On July 16, 2026, the Tribunal Superior de Xustiza de Galicia ruled for a divorced mother from Vigo in a two-year dispute with Spain's Social Security. The woman, who has a dependent child, had been ordered to repay €2,520 in Ingreso Mínimo Critical (IMV) after authorities found her annual income exceeded the eligibility threshold by €1,400. The court found that she had neither applied for the benefit nor concealed information. It had been granted automatically.
The case began when the Instituto Nacional de la Seguridad Social reviewed her IMV payments for 2020 and 2021. Her total annual income reached €11,144, including €3,600 in child support, while the official IMV eligibility limit stood at €8,705. She received the benefit for 16 months without applying, and declared all her income sources.
At first, the Juzgado de lo Social No. 4 in Vigo sided with Social Security and upheld its repayment demand. The mother appealed, arguing that she had not misled the authorities or acted in bad faith. The higher court agreed. It stressed that the IMV is designed to cover basic subsistence needs and that the woman had not caused an improper payment through false statements or omissions.
The tribunal cited the Cakarevic doctrine, which says recipients should not have to repay benefits when they have not engaged in deception or misconduct, particularly when the support covers impressive living needs. The IMV had also been granted automatically, without an application or manipulation by the beneficiary.
The ruling applies specifically to this case. The court made clear that overpayments are not automatically exempt from recovery, but the absence of fraud or bad faith, along with the fact that she had not applied, can be decisive. The mother will now recover the €2,520 Social Security had claimed.
The decision comes as Spain continues to refine its approach to social benefits and eligibility. Recent changes to unemployment subsidies include new rules allowing short-term workers to access support with just 90 days of contributions. They reflect ongoing debates about fairness and access in the welfare system. For more on these developments, see the analysis of recent changes to unemployment subsidies in Spain.
