# How to keep a working-time record step by step in your company

> Organise your employees’ working-time record step by step: what Spanish law requires today, what to decide first, and how to run it in TalentoHQ.

![Illustration of a daily working-time record organised by week.](https://talentohq.com/assets/blog/registro-de-jornada-paso-a-paso-9508c4f6.webp)

   03 November 2026

An employee working-time record is the daily note of when each person’s working day starts and ends. Since May 2019, every company in Spain with employees must keep one.

In this guide you see what Spanish law asks today, what to decide before you start, and how to run the record day to day in TalentoHQ, from the schedule to the export.

## What a working-time record is and what it must include

The working-time record is the daily record with the concrete start and end time of each employee’s working day. If you are self-employed and you hire someone, that person’s working day is recorded too.

The schedule is what you plan. The record is what actually happens each day. Comparing both shows days with more or fewer hours than planned.

The record includes:

- Start and end time of each person’s working day, every day.
- For part-time contracts: a day-by-day record and a monthly summary given with the payslip.
- For overtime: a day-by-day record totalled in the pay period, with a copy of the summary on the payslip.

## What is mandatory in Spain today and what is still in progress

[Article 34.9 of the Workers’ Statute (Estatuto de los Trabajadores)](https://www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2015-11430) sets these duties today:

1. Keep a daily record of working time.
2. Organise and document it through a collective agreement, a company agreement or, failing that, a company decision after consulting the workers’ legal representatives.
3. Keep the records for four years.
4. Make them available to employees, their legal representatives and the Labour and Social Security Inspectorate (Inspección de Trabajo y Seguridad Social).

The article does not set a specific format. What matters is a daily record that reflects the real working day and is available when requested.

As of 2 November 2026, the Ministry of Labour and Social Economy is processing a [draft royal decree](https://expinterweb.mites.gob.es/participa/listado?estado=2&tramite=1) that develops the Workers’ Statute on working-time records. The Council of Ministers authorised urgent processing on 30 September 2025. The text put to public hearing in October 2025 proposed a daily record by digital means, and that text can change before approval. As of that date, the draft is not approved by the Council of Ministers and not published in the BOE, so what is mandatory today is what this section describes. You can follow the [status of the rule](https://talentohq.com/news/digital-time-tracking-law-2026) in that article.

## Before you start: six decisions to design your system

1. **Who records and how.** Each person notes the start and end of their working day. Choose the method by role: computer, phone or a shared device at the workplace.
2. **Breaks.** The [Ministry guide](https://www.inclusion.gob.es/w/el-ministerio-de-trabajo-migraciones-y-seguridad-social-publica-la-guia-sobre-el-registro-de-jornada) recommends recording them so the record reflects real working time.
3. **Corrections.** Decide who can correct an entry and always ask for the reason for the change.
4. **Review.** Decide who reviews the record and set a regular rhythm that fits your team.
5. **Documentation.** Write down how the record works. Follow your collective agreement or company agreement. If there is none, the company decides after consulting the legal representatives. If there are no representatives, ask your labour adviser how to document it.
6. **Communication.** Explain to the team how to record, where to see their hours and whom to ask for a correction. If you use location, turn it on only where needed and tell the team.

Before you move to a digital system, you can work through the full preparation list in the [SME checklist](https://talentohq.com/news/digital-working-time-record-checklist-smes).

## Step 1 in TalentoHQ: create the schedule and assign it

In TalentoHQ, the working-time record starts from a work schedule assigned to each person. You create a schedule with the hours for the week and assign it from each person’s file. With a schedule for the day, that person can start their activity from Home.

![Work schedule created in TalentoHQ Schedules settings.](https://talentohq.com/assets/blog/registro-de-jornada-horario-33d2a3df.webp)

## Step 2: each person records the start and end of their day

On Home, each person sees today’s schedule, starts their activity when they begin work and stops it when they finish. Location is requested only when the office requires it.

If the team clocks in on a shared device at the workplace, each person uses their own access code on the quick clock-in page. That code identifies one person, so hand it over privately. People can clock in from the browser, the phone, a QR code or a shared tablet.

![TalentoHQ home screen with today’s schedule and the button to start the activity.](https://talentohq.com/assets/blog/registro-de-jornada-inicio-4658c0ea.webp)

## Step 3: review the week and correct with a reason

In the activity report you see, week by week or month by month, the schedule, the recorded activity and what was planned for each day. If an entry is missing, you add the activity on that day. If hours need correcting, you explain the reason for the change, and that reason stays in the history.

Whoever reviews the team’s records resolves open entries, overlaps and empty days first, then differences from the schedule. Once the whole month is reviewed, you can close it.

To help the team record on time, you can set up [clock-in reminders](https://talentohq.com/news/never-forget-to-clock-in-smart-notifications-in-talentohq).

![Weekly activity report in TalentoHQ with planned schedule and recorded activity.](https://talentohq.com/assets/blog/registro-de-jornada-informe-semanal-326b22ed.webp)

## Step 4: export the report when you are asked for it

From the report you export the period you need to Excel, with the fields you choose. That way the record is ready for your payroll adviser, for the person or for the Inspectorate whenever they ask for it. The [time management](https://talentohq.com/features/time-management) page has the full module detail.

## AI as support for the working-time record

Artificial intelligence makes information easier to reach while you keep the record. Decisions and checks stay with the person and the reviewer.

Someone on the team can ask, for example: “Show me my clock-ins from last week” or “Start my working day today and tell me if I already have an open activity.” A reviewer can ask “Show me the clock-ins pending review.” A clock-in prepared with AI is left ready for review. AI does not replace that review. AI is optional, can be turned off and is billed separately by usage. It always works within your permissions. Read more on the [artificial intelligence](https://talentohq.com/features/artificial-intelligence) page.

With the record organised by person and by day, and the change history and reports in one place, you have every working day ready to review or share when you need it.

Practical information. For your specific case, check your collective agreement and consult your labour advisor.

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## Frequently asked questions

### Is a working-time record mandatory?

Yes. Since May 2019, article 34.9 of the Workers’ Statute requires the company to keep a daily record with the start and end time of each employee’s working day.

### What data must the working-time record include?

The concrete start and end time of each person’s working day, every day. For part-time contracts, also the monthly total, with a copy of the summary given with the payslip, and for overtime, the total for the pay period with a copy on the payslip. Recording breaks as well is a recommendation in the Ministry guide.

### Is a paper sheet or an Excel file enough as a working-time record?

Article 34.9 does not set a specific format. What matters is that the record is daily, reflects each person’s real working day and is available when requested. A digital system with a change history makes all three easier.

### How long is the record kept and who can consult it?

The company keeps it for four years, available to employees, their legal representatives and the Labour and Social Security Inspectorate.

### Is a digital working-time record mandatory in 2026?

As of 2 November 2026, the draft royal decree that proposes recording by digital means is not approved and not published in the BOE. What is mandatory today is the daily record in article 34.9, which does not set a format. Follow the [status of the rule](https://talentohq.com/news/digital-time-tracking-law-2026).

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Canonical URL: https://talentohq.com/news/time-tracking-step-by-step