A new employment framework for artists and technical staff: fixed-term contracts, travel, work by minors and intimacy coordination
Royal Decree 607/2026 was published on 25 July, establishing a new framework for the special employment relationship covering artists and certain technical and support staff directly involved in artistic activities.
The decree will replace the rules in place since 1985 and will enter into force on 25 May 2027.
The change directly affects the audiovisual sector, the performing arts and music, and provides more detailed rules for situations that frequently arise in productions, shoots, shows and performances.
Some aspects, such as fixed-term artistic employment contracts and the inclusion of certain technical and support staff in this special employment relationship, were already introduced by the 2022 reform. The new decree now consolidates that framework and introduces much more extensive regulation.
Fixed-term employment must be justified
Working on specific projects, seasons, shoots or performances is common in the sector. But this does not mean that every contract can automatically be offered on a fixed-term basis.
A fixed-term artistic employment contract must meet a genuine temporary need of the employer. This requires precise identification of the reason for hiring, the specific circumstances giving rise to it and how they relate to the intended duration of the contract.
This type of contract may also be used for technical and support staff who are directly and exclusively involved in carrying out the activity that justifies the contract, provided they do not perform the company’s ongoing or permanent activities.
The key point is that project-based work does not remove the obligation to properly justify the use of fixed-term employment.
Intimacy coordination
One of the most significant changes concerns intimate scenes.
Where an activity involves simulated sex, nudity, simulated sexual violence or intense physical contact, company protocols must provide for a person to perform intimacy coordination duties.
Their role will be to protect participants’ boundaries and consent, and to prevent harassment or sexual violence.
More detailed rules on work by minors
Artistic work by children under 16 will remain exceptional and will require authorisation from the labour authority.
The new decree sets out in considerable detail how this work must be carried out. Among other matters, it regulates maximum working hours according to age, rest periods, compatibility with education, accompaniment during work and restrictions on night work.
It also establishes that, in this sector, children under 16 may only work as employees, within a company’s organisational structure and under its direction.
For productions involving minors, this reinforces an already essential principle: permits and working conditions must be planned at an early stage of the project.
Travel and working time
Travel is also subject to specific rules.
When travel takes place at the company’s request and the main artistic activity is not carried out that day, the worker will be considered to be at the company’s disposal and must remain registered with Spain’s Social Security system.
This is particularly relevant to shoots, tours and productions with locations in different cities.
For artists, working time is not limited to the performance or shoot itself. It may also include preparatory activities, pre-production, recording, post-production or promotion when carried out under the company’s direction.
For artists, these activities count as working time when carried out under the company’s direction, and the decree expressly prohibits these activities from being performed without pay.
Although there are still several months before the decree enters into force, it is worth starting to review contracts, protocols and procedures. The new framework affects many common situations in the sector and reinforces the need to include employment management in project planning from the outset.