Social Security 2026: Congress demands in-person service without appointment and by telephone

Key data

The Joint Committee for Relations with the Court of Auditors has approved a resolution that requires Social Security System bodies to reverse the trend of forced digitalization that has left thousands of citizens without adequate service, especially the most vulnerable. The resolution, published on October 5, 2026 and referenced as BOE-A-2026-20661, brings concrete mandates with deadlines and requires significant legislative changes.

For companies and labor advisors, the most relevant change is operational: procedures with the INSS and TGSS can be carried out by telephone with the same validity as at the counter, and workers or beneficiaries cannot be rejected for not having an appointment.

What does this regulation establish?

The resolution contains differentiated mandates for each body. Below are the most relevant changes broken down by entity:

The central axis of the resolution is the priority of in-person service for vulnerable groups: elderly people, those with disabilities or with low digital literacy cannot be excluded from their rights for not knowing how to use an electronic office. Progressive digitalization is promoted, but conditioned on not replacing in-person service.

The modification of Law 39/2015 is the most important structural change: if it succeeds, the right to be served in person by the Administration will be expressly recognized in the common administrative procedure regulation, which would affect all public bodies, not just Social Security.

Economic and operational impact

For companies and their HR departments, the changes have immediate practical consequences:

• Management of sick leave and benefits: if the telephone channel is equated with in-person service, workers will be able to initiate benefit procedures (temporary disability, unemployment, retirement) without traveling or depending on available appointments, reducing management times.
• Less absenteeism due to procedures: the elimination of mandatory appointments and the possibility of processing by telephone reduces the need for employees to request time off to go to the Social Security office.
• Advisors and management firms: the equating of the telephone channel can open the door to managing more procedures without the physical presence of the principal, streamlining the operations of offices with many clients.
• TGSS and contributions: the improvement of TGSS data recording and analysis systems can lead to greater detection of contribution errors, which requires companies to keep their data updated and correct.

The direct cost for private companies is zero at this stage: the mandates fall on public bodies. The impact is one of operational efficiency, not regulatory compliance with associated sanctions.

Who does it affect?

• Citizens using Social Security: workers, pensioners, unemployed and anyone who needs to manage benefits with the INSS, TGSS or ISM.
• Vulnerable groups: elderly people, those with disabilities or with low digital literacy, who are the main beneficiaries of the elimination of mandatory appointments.
• HR departments and labor advisors: who manage benefit procedures on behalf of workers or companies.
• Management firms and labor offices: that operate with the INSS and TGSS on a recurring basis.
• Maritime workers affiliated with ISM: who will see improved service quality and recording systems in their specific organization.
• INSS, TGSS and ISM: as bodies directly required to implement the changes and report to Congress.

Practical example

A 68-year-old retired female worker needs to modify her banking details for her pension payment. Until now, if she did not have a digital certificate and the nearest INSS office had a full appointment schedule for weeks, she would be blocked without being able to complete the procedure.

With the changes required by this resolution, the worker will be able to go directly to the office without an appointment and be served in person. Alternatively, once the telephone channel is equated, she will be able to call the INSS and make the data modification by telephone with the same legal validity as if she did it at the counter. In both cases, service must be provided in Spanish.

For a labor management firm that manages benefits for 200 workers of a client company, the telephone equating means being able to resolve contribution incidents or benefit requests without moving the worker or waiting weeks to get an appointment, significantly reducing the time to resolve procedures.

What should companies do now?

1. Inform workers: communicate that the appointment will no longer be mandatory at INSS offices and that benefit procedures can be initiated by telephone, so they can manage their procedures more efficiently.
2. Update internal HR protocols: review procedures for managing sick leave, benefits and procedures with Social Security to incorporate the equated telephone channel once it comes into force.
3. Verify data at TGSS: take advantage of the improvement in TGSS recording systems to verify that the company's contribution and affiliation data are correct, anticipating greater error detection capacity by the body.
4. Follow the December 31, 2026 deadline: the INSS must submit its reports on appointment management and human resources before that date. That report can anticipate changes in office and staff availability, relevant for planning end-of-year procedures.
5. Stay alert to the modification of Law 39/2015: if it succeeds, the right to in-person service will be legally recognized for all public bodies, which can also affect other administrative procedures of the company.

Official source

Consult complete regulation in official source

Notice: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific decisions, consult a qualified professional. Source: https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2026-20661