de consultas) or statement that agreement was not reached, with reasons.

Duration of the Measure: The requested start date and end date of the ERTE — maximum duration varies by cause (force majeure ERTEs have specific duration rules; ETOP ERTEs may not exceed the duration of the underlying cause). The ERTE must not exceed the minimum period necessary to address the identified difficulty.

SEPE Notification: Simultaneous notification to the SEPE of the ERTE application, worker census, and expected benefit claim details, as required under Article 33.3 of the Real Decreto 1483/2012, to allow the SEPE to prepare benefit processing.

Social Security Exemptions (if applicable): Where specific government programmes provide employer social security contribution exemptions during ERTE periods — as applied under the extraordinary COVID-19 framework and under certain Mecanismo RED activations — the application should reference the specific Royal Decree or Order authorising the exemption and include the company's commitment to maintaining employment for the required period (cláusula de salvaguarda del empleo — typically 6 months after the ERTE ends under the COVID framework).

Forms-legal.com provides this ERTE Application Form Spain template as a practical starting point. ERTE procedures are legally complex and time-sensitive — employers should engage a qualified abogado laboralista or gestor laboral before initiating the procedure to confirm the correct cause is identified and the consultation process is properly conducted.

Key institutions: the Autoridad Laboral (Dirección General de Trabajo of the autonomous community) authorises ERTEs. The Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal (SEPE) processes worker benefit claims. The Tesorería General de la Seguridad Social (TGSS) manages social security contribution exemptions. The Inspección de Trabajo y Seguridad Social (ITSS) monitors ERTE compliance. The Juzgado de lo Social resolves disputes about ERTE validity and worker rights under Ley 36/2011.

Under the Estatuto de los Trabajadores (ET) RDL 2/2015, Spanish employment law governs contracts, dismissals, and working conditions. The Tesorería General de la Seguridad Social (TGSS) administers social security contributions. The Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal (SEPE) manages unemployment benefits. The Inspección de Trabajo y Seguridad Social enforces labour compliance. The Juzgados de lo Social hear employment disputes under the Ley Reguladora de la Jurisdicción Social (Ley 36/2011).