TYPES OF VISAS

In order to enter and reside in Spain, foreign citizens must request the corresponding visa.  Are you confused about which visa you need and what you are permitted to do with each one?

General stay visa: Allows you to stay for up to three uninterrupted months.  Your time in Spain starts with your first entry into the country.

Residence and work visa: Allows you to enter and reside in Spain for a maximum period of three months to start a professional business activity.  During this time period the worker must register with social security as a worker.

Seasonal residence and work visa: Allows you to work for paid employment for a period of up to nine months within 12 consecutive months.

Visa for studies or research (student visa): Allows you to stay in Spain to complete courses, carry out studies, research or training, foreign exchange, internships and no labour practices and non-paid volunteer work.

Non-lucrative residence visa: Allows you to reside in Spain under the condition that you cannot carry out any labour or professional activities.

Transit visa: Allows you to pass through the international transit zone in a Spanish airport
or on Spanish territory.

There are also residence visas for entrepreneurial activity which include residence visas through real estate investments or through buying of property in Spain and residence visas through capital investment.


Translated by: Katherine Pascal

VISAS

Visas are necessary for foreign citizens to be able to enter and stay in a foreign country where they do not have nationality.  They allow for free movement as a result of bilateral treaties between countries of origin and destination.

Visas are printed directly onto a blank passport page so that the officials can easily plug the information into the system allowing the foreigner to enter the country without difficulty or delay.

Spanish immigration provides the following three types of visas:

• The Airport Transit Visa: This visa allows citizens to cross the international border in a Spanish airport (Please research which countries require this visa as not all do).

• The Short-Term Visa: This visa authorizes transit and stay in Spain during a period of less than three months.  This time period starts from the first moment of entry in the Schengen area. 

• The National Long-Stay Visa: This visa is intended for those citizens who are planning to study, research, work or reside in our country.  This visa is required of all citizens who pertain to non-European Union countries.

Translated by: Katherine Pascal