The Tax Agency can seize our salary or pension if we have an outstanding debt, but this is not the only case. Throughout our lives, people can accumulate debts, fines and even sanctions through different administrative procedures, which leads us to think about the real reasons why my payroll can be garnished.
The Treasury and other administrations can seize a person’s payroll whenever there are outstanding tax debts, non-payments to Social Security, fines with regional or local administrations, judicial resolutions that require payment to third parties, or for failure to comply with deferral agreements.
Now, neither the Treasury nor any administration can simply seize the money, that is, they have to formally notify it so that the citizen, if they deem it appropriate, can complain if they consider it unfair. Furthermore, the law explains that there is a part of your salary that cannot be seized.
How much can the Treasury seize my payroll in 2026?
The Treasury cannot seize the part of the payroll or pension that is equal to or less than the Minimum Interprofessional Wage (SMI). This is established in article 607 of the Civil Procedure Law (available in this Official State Gazette), which says that “the salary, salary, pension, remuneration or its equivalent, which does not exceed the amount indicated for the minimum interprofessional salary, cannot be seized.”
For this year 2026, the SMI is legally set at 1,221 euros per month (as established by Royal Decree 126/2026).
For salaries that exceed that figure, the cited article establishes a progressive scale that determines what percentage can be garnished only on the amount that exceeds that limit:
- Up to €1,221 (1 SMI): Unseizable (0%).
- Between €1,221 and €2,442 (2 SMI): 30% of this section is seized.
- Between €2,442 and €3,663 (3 SMI): 50% of this section is seized.
- Between €3,663 and €4,884 (4 SMI): 60% of this section is seized.
- From €4,884 to €6,105 (5 SMI): 75% of this section is seized.
- Amounts exceeding €6,105: 90% of the excess is seized.
It must be taken into account that not the entire payroll is seized, but rather a part of the excess section. To understand it, let’s take the example of a worker whose salary is 1,600 euros. First you have to remove the SMI (1,221 euros), which, as decided, cannot be seized. The result (what is left over) is 379 euros, to which 30% will be applied, which means that the maximum amount that will be seized that month will be 113.70 euros.
In the following table you can see the maximum amount that can be seized in 2026 based on your salary:
| Monthly Net Salary | Maximum seizable part |
|---|---|
| €1,221 or less | €0 |
| €1,300 | €23.70 |
| €1,400 | €53.70 |
| €1,500 | €83.70 |
| €1,600 | €113.70 |
| €1,700 | €143.70 |
| €1,800 | €173.70 |
| €1,900 | €203.70 |
| €2,000 | €233.70 |
| €2,100 | €263.70 |
| €2,200 | €293.70 |
Now, what happens if I have two salaries or collect two pensions? In this case, the law requires adding all the income and applying this rule to the total amount, not separately.
What happens if I have family responsibilities? In this sense, point 4 of article 607 of the LEC explains that if you have family responsibilities and your salary does not exceed five times the SMI, you can request from the Administration of Justice a reduction of between 10% and 15% in the garnishment percentages.
What happens with the embargo on extraordinary payments?
One of the biggest reasons for confusion comes with extra payments, but the Central Economic Administrative Court (TEAC) has set clear and binding criteria to ensure that no more is taken from you than is legal. To do this, it is based on article 27.2 of the Workers’ Statute; this rule requires taking into account the accrual period and whether or not payments are prorated:
- If it is collected in 12 payments (extra prorated payments): The non-attachable limit increases every month. The calculation results from dividing the annual SMI for 2026 (17,094 euros) by 12 months. Therefore, your non-attachable salary will be 1,424.50 euros each month.
- If you collect in 14 payments: In the ordinary 12 months, your protected limit is 1,221 euros. However, in the months in which you collect your normal payroll along with the extra pay (usually summer and Christmas), the non-attachable limit doubles, becoming 2,442 euros.
In this way, the law guarantees that, regardless of how your company pays you, at the end of the year the 17,094 euros per year established by the State as a vital minimum for the worker are always respected.