He has lost his work permit

Companies cannot employ workers who lack residence and work authorization in Spain. If the Inspection detects that a “paperless” worker is providing services, it will impose a fine on the company for a serious violation:

• The amount of the fine is 10,001 euros, at a minimum, for each worker who lacks residence and work authorization.

• In addition, that amount is increased by the equivalent of the contributions that should have been paid since the beginning of the relationship.

If a foreign worker had residence and work authorization in Spain but loses it (for example, because it expires), it will be considered that the company is committing this violation from the moment the permit is lost.

Many companies mistakenly believe that the loss of the work permit allows them to dismiss the worker for breach of contractual good faith (disciplinary dismissal does not entail payment of compensation), but if a company acts in this way, the dismissal will be declared unjustified and it will be obliged to pay compensation of 33 days for each year of service.

If the worker loses the authorization to work in Spain, there is no disciplinary breach, but rather a sudden ineptitude. Therefore:

• The company must process an objective dismissal for sudden ineptitude.

• It must pay the compensation of 20 days of salary for each year of service at the time of delivering the dismissal letter.

In short, it is important to monitor the expiration dates of the residence and work permits of foreign employees, requesting copies of renewals, establishing internal alerts, and periodically reviewing the documentation.

 

Our professionals will inform you about any questions you have regarding immigration and objective dismissals.