By July, Spain's Ingreso Mínimo Critical (IMV) had reached 879,225 households, information from the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration. The benefit covered 2,682,646 people, with an average monthly payment of €504.5 per household and total monthly spending of €473.3 million. The IMV is a means-tested minimum-income benefit intended to reduce poverty and social exclusion by guaranteeing eligible households a minimum income.
Children and adolescents make up a large share of those covered: 1,089,965 minors, or 41% of all beneficiaries. A total of 602,620 recipient households included children, among them 147,491 single-parent households, most headed by women. The figures show how the programme supports families with children while also providing a wider income safety net.
The Complemento de Ayuda para la Infancia (CAPI), the IMV’s child-related supplement, reached 613,088 households in July. Average support was €67.3 per child and €122.8 per household with minors. Monthly amounts vary by age: €115 for each child under three, €80.50 for those aged three to under six, and €57.50 for those aged six to under 18. The supplement may also be available without the basic IMV benefit, subject to its own eligibility conditions and broader income thresholds.
The reported average age of people receiving IMV support was 28.6 years; excluding principal benefit holders, it was 20.2 years. These figures describe the people covered within beneficiary households, not just applicants or basic benefit holders, and reflect the large share of children and young people among recipients.
Spain’s Law 19/2021 sets out the IMV’s statutory structure, regulating the benefit and its eligibility conditions. The rules assess household economic vulnerability and composition, and generally require legal and effective residence in Spain for at least one year. Exceptions include minors joining a household and victims of human trafficking or sexual exploitation. Authorities also assess income and assets. The benefit can be combined with employment income under conditions intended to support people entering or staying in work. Applications and related procedures are handled through the responsible social-security administration, including the ministry’s official electronic services.
Spain’s social-protection approach for vulnerable groups has drawn attention in recent years as authorities continue to address risks facing minors. Efforts to protect children from exploitation have featured in cases such as the dismantling of a trafficking network in the Canary Islands, where authorities intervened to rescue minors from abuse and illegal transfers. The case reflects the continuing challenges and the role of social safety nets such as the IMV.
Introduced in 2020 and later regulated under Law 19/2021, the IMV is part of Spain’s social-security system. Its child supplement extends support to eligible households that may not qualify for the basic benefit. Spain still faces the wider policy challenge of reducing child poverty and social exclusion, with the IMV and CAPI among the measures intended to address it. Allowing the benefit to be combined with employment income is meant to ensure that work does not become financially prohibitive for recipients, while eligibility rules set which households can receive support.
