FOGASA in Spain: What the Wage Guarantee Fund Pays When Your Employer Cannot (2026)

A dismissal or a court judgment is worth little if the employer has no money to pay it. That is what the Fondo de Garantía Salarial, FOGASA, exists for: a public fund that steps in and pays part of what an insolvent employer owes. It does not pay everything, and its limits are precise, so knowing them is the difference between expecting the full claim and understanding what will actually arrive.

Information last verified on 22 July 2026. This page provides general legal information about Spanish employment law and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case.

When FOGASA steps in

FOGASA is triggered by the employer's inability to pay, not by the dismissal itself. Art. 33 ET brings it in where the employer is insolvent (declared so after enforcement fails) or in concurso (formal insolvency proceedings). In those cases the fund pays certain amounts directly to the workers and then pursues the employer itself to recover them. It does not cover an employer who simply refuses to pay but can: that is an ordinary claim before the Juzgado de lo Social.

What it pays, and the ceilings

The fund covers two kinds of debt, each with its own limit, and the limits are the part people most often get wrong.

Unpaid wages (salarios). FOGASA pays outstanding salary, including the salarios de tramitación where they apply, up to a maximum of 120 días. The daily amount is capped: it cannot exceed twice the daily SMI, including the proportional part of the pagas extraordinarias. So the ceiling moves with the minimum wage each year.

Compensation (indemnizaciones). For severance owed on a dismissal or a court-ordered termination, FOGASA pays up to a maximum of one year's pay (una anualidad), again with the daily base capped at twice the daily SMI.

Crucially, the base it uses to compute that indemnización is 30 días per year for the cases in arts. 50 and 56, and 20 días per year under the concurso rules, regardless of whether a court actually awarded the worker the full 33-días figure. That is why the amount FOGASA pays is usually lower than the amount the judgment says.

Why the FOGASA figure is lower than your award

A worker who wins a 33-días unfair dismissal award and then turns to FOGASA is often surprised that the fund pays less. Two limits explain it: the fund recomputes the indemnización on a 30-días base rather than 33, and it caps the daily wage at twice the SMI, so a higher earner is scaled down to that ceiling. The gap between the judgment and what FOGASA pays does not vanish; it remains a debt of the employer, recoverable in the insolvency if there are assets, but in practice often uncollectable. Understanding this at the outset avoids a second disappointment.

Claiming

A worker applies to FOGASA once the debt and the employer's insolvency are established, typically with the court decision and the insolvency declaration. The fund has its own deadline (a one-year prescription running from the act that recognised the debt), so a claim should not be left. For the wider structure of dismissal and pay, see the employment law overview.

This page is general legal information about Spanish employment law and does not constitute legal advice in an individual case. The controlling text is always the current version of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores in the BOE.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does FOGASA pay?

FOGASA covers two things when the employer is insolvent or in concurso: unpaid wages up to a maximum of 120 días, and part of the indemnización up to a maximum of one year's pay. In both cases the daily amount is capped at twice the daily minimum wage (SMI), including the proportional extra payments.

Why does FOGASA pay less than my court award?

Because of two limits in art. 33 ET. FOGASA recomputes the indemnización on a base of 30 días per year (or 20 in concurso), even if a court awarded 33, and it caps the daily wage at twice the daily SMI. A higher earner is therefore scaled down. The difference remains a debt of the employer, recoverable in the insolvency if there are assets.

When can I claim from FOGASA?

When the employer is legally insolvent or in a concurso and cannot pay the wages or compensation owed. FOGASA does not cover an employer who can pay but refuses; that is an ordinary claim before the Juzgado de lo Social. The fund also has its own one-year deadline, so claim promptly once the debt and insolvency are established.

Is the FOGASA ceiling the same every year?

No. The daily ceiling is set at twice the daily SMI (salario mínimo interprofesional), which the Government usually updates once a year, so the maximum FOGASA can pay per day rises when the minimum wage rises. Always check the ceiling for the year your claim relates to.