Within the different degrees of permanent disability, partial permanent disability for the usual profession is the lowest degree. It is recognized when, due to an illness or an accident, the worker suffers a decrease of no less than 33% in his normal performance for his usual profession, but without being prevented from continuing to work in his usual profession.
Unlike permanent total, absolute or great disability, in this case a monthly pension is not collected. That is, Social Security pays compensation in a lump sum, that is, in a single payment. Furthermore, this benefit is compatible with continuing to work and even maintaining the same position, as long as the worker can continue carrying out his or her activity.
Therefore, one of the most frequent doubts among those who are processing this degree of disability is what is the maximum amount that can be collected in 2026.
Maximum amount of permanent partial disability in 2026
Compensation for permanent partial disability is equivalent to 24 monthly payments of the regulatory base that was used to calculate the temporary disability from which the permanent disability derives. If there was no prior temporary disability, the regulatory basis that would have corresponded if that protection had existed is taken. And all this is charged in a single payment.
According to the Social Security website, the maximum limit for contribution bases in the General Regime has been set at 5,101.20 euros per month. Furthermore, from that same limit the additional solidarity contribution operates for the part of the salary that exceeds it.
Therefore, if the worker’s regulatory base reaches that maximum limit, the theoretical maximum amount of permanent partial disability in 2026 would be 122,428.80 euros, the result of multiplying 5,101.20 euros by 24 monthly payments.
Although both concepts are often mixed, partial permanent disability is not subject to the limit of the maximum pension in the same terms as a monthly pension, because it is not paid as a periodic pension but as a single payment compensation. The maximum initial amount of public pensions in 2026 is 3,359.60 euros per month or 47,034.40 euros per year, but this limit affects pensions, not this flat-rate compensation.
How permanent partial disability is calculated
There is no fixed amount that is the same for all workers. To know how much corresponds in each case, you must first determine the regulatory basis that was used to calculate the temporary disability and, once obtained, multiply it by 24.
This means that two workers with the same injury can charge very different amounts if their contribution bases were different. It also implies that, even if a person has a high salary, the final amount is conditioned by the maximum contribution limit in force in each year. In 2026, this ceiling will once again be 5,101.20 euros per month.
Requirements to access permanent partial disability
Access to this benefit depends on the cause of the disability. If it results from an accident, whether work-related or not, or from an occupational disease, a prior contribution period is not required. On the other hand, if it results from a common illness, the LGSS requires having contributed at least 1,800 days within the 10 years immediately preceding the date on which the temporary disability from which the permanent disability derives ends. Furthermore, in general, the worker must be registered or in a situation similar to registration.