The State Public Employment Service (SEPE) will pay the unemployment benefits and the rest of the unemployment benefits starting on Monday, May 11, 2026. The usual payment date is the 10th, but this month it falls on a Sunday, so the official payment is moved to the first following business day.
The operation affects both the contributory unemployment benefit and the rest of the subsidies, such as the one for those over 52 years of age or the one for insufficient contributions (which is collected when one does not have the right to unemployment). Now, although the SEPE has an official date, as with Social Security pensions, the payment can be advanced by banking entities to Wednesday, the 6th.
The advance of unemployment or unemployment aid is possible, since entities such as CaixaBank, Banco Santander or BBVA have the possibility of depositing it before the official date thanks to what is known as the “Single Centralized Account” that they share with the General Treasury of Social Security (TGSS).
Thanks to this mechanism, banks can know in advance who the beneficiaries are and the amount they must collect, and must do so before the “value date”, which is the deadline. This mechanism is regulated in article 24 of Royal Decree 696/2018, published in this Official State Gazette.
What day is unemployment collected in May 2026?
The SEPE will make the payment of benefits between Monday, May 11 and Friday, May 15. When the 10th falls on a Sunday, the official calendar moves one day and the agency issues the payment order on the first following business day. However, the effective collection will depend on the policy of each banking entity.
Below are the indicative dates for entering unemployment in May 2026, according to the bank:
| Banking entity | Expected entry date |
|---|---|
| Openbank | Starting Wednesday, May 6 |
| Santander Bank | Starting Wednesday, May 6 |
| Mediolanum Bank | Starting Wednesday, May 6 |
| Boxseven | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Engineers Fund | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Deutsche Bank | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Bankinter | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Evobank | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| BBVA | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Cajamar | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Unicaja | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Kutxabank | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| N26 | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Rural Bank | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Cajasur | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| Banking March | Starting Thursday, May 7 |
| CaixaBank | Starting Sunday, May 10 |
| Imaginbank | Starting Monday, May 11 |
| Ibercaja | Starting Monday, May 11 |
| Abanca | Starting Monday, May 11 |
| Sabadell Bank | Starting Monday, May 11 |
| ING | Starting Monday, May 11 |
How do you know how much you are going to collect in unemployment?
Through the SEPE Electronic Headquarters it is possible to know how much unemployment will be collected this month, as well as the history of previous payrolls. Regarding the contributory benefit, “unemployment”, you should know that the amount, during the first 180 days of benefit, is charged at 70% of the regulatory base and from day 181 the amount is reduced to 60% of said base until the aid runs out or a new job is found. It must be remembered that there are maximum and minimum amounts established by law.
Regarding unemployment benefits, those who were recognized before November 1, 2024 will continue to receive 80% of the IPREM. On the other hand, the subsidies granted from that date begin with an amount of 95% of the IPREM, which will gradually decrease in the following months, as stipulated in Royal Decree-Law 2/2024.
Why haven’t I collected unemployment this month?
The reasons may be various, but if unemployment benefits or unemployment benefits have not been collected by May 15, it may be due to some of these causes:
- Having exhausted the contributory unemployment benefit to which you were entitled.
- Having committed a sanction by the SEPE that implies the suspension of the benefit or subsidy. Some of these situations may be not “sealing the strike.”
- That the SEPE had paid you a higher unemployment benefit than what you were entitled to and has now claimed those undue payments.
- Having started working and not notifying the SEPE, or receiving other incompatible aid or pension, causes the payment to stop immediately.
- There may be a “non-payment key” in your file for a previous incident that has not yet been resolved.
In any of these cases, it is best to contact the SEPE directly to clarify the situation.