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Visa Policy
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Depending on the option of studies chosen, the visa policy allows for several possibilities. This policy is contemplated in the Immigrations Law (Ley de Extranjería) and its corresponding development through the applicable Rules and Regulations (http://www.mir.es)
1. The foreigners who wish to make not remunerated works of investigation or formation, or to attend or to extend stydies, in any official teaching or cientific public or private spanish institutions, must have the corresponding visa of studies.
2. The student visa allows the foreigner to stay in Spain as a resident during the duration of the courses, studies, research work or training that he/she will undergo. The length of the stay will be the same as the length of the course for which the student has signed up, or, if, applicable, the duration of the research work being performed. The validity of the visa will expire at the time in which the activity for which it was granted is terminated.
Article 86. Requisites.
In order to obtain a student visa, the following requisites apply:
a) Having met all the requisites for entry established in Title I.
b) Having been appropriately admitted in any of the Spanish public or private officially recognized scientific or study centres, with the purpose of continuing studies or performing research or training work, without compensation, with indication, as applicable, of a schedule that requires attendance and/or a study, research or training approved programme.
c) In the case of underage students, if they are not accompanied by their parents or tutors and if they are not included under any of the assumptions of article 92, they will be additionally required to provide a parental authorization for the study trip to Spain, which must specify the study centre and the planned length of the stay.
d) Guarantee of having the necessary economic means to support the cost of the studies , as well as the costs of lodging and the cost of the return trip to his/her country of origin, and, if applicable, the return trip of all his/her relatives. It will be understood that these students are eligible for any public scholarships and grants available under the system, under the same conditions as Spanish students, unless specifically expressed otherwise in the bases of application for such aids.
Article 87. Procedure.
1. The application for a student visa will have to be personally turned in, in the official form, at the Spanish embassy or consular office in the place of residence of the foreign student, unless, and as an exception, the assumption of the first paragraph, Section 2 of the additional third provision of Organic Law 4/2000, dated 11th of January, should be applicable. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, if there is sufficient cause to justify it, may authorize an embassy or consular office different to the one at which the student should’ve turned in the visa application. In the case of underage students, the application must be personally turned in by their parents or tutors, or by a duly accredited representative.
2. The student visa application must be turned in together with documents to certify:
a) The validity of the applicant’s passport or travel documents during the whole period for which the visa is being requested.
b) An admissions document from a Spanish public or private officially recognized study centre that confirms the student’s objective of studying, performing research work or training. This document must state, when applicable, the code number assigned to the aforementioned centre in the national Registry of Universities, Centres and Training, or in the public Registry of non-university training centres, both of them dependant from the Ministry of Education and Science, as well as research centres recognized as such by the Ministry of Industry, Tourism and Trade, or by the Ministry of Education and Science.
c) The content of the study, training or research programme that the student will follow.
d) A medical insurance to cover, during the length of the stay in Spain, any medical and repatriation costs associated with a sudden illness or an accident.
e) The availability of means of support and lodging for the period requested, and, when applicable, to guarantee the return to the country of origin.
f) In the case of underage students, the corresponding authorization from the parents or tutors.Whenever the duration of the studies or research exceeds six months, the following will also be required:
g) a medical certificate to prove that the student does not suffer from any of the illnesses subject to quarantine listed in the international health Regulations.
h) In the case of applicants who are over the legal age, to not have any criminal record, which will be accredited by the appropriate Certificate of No Criminal Record or equivalent document, issued by the authorities in the country of origin or in the country where the student has resided during the previous five years. This certificate must not contain records for any crimes contemplated by the Spanish legal framework.3. The embassy or consular office may request the applicants to appear before them, and, when deemed necessary, go through a personal interview, so as to be able to verify the applicant’s identity, the validity of his/her personal documentation and other documents presented, the regularity of the stay or residence in the country of application, the nature of the studies or research to be performed and the guarantees of return to the country of residence. The failure of the applicant to appear within the fixed period, which may not exceed fifteen days, will result in the applicant being considered as having abandoned the application request and the procedure will be filed.
4. If the applicant accredits all the personal conditions required, the consular office will ask, through telematic means when possible, directly or through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, for a favourable report from the corresponding Government’s Delegation or Sub delegation regarding the compliance with the requisites for the student’s stay in Spain. The aforementioned report must be communicated, through central bodies of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, to the consular office which requested it, within seven days from the reception of the mentioned request, after which date, if no response has been obtained, a favourable outcome will be assumed.
5. In addition, and only in the event that the centre in which the studies are going to take place is not included in the Register listed in Article 87.2.b), the consular office will request, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, the favourable report from the Government’s Delegation or Sub delegation in the territory where the study centre is located. The aforementioned report must be communicated, through central bodies of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, to the consular office which requested it, within fifteen days from the reception of the mentioned request, after which date, if no response has been obtained, a favourable outcome will be assumed. The embassy or consular office, in compliance with the rest of the requirements, will decide on the request and issue, if applicable, the corresponding student visa, within a maximum period of one month.
6. In the event that the visa is granted, the foreign student must collect it within two months from its notification. If not collected within the mentioned time limit, it will be understood that the students waives his right to the granted visa, and the procedure will be filed.
7. If the stay for studies was to last longer than six months, the foreign student must request the corresponding foreign student card within a month from his/her effective entry into Spain.
Article 88. Renewal.
1.The authorization of stay for study purposes may be extended annually if the student accredits that he/she:
a) Continues to meet the requisites established in Article 86 for the obtaining of the student visa.
b) Has passed the appropriate tests or relevant requisites for continuing his/her studies or, if applicable, that the research performed by the student is satisfactorily progressing. This requisite may also be accredited through the following of studies or the performance of research in the territory of another European Union member State, within the framework of temporary programs promoted by the Union itself.
2. The extension of the authorization must be requested sixty days prior to its expiration. Its processing will be done in conformance with the provisions for extensions of stay established in Article 29. The request must be filed with the competent registering body for its processing, or with any other official registry. If deemed necessary, the competent authority may, in order to make a decision on the request for renewal, require the personal appearance of the student in question. The failure to appear within the fixed period will result in the applicant being considered as having abandoned the request process, and the procedure will be filed.
Article 89. Relatives of the foreign student or researcher.
1. Foreign students who have requested a student visa or who are in Spain under a regulated student permit may apply for the corresponding stay visas so that their relatives may legally stay in Spain during the length of their studies or research, without the requirement of a previous stay from the foreign student or the researcher. These visas may be applied for simultaneously with the student visa application for the student or researcher, or at any subsequent time, during the period of validity of the authorization of stay for study purposes.
2. The term “relative” will be understood, for this purpose, as the spouse and children younger than 18 years of age which are under his/her custody or tutorship.
3. The relatives of the foreign student or researcher in possession of the mentioned visas may legally stay in Spanish territory during the same length of time, and with the same legal status, as the student or researcher, and their permanence will always be linked to this status. If their stay was to exceed six months, they must request the corresponding foreign student card within a month from their entry into Spain.
4. The relatives of the student or researcher will not be eligible to the authorization of remunerated work activities referred to in the following article.
Article 90. Work for students or researchers.
1. The foreign students that have the appropriate student visa may be authorized to take on remunerated jobs, in public or private entities, when the employer, as the legal subject, applies for the work permit and, in general, all requisites listed under article 50, except for paragraphs a) and f), are met. The aforementioned activities must be compatible with the studies that are being followed, and the income received must not be considered as the main necessary means of support for lodging. It will not be necessary to apply for authorization for work study activities in public or private entities that are part of the study programme for which the student visa was granted, and that take place within the framework of the corresponding collaboration agreements between such entities and the study centre in question.
2. The contracts must be formalized in writing, and they must be part-time contracts. In the event that the job is full time, its duration must not exceed three months, nor coincide with periods in which school is on.
3. The authorization granted will not have geographical limitations, except if the remunerated activity coincides with periods in which school is on; in this case, the location will be limited to the area of residence of the student for whom the visa was authorized.
4. The validity of the authorization will be the same as the duration of the work contract, and may not exceed the visa duration or the authorization of studies, which, when expired, will invalidate the authorization. The authorizations for work will be renewed if the circumstances that justified the previous approval are still valid, and with the condition of having obtained a stay renewal for study or research purposes.
Article 91. Special status for specialization studies within the health sector.
Foreign graduates in Medicine and Surgery, Pharmacy, Psychology, Chemistry and Biology who are in possession of the corresponding Spanish or Foreign Diploma duly homologated and who are following their studies of specialization in Spain, according to specific regulation, may undertake remunerated work associated with or required for the completion of the mentioned studies, without having to apply for a work authorization, without prejudice of the need to communicate this status to the relevant authorities.
The consular office in their place of residence may issue the student visa after verifying the actual studies that are being followed and which meet those specifications from the previous paragraph.
In addition to the sun, the advantages of the Mediterranean diet and the quality of life, Spain has characterized itself, since Prehistoric times, as a paradise of cultural variety, dynamisms and cultural creativity which have increased the cosmopolitan trait if its people and land. The offers within the Spanish educational and training system are the result of this tradition.