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Citizens of the European Union, the European Economic Area Member States (Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) and the Swiss Confederation, as well as their family members, are given the Community foreigner status and have the right to enter, exit, travel and reside freely in Spain. They may also conduct any economic activity (self-employed or employed by others), provide services or study under the same conditions as Spaniards.
Citizens of the States listed below do not require a visa to enter and remain in Spain for up to 90 days for tourism purposes, personal business, family visits or similar that do not require authorization in advance:
| Andorra | Antigua and Barbuda (*) | Argentina | Australia | Bahamas (*) |
| Barbados (*) | Brazil | Brunei Darussalam | Canada | Chile |
| South Korea | Costa Rica | Croatia | El Salvador | United States |
| Guatemala | Honduras | Israel | Japan | Malaysia |
| Mauritius (*) | Mexico | Monaco | Nicaragua | New Zealand |
| Panama | Paraguay | Saint Kitts and Nevis (*) | San Marino | Holy See |
| Seychelles (*) | Singapore | Uruguay | Venezuela |
(*) They will be exempt from obtaining a visa from the date on which the visa exemption agreement signed by the European Community with that country takes effect.
Citizens of the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau, in the People's Republic of China, are also exempt from obtaining a visa.
Citizens of all other countries, regardless of the duration of their stay in Spain, must obtain an entry visa, which they must apply for at the Spanish diplomatic mission or consular office in their area of residence. The visas, validly issued and in effect, attached to their passports or travel documents or, when appropriate, on a separate document, enable foreigners to remain in Spain in the situation for which they were issued, notwithstanding the requirement to obtain, when necessary, a foreigner's identification card.
All foreigners to whom a visa or authorization to reside in Spain has been issued for a period of over six months have the right and the obligation to obtain a foreigner's identification card, which must be applied for in person within one month of arriving in Spain.
For more detailed information, see the websites for the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (www.mae.es), the Secretariat of State for Immigration and Emigration (http://extranjeros.mtin.es) and the Ministry of the Interior (www.mir.es).
If you want to carry out research or educational work, without economic compensation, or take courses or study at officially recognized Spanish education or scientific centers (public or private), you must have a study visa. You must apply for it at the Spanish diplomatic mission or consular office corresponding to your place of residence. To obtain it, you must certify the following:
That you have a passport or travel document in effect for the entire period for which the visa is requested.
You have been accepted at an education or scientific center, such as those indicated above, to take a course or study or to carry out research or educational work, without economic compensation, indicating the hours of attendance and/or an approved study, research or training plan.
The content of the study, training or research plan to be carried out.
That you have medical insurance, for the entire duration of your stay in Spain, which covers the medical and repatriation expenses associated with an accident or sudden illness.
That you have means of subsistence and accommodation for the duration of the stay and, when appropriate, to guarantee your return to your country of origin.
When the duration of the studies or research is in excess of 6 months, must certify, with a doctor's certificate, that you do not have any disease requiring quarantine, as indicated in the International Health Regulations. Adults must also certify that they do not have a criminal record by means of a certificate covering the last five years.
The study visa enables foreigners to stay in Spain for courses, studies, research or training work, for their duration. The family members of students or researchers (spouse and children under the age of 18 or under their parental authority or guardianship) may also obtain a visa to reside in Spain, without requiring the researcher or student to be residing in advance.
Foreigners with a study visa (not their family members) may be authorized to carry out compensated work activities when the employer submits the corresponding application, all requirements established by regulations are fulfilled and the activities are compatible with the studies. The contract must be part-time. If it is full-time, it may not exceed three months, nor coincide with class times.
Students may access the initial residence and work status, without having to apply for a visa, when the business owner or employer seeking to hire them so requests and, in addition, if the labor requirements are met, the foreigner:
If the holder of the study authorization is the beneficiary of aid within the framework of a program included in the scope of Royal Decree 63/2006, dated 27 January, which approves the Personal Statue for Researchers in Training, when applying for renewal, the student status will still apply. A total of four years: the first two as the beneficiary of a grant; the second two under an on-the-job training employment contract.
Foreigners wishing to reside in Spain continuously for a period of over 90 days or indefinitely must obtain an initial non-working residence permit, which is valid for one year. The non-working residence visa must be applied for, prior to coming to Spain, at the Spanish consular office or diplomatic mission corresponding to your country of residence. You must certify that you have sufficient economic means to cover your living and accommodation expenses an, when appropriate, those of your family for the duration of the residence period requested, without having to work.
You may reside indefinitely in Spain and work under the same conditions as Spanish citizens in any of the following cases:
You certify legal, continuous residence in Spain for five years.
You are a resident beneficiary of a Spanish contributory pension for retirement, full permanent disability or severe disability.
You were born in Spain, with 3 consecutive years of legal residence immediately prior to coming of age.
You are of Spanish origin and have lost your Spanish citizenship.
You have been a ward of a Spanish public entity during the 5 years prior to coming of age.
You have contributed remarkably to the progress of Spain, recognized by the Ministry of Labor and Immigration.
The spouse of a foreign citizen, their children and those of the spouse, including adoptions, under the age of 18 or disabled, as well as their ascendants and those of the spouse when under their care and there are reasons that justify the need to authorize their residence in Spain, may be reunited.
Family reuniting may be requested when the foreigner has resided legally in Spain for one year and has applied for authorization to reside for at least one more year and can certify suitable accommodation and sufficient means of subsistence to meet the needs of their family once they have been reunited.
Before entering Spain, the family members must apply for the corresponding visa at the Spanish diplomatic mission or consular office corresponding to their place of residence.
Citizens of other countries who are over the age of 16 and wish to exercise any compensated employment or professional activity must obtain the corresponding work authorization. Further information on this type of authorization is available in chapter 4, "Conducting research work in Spain".
Before traveling to Spain, you can obtain additional information on the following websites:
European Union:
www.europa.eu.int
Ministry of the Interior: www.mir.es
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation: www.mae.es
Secretariat of State for Immigration and Emigration: http://extranjeros.mtin.es/
For more specific information, call the Spanish consulate in your country of origin. The Secretariat of State for Immigration and Emigration website has a list of foreigners' offices in each Spanish province: http://extranjeros.mtin.es/es/general/OficinasExtranjeros.html.
