Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal (SEPE)

Spain’s public employment service

The Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal (SEPE) is Spain’s public agency responsible for unemployment benefits and active employment policies. Its website provides information and services for three groups: people looking for work or receiving benefits, employers hiring workers, and self-employed professionals.

Services for individuals

• Contributory unemployment benefits and assistance.
• Employment Support Supplement (CAE): automatically applied to people who began receiving a contributory benefit after April 1, 2025, for more than 12 months and have already received 270 days of benefits, when they start full- or part-time work. For benefits that began before that date, it may be requested when starting full-time work.
• Exceptional emergency benefit under Royal Decree-Law 20/2026 for employees affected by wildfires who could not report to work.
• Benefit and assistance procedures, appointments, and the online office.
• Workplace training, including a catalog of training specialties and the national registry of training providers.
• Youth Guarantee, employment for people with disabilities, and work opportunities in Europe.

Services for businesses and self-employed workers

• Employment-contract notifications through Contrat@ and employer certificates through Certific@2.
• Information about employment contracts and employer job listings.
• ERTE and RED Mechanism: information and procedures for individuals and businesses. The RED Mechanism for automobile manufacturing was extended through June 30, 2026.
• For self-employed workers: combining benefits with work, benefit capitalization, cessation of activity, incentives, and assistance.

Regulatory updates

Beginning July 15, 2026, a new European Union–United Kingdom agreement regarding Gibraltar changes unemployment benefits for cross-border workers and the recognition of employment and contribution periods. The reform of unemployment assistance under Royal Decree-Law 2/2024 took effect on November 1, 2024. Benefit recipients are not required to file a personal income tax return unless Spain’s Tax Agency (AEAT) otherwise requires them to do so.

Contact and offices

Official phone contact: 060 · Appointment line: 91 926 79 70. SEPE warns that numbers beginning with 800 or 807 carry special rates and are not its numbers. The agency has offices throughout Spain, including Ceuta and Melilla, and provides an online office. It is on Facebook, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and YouTube.