Few employment topics get as many searches as digital time tracking in Spain. And few cause so much confusion, because three different things get mixed up: what has been mandatory since 2019, what a reform that has been in the works for over a year proposes, and what some software vendors claim with more enthusiasm than accuracy.
At Interconecta we implement time tracking and HR systems for SMEs and we've built a time clock module for Dolibarr, so we've been answering these questions for a while. Let's sort them out.
What's already mandatory: recording working hours since 2019
Royal Decree-Law 8/2019 added section 9 to Article 34 of Spain's Workers' Statute (Estatuto de los Trabajadores). Since May 12, 2019, every company must keep a daily record of working hours for each employee, with the exact start and end time, without prejudice to flexible working hours.
In short, this is what the law requires today:
- Record each employee's start and end time every day.
- Keep the records for four years and make them available to employees, their representatives and the Labor Inspectorate.
- Set up the system through collective bargaining, a company agreement or, failing that, an employer decision after consulting employee representatives.
The current rule does not say the record has to be digital. Paper is allowed. But inspectors and courts require it to be reliable, objective and tamper-proof, and that's where an Excel sheet the manager fills in at the end of the month, or a weekly roster signed on Friday, doesn't make the cut. Non-compliance is a serious infringement, with fines currently ranging from €751 to €7,500 per company.
What the digital time tracking reform proposes
Spain's Ministry of Labor has been pushing a time tracking reform since 2025, first as part of the bill to cut the working week to 37.5 hours (which Parliament rejected in September 2025) and then as a standalone royal decree. The drafts made public agree on the essentials:
- Mandatory digital records. No more paper.
- Immediate remote access for the Labor Inspectorate to the records, without visiting the company.
- Clock-ins for start, end and breaks, also recording overtime and work mode (on-site or remote).
- Interoperability: the system must be able to export data in a format set by the Ministry.
- Tamper-proofing and traceability: every change must be logged, with who made it and when.
- Fines per employee, not per company, of up to €10,000 for each affected employee in the most serious cases.
When does digital time tracking become mandatory in Spain?
This is the most searched question, and the honest answer, as of October 15, 2026, is: there's no date yet. The reform has gone through the Council of State and has been announced several times "for the next Cabinet meeting". With Parliament dissolved and elections called for late November 2026, its approval is up in the air. It has not been published in the BOE.
Once approved, the text itself provides for a transition period: the digital record requirement would take effect several months after the Ministry publishes the technical specifications for the format. In other words, there will be some time to adapt, but not much.
Don't confuse the reform with Royal Decree 723/2026 on transparency in working conditions, published in September 2026: that one doesn't change working time records.
Why you shouldn't wait for the date
Our advice is the same we give for Verifactu, Spain's new invoicing compliance system: don't wait for the BOE. For three reasons:
- You can already be fined today if your records aren't reliable. Inspectors have been requesting records during visits for years and rejecting those that have been "reconstructed".
- Digital records save you work: rosters, overtime calculations, vacation and leave, reports for your accountant. It stops being an obligation and becomes a tool.
- What the reform requires is what any decent time clock system already does. If you set it up properly now, you won't need to change anything when the rule is published.
What a digital time tracking system needs to comply (today and tomorrow)
| Requirement | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Clock-in from phone, web or terminal | Each team clocks in the way that suits it: office, construction site, delivery, remote work. With optional geolocation for field staff. |
| Tamper-proof record with change history | If someone corrects a clock-in, the system logs who, when and why. That's what the reform requires and what convinces an inspector. |
| Breaks, overtime and work mode | The record stops being just "in and out" and reflects the real working day. |
| 4-year retention and export | Reports by employee and period, as PDF and as data files, ready for the Inspectorate or the works council. |
| Integration with vacation, absences and payroll | So time tracking isn't an isolated system but part of your people management and your ERP. |
| Employee access to their own records | It's a right today and an explicit requirement in the reform. |
Time tracking built into your ERP: the Dolibarr case
Many SMEs already manage customers, invoicing and projects with Dolibarr. Keeping time tracking in the same system avoids duplicate users and data: employees clock in from their phone, hours are assigned to projects when needed, vacation is approved in the same place, and your accountant gets the reports without anyone copying anything. Our Time Tracking and Clock-in module for Dolibarr, available on Dolistore, is designed for exactly this, and we adapt it when a company needs more (shifts, multiple sites, physical terminals, geolocation).
If you use a different ERP (Odoo, ERPNext…) or no ERP at all, there are options too. What matters is choosing a system you won't have to replace a year from now.
How to roll it out without your team hating it
- Define the rules before the tool: schedules, flexibility, breaks, remote work, who approves corrections. And consult employee representatives if you have them.
- Choose the clock-in method by role: phone for field staff, kiosk or terminal for production, web for the office.
- Start with clock-in and vacation, then add timesheets, project hours or payroll. That's how most of our clients do it.
- Train people in ten minutes: if clocking in takes more than that to learn, you chose the wrong system.
- Review the first month with the reports in hand, and fix the rules, not the people.
Let's talk about your case
If you still record working hours on paper or in Excel, or your system doesn't give you reliable reports, now is a good time to fix it, before the reform sets a deadline for you. At Interconecta we help you choose and implement the time clock system that fits your company and the software you already use. Tell us how your team works and we'll tell you what we'd do, with no obligation.
Would your time records pass an inspection?
In a free review, we'll tell you whether your time tracking system complies today and will comply with the reform, and what we'd change. Fixed-price proposal.
Talk to Interconecta