Spain/Visa

Normally, when you enter Spain you do so under a tourist visa that is valid for up to 90 days. If you are staying in Spain longer than 90 days you will need a residence or work visa.

Visas

All visa applications from the US are handled by BLS International. Once you have the appropriate documentation, you must book an appointment with BLS where they will review your application and send it to the local Spanish consulate. You must apply to the consular district in which you reside.

Study Visa

This visa is for any stay exceeding 90 days for studies, training, internships or voluntary work. This visa may also be issued for stays for au pairs and for conversation class assistants. Studies must be for a bachelors or higher degree, or for a certificate.

You must prove that you have sufficient financial resources to fund your studies/internship. Normally this is covered by a school stating that room and board is part of the tuition you're paying. The total amount of funding required is the same amount as the non-lucrative visa.

Note that this visa does not grant a residence permit, but is considered an "extended stay" and so does not count the same for total number of years residing in Spain when calculating total length of residence when applying for permanent residency/citizenship.

Student Visa as an Au Pair

You can work as an au pair for a family in Spain. You must be between 18 and 30 years of age. There are services like Au Pair in Spain who connect au pairs with families. English speakers are sought after. You must also attend Spanish classes and the family must sign a contract with you that recognizes you must be free to take 20 hours of Spanish classes per week. So, essentially this is a study visa for Spanish language students where the host family agrees to be responsible for you financially (provide room and board).

Job-Seeker Visa

If you graduate from a Spanish school you may apply for a job-seeker visa that allows you to stay and look for work for up to a year.

Telework / Digital Nomad

Nationals of third countries who travel to Spain to carry out a remote work or professional activity for companies located outside Spain, through the exclusive use of computer, telematics and telecommunication media and systems.

For this visa you need to prove that you make the equivalent of ​€2,368/month. You will also need a letter from your employer stating that you are allowed to work remotely.

You can apply for this visa either from your home country or from within Spain. If you apply from outside Spain the permit is only valid for a year (with the option to renew) but if you apply from within Spain your visa will be valid for 3 years (with option to renew). However, this may come with some risk, see Spain#Applying for Visas Within Spain

Entrepreneur Visa

This visa has similar requirements to the digital nomad visa. It requires you to prove you have enough funds to support yourself, but it also requires that your business idea be approved by the UGE. Businesses with technology components (use of social media, the web, AI, software development) are more likely to be approved.

Highly Skilled Worker / Company Transfer Visa

Visa for Spanish companies to hire highly qualified workers and for intra-company transfers from a branch abroad. You must be a highly qualified professional, member of senior management personnel meeting certain criteria, or as a graduate or post-graduate of a prestigious university and/or business school.

In this process, your employer will first submit an application to the Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones / Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos (Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration's Large Business and Strategic Groups Unit), aka UGE. They will require your CV (translated to Spanish), your diploma (Apostilled by your institution's state and translated), and a copy of your entire passport. In return you will get an initial Autorización de Residencia (residence permit) which assigns you an NIE. This permit allows you to live in Spain for up to 2-3 years and can be renewed indefinitely.

The UGE has 20 business days to approve your application, otherwise it is approved by default (considered a "positive" assent). Contributor Aster received her permit after 11 business days.

Once you receive your residence/work permit, you can then apply for a Schengen travel visa from your local Spanish consulate which allows you entry into the country for work reasons. They will add a sticker covering one of the pages in your passport.

If you have any family members (spouse, children) accompanying you, they will each apply for a family reunification visa with you listed as their sponsor.

All Documents Required

• CV/Resume translated to Spanish
• Proof of skills, which is either:
  • Diploma Apostilled and a sworn translation
  • Letters of recommendation from your employers with sworn translations
• Copy/scan of all pages of your passport
• Police_Clearance_Certificates apostilled with a sworn translation

EU Blue Card

Spain's version of the EU Blue Card has very similar criteria to the Highly Skilled Worker visa. If you find a job in Spain you will need to ask your employer to apply for this type of visa for you. It allows you to transfer residence to another EU country if your job in Spain ends. It is typically valid for up to 3 years and can be renewed. This visa requires a minimum annual salary of €38,844.

Getting this visa also depends on whether your job is considered having a shortage of workers and there are no Spanish applicants for the position.

Non-working/Non-lucrative Visa

Visa to reside in Spain without carrying out any gainful (work or professional) activity, provided that the applicant has sufficient and guaranteed means to live on. You won't be able to work for any Spanish company.

North American Language and Culture Assistants Program NALCAP

Teach English in Spain in partnership with the Spanish embassy.

Family Reunification

​For those with a spouse, children or parents who are Spanish residents. These visas require a sponsor who is a Spanish citizen or foreigner with a temporary or permanent residence permit.

Spouses will need to provide a marriage license, apostilled with a sworn translation. Children will need to submit birth certificates with their sponsor's name matched to the parents listed (also apostilled/translated). Partners in domestic partnerships can also prove their relationship without a marriage license.

Applying for Visas Within Spain

In some cases, you can enter Spain on a tourist visa and then apply for a work/residence permit.

Example 1: You could enter Spain on a tourist visa, then get a job as a highly skilled worker. Once your company's application for your visa is approved by the UGE and you are given an NIE, you would then get your TIE within Spain, which proves your temporary residence.

Example 2: You could enter Spain on a tourist visa, then apply for the digital nomad visa. Once approved, you get a visa for a longer term than if you apply from the US.

Just note that this path can be risky, as:

• Your initial entry into Spain may be rejected if they think you intend to stay permanently without having a prior visa (i.e. a tourist visa on entry may need proof of exit/accommodations)
• In theory, once you get a residence permit, you will need your TIE in order to re-enter Spain from abroad if questioned at the border. Since it is extremely difficult to book timely appointments to get your TIE, this could leave you blocked from re-entering Spain.

The standard procedure is to apply for a visa from your local consulate and they will attach a multiple-entry Shengen visa to your passport. This frees you from having to have your TIE at the border.

Just note that typically when a border agent sees a US passport, they will just stamp you through. But it's important to be fully aware of any potential risks.

Permanent Residency

If you have lived in Spain for at least 5 years, you can apply for a long term residence permit.

To get this you will submit an application and if approved you will get your long term residence card.

Required Documentation:

• EX-11 Application
• Passport and copy
• Proof of permits allowing residence in Spain over 5 years
• Proof of residence in Spain over 5 years
• Travel history
• Police Background Check for any country you've lived in for the past 5 years. Apostilled and with a sworn translation as needed
• Medical certificate, apostilled and sworn translation (a certificate from Spain won't need to be apostilled/translated)
• Proof of residence in the consular distric
• Proof of payment of fee

Citizenship pathways

See wikipedia for detailed laws.

Citizenship by Descent

You can claim citizenship if you were born outside Spain to a father, mother, grandfather or grandmother, originally Spanish and who, having suffered exile for political or ideological reasons, beliefs or sexual orientation and identity, lost or renounced their Spanish nationality.

Citizenship by Marriage

If you marry a Spanish citizen and reside in the country for a year (and stay married) you can apply for citizenship.

Naturalisation

You can apply for citizenship if you have lived in Spain for 10 years (2 years if you are a national by birth of Latin American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal or are of Sephardic Jewish origin). You will need to pass language and civics/history tests. Only A2-level language is necessary.