Company Foster Care Agreement Spain (Acuerdo de Acogimiento en Empresa)

The Company Foster Care Agreement Spain (Acuerdo de Acogimiento en Empresa or Acogimiento Laboral Empresarial) is a formal written agreement between a company (empresa acogedora), a public child protection authority (entidad pública de protección de menores — typically the Consejería de Servicios Sociales of the relevant autonomous community), and a minor (menor) or young person who is in the care of the public protection system, establishing the terms under which the company will host the young person for work experience, vocational training, or structured corporate volunteering (voluntariado empresarial), with the dual purpose of promoting the social and labour market integration of vulnerable young people and providing the company with a formal framework for discharging its corporate social responsibility (responsabilidad social corporativa — RSC) obligations.

The legal framework for acogimiento in Spain is established by the Código Civil, principally Articles 172 through 174 (as amended by Ley 26/2015 de Modificación del Sistema de Protección a la Infancia y a la Adolescencia and Ley Orgánica 8/2015 de Modificación del Sistema de Protección a la Infancia y a la Adolescencia), the Ley Orgánica 1/1996, de 15 de enero, de Protección Jurídica del Menor (LOPJM), and the autonomous community legislation on child protection — each of Spain's seventeen autonomous communities (comunidades autónomas) has developed its own child protection law, which supplements the national framework. Key autonomous community laws include Ley 14/2010 de Derechos y Oportunidades en la Infancia y la Adolescencia de Cataluña, Ley 1/1998 de los Derechos y la Atención al Menor de Andalucía, and Ley 7/2017 de Impulso a la Natalidad de Galicia.

The acogimiento en empresa is a specific modality of structured support for young people leaving the public care system (sistema de protección) — particularly those aged sixteen to twenty-one who have been in residential care (acogimiento residencial) or family care (acogimiento familiar) and are transitioning toward independent adult life. Spain's Ley 26/2015 introduced enhanced measures for the preparation of young people leaving care (preparación para la vida independiente), and many autonomous communities operate specific programmes — Programa de Autonomía Personal in Cataluña, Piso de Emancipación in Madrid, Proyecto de Vida Independiente in the Basque Country — that partner with companies to provide work experience and mentoring as part of the transition.

The Estrategia Nacional de Desinstitucionalización, developed by the Ministerio de Derechos Sociales y Agenda 2030 in alignment with the European Child Guarantee (Garantía Infantil Europea) established by the Council of the European Union Recommendation of 14 June 2021, reinforces the shift toward community-based and family-based care and the involvement of civil society — including companies — in supporting children and young people leaving institutional care. The acuerdo de acogimiento en empresa formalises a company's participation in this national strategy within a legally defined framework that protects both the young person and the company.

The legal framework governing the Company Foster Care Agreement Spain (Acuerdo de Acogimiento en Empresa) in Spain draws on several key statutes and regulatory bodies. Under Spanish law, the Código Civil governs marriage (Article 66), divorce (Article 81), custody (Article 92), and maintenance (Article 142). The Ley Orgánica 1/1996 (LOPJM) protects minors. The Registro Civil records births, marriages, and deaths. The Ley 15/2015 de Jurisdicción Voluntaria governs non-contentious proceedings. The Ley Orgánica 1/1982 protects fundamental rights including image and privacy. Parties executing a Company Foster Care Agreement Spain (Acuerdo de Acogimiento en Empresa) in Spain should confirm the document reflects current law, including any amendments enacted since the original drafting date. The Código Civil art. 172 y Ley Orgánica 1/1996 de Protección Jurídica del Menor sets the foundational requirements.

The Company Foster Care Agreement Spain is needed whenever a Spanish company wishes to formally partner with the public child protection system to host, support, or provide structured work experience to minors or young people under the guardianship or supervision of a public entidad pública de protección de menores of an autonomous community.

The agreement is required when a company establishes a corporate volunteering or mentoring programme (programa de mentoring empresarial) for young people who have been or are currently in the public care system — particularly those aged sixteen to twenty-three transitioning to independent life. Without a formal agreement with the entidad pública, the company's activities with looked-after children lack a legal framework defining responsibilities, insurance, safeguarding protocols, and data protection obligations.

The Acuerdo de Acogimiento en Empresa is needed when a company wishes to provide unpaid or subsidised work experience (prácticas laborales no remuneradas) to young people from the care system under Article 11 of the Real Decreto 1393/2007 on curricular internships, or under the dual vocational training system (Formación Profesional Dual — Real Decreto 1529/2012, as reformed by Ley Orgánica 3/2022 de Ordenación e Integración de la Formación Profesional). The agreement with the child protection authority provides the legal basis for including the young person in the company's internship programme.

The document is required when a company applies for corporate social responsibility (RSC) certifications or public procurement tenders that value social criteria — including measures favouring the employment of persons in vulnerable situations under Article 202 of the Ley 9/2017 de Contratos del Sector Público (LCSP). A formal acuerdo de acogimiento en empresa demonstrates a company's structured commitment to social inclusion, strengthening its RSC credentials and its tender scoring under social criteria (criterios sociales de adjudicación).

The agreement is also needed when a company participates in programmes managed by entities such as Aldeas Infantiles SOS, Fundación Cibervoluntarios, Fundación Tomillo, or Asociación Jóvenes y Desarrollo — NGOs operating under concession agreements with autonomous community child protection authorities — that place young people in care with partner companies for mentoring and work experience. The tripartite agreement between the company, the NGO intermediary, and the child protection authority is the standard legal instrument for these placements.

Finally, the Acuerdo de Acogimiento en Empresa is required when a company in a regulated sector — healthcare, education, financial services — hosting a minor under any arrangement involving regular personal contact must comply with the mandatory criminal background check (certificado de delitos de naturaleza sexual) obligation under the Disposición Adicional Decimoséptima of the Ley Orgánica 1/1996 LOPJM, as amended by Ley 26/2015. The agreement provides the formal basis for requesting and verifying these checks.

Under Spanish law, the Código Civil governs marriage (Article 66), divorce (Article 81), custody (Article 92), and maintenance (Article 142). The Ley Orgánica 1/1996 (LOPJM) protects minors. The Registro Civil records births, marriages, and deaths. The Ley 15/2015 de Jurisdicción Voluntaria governs non-contentious proceedings. The Ley Orgánica 1/1982 protects fundamental rights including image and privacy.

A valid Company Foster Care Agreement Spain under the Código Civil (Article 172) and the Ley Orgánica 1/1996 de Protección Jurídica del Menor should contain the following elements to be legally effective and compliant with the applicable autonomous community child protection regulations.

Identification of Parties: Full details of the empresa acogedora (host company) — legal name, CIF, registered address, and the name and position of the legal representative executing the agreement; the entidad pública de protección de menores of the relevant autonomous community — its full official name, administrative address, and the name of the official signing on its behalf; and the identification of the young person being hosted — full name, date of birth, and reference number assigned by the child protection authority (without disclosing sensitive personal data in any document accessible beyond the authorised parties).

Purpose and Programme Description: A clear description of the nature of the hosting arrangement — work experience (prácticas), mentoring (mentoring), structured volunteering (voluntariado estructurado), or dual vocational training (FP Dual) — the specific activities the young person will undertake at the company, the department or team involved, and the learning or development objectives of the programme. The programme description should align with the young person's individual protection plan (plan de protección individual) maintained by the entidad pública.

Duration and Schedule: The start and end dates of the hosting arrangement, the weekly schedule (number of hours per day and per week), and any agreed review points. For programmes involving minors under sixteen, the working time limitations under Article 6 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores — prohibiting employment of children under sixteen — and Article 34.3 ET on maximum working time for young workers must be observed. Young people aged sixteen to eighteen may work under restricted conditions with parental or guardian consent.

Supervision and Mentoring: The designation of a company mentor or reference person (tutor empresa or referente de empresa) responsible for supervising the young person's activities, providing regular feedback to the entidad pública, and confirming the young person's wellbeing during the hosting period. The tutor empresa must not have a criminal record for offences against sexual freedom or child exploitation, confirmed by the certificado de delitos de naturaleza sexual under Ley 26/2015.

Safeguarding and Child Protection Obligations: A clause committing the company to observe the safeguarding principles of the Ley Orgánica 1/1996 LOPJM — including the obligation to report to the entidad pública any situation suggesting risk or harm to the young person during the hosting period, in accordance with Article 13 LOPJM. The company must maintain an internal safeguarding policy (protocolo de protección de menores) and confirm all staff in contact with the young person have completed appropriate safeguarding training.

Data Protection: A GDPR-compliant clause under Reglamento (UE) 2016/679 and Ley Orgánica 3/2018 LOPDGDD governing the processing of the young person's personal data by the company — strictly limited to the purposes of the programme, with no disclosure to third parties without the entidad pública's authorisation. Minors' personal data receives enhanced protection under Article 7 LOPDGDD.

Insurance: The company's obligation to maintain adequate employers' liability insurance (seguro de responsabilidad civil) and, where relevant, accident insurance (seguro de accidentes) covering the young person during their time at the company. For participants who are formally enrolled in vocational training (FP), accident coverage is provided through the Seguridad Social system under Real Decreto 1493/2011 on social security for FP students.

Termination and Review: The conditions under which the agreement may be terminated early — by mutual agreement, by the entidad pública if the young person's welfare requires it, or by the company if the programme objectives cannot be met — and the review mechanism for assessing the programme's impact on the young person's development and integration.

Forms-legal.com provides this Company Foster Care Agreement Spain template as a starting framework for companies wishing to engage with Spain's child protection system. Companies should contact their autonomous community's Consejería de Servicios Sociales or a specialist NGO intermediary to align any programme with the applicable regional child protection regulations and the individual young person's protection plan.

Under Spanish law, the Código Civil governs marriage (Article 66), divorce (Article 81), custody (Article 92), and maintenance (Article 142). The Ley Orgánica 1/1996 (LOPJM) protects minors. The Registro Civil records births, marriages, and deaths. The Ley 15/2015 de Jurisdicción Voluntaria governs non-contentious proceedings. The Ley Orgánica 1/1982 protects fundamental rights including image and privacy.