{"id":3542,"date":"2026-10-23T18:36:03","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T16:36:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tecemabogados.com\/?p=3542"},"modified":"2026-10-23T18:36:04","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T16:36:04","slug":"first-employee-checklist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tecemabogados.com\/en\/first-employee-checklist\/","title":{"rendered":"Hiring your first employee: the legal checklist before day 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hiring your first employee<\/strong> is good news for any business, but it is also the moment you step onto new ground: employment and Social Security obligations. Most of them are simple if they are dealt with on time and expensive if they come to light during an inspection. At Tecem Abogados we have put together the list of what you need to have sorted before day one, with the regulation behind each point.<\/p>\n

The company registers with Social Security before hiring<\/h2>\n

If you have never had employees, the first step is not the contract but the company. The General Social Security Act (Ley General de la Seguridad Social)<\/a> requires employers to apply for registration in the General Scheme “as a prior and essential requirement” when they start their activity. With that registration you obtain the contribution account code, the number Social Security uses to identify your company as an employer.<\/p>\n

In the application you will have to state, among other details, the managing body or the collaborating mutua that will cover occupational contingencies, and the applicable collective agreement. If you are self-employed and about to hire your first employee, the obligation is the same: for these purposes you are an employer too. If you are also thinking of making the jump to a limited company, you may be interested in what we explain about moving from self-employed to an SL<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Your first employee’s registration is filed before they start, not after<\/h2>\n

This is the most common mistake and one of the most closely monitored. The Social Security regulation on affiliation and registrations states that the registration application must be submitted “prior to the start of the provision of services”. It makes no difference whether it is a trial day or a first shift to get to know the job: if your first employee starts working without being registered, you are already out of time.<\/p>\n

If the company fails to comply, the worker can request their own registration directly, and the General Treasury of Social Security reports that request to the Labour Inspectorate.<\/p>\n

The contract, in writing and notified within the following 10 days<\/h2>\n

The Workers’ Statute (Estatuto de los Trabajadores)<\/a> allows verbal contracts, but requires written form in many cases: part-time contracts, permanent seasonal (fijo-discontinuo) contracts, training contracts, temporary contracts of more than 4 weeks or remote work contracts, among others. In addition, either party can ask for it to be formalised in writing at any time. Our advice is clear: always sign your first employee’s contract in writing.<\/p>\n

Once it is signed, you have to notify its content to the public employment office within the 10 days following its conclusion, whether or not the contract had to be in writing. The same applies to any extensions. On top of that come two duties that often go unnoticed:<\/p>\n