Immigration and global mobility lawyer in Spain

When you finish, your student stay permit can be changed to another permit by applying from Spain, provided you meet the requirements of the route you choose. The most common are:

• Residence and work as an employee, if you have a contract with a company in Spain.
• Residence and self-employment, if you are going to carry out your own professional or business activity.
• Residence for professional internships, if you are going to do an internship related to your degree and meet the requirements for this permit.
• Residence to look for work or start a business, if you have completed a university undergraduate degree or higher-level studies.

To switch to employment or self-employment, you must have obtained your degree and, as a general rule, must not have held a scholarship under a cooperation program; the new permit is initially granted for one year. It is wise to plan the change before your stay expires, because the route you choose shapes your options later on.

Changing your permit

Yes. Law 14/2013 provides for a residence permit for internships, aimed at people who have obtained a higher education degree in the two years before applying, or who are currently studying for one. The degree can come from a recognized higher education institution in any country, not necessarily in Spain, and the internship must be related to the field of study and level of qualification of the degree. This permit is not subject to the national employment situation (the labor market test).

There are two forms:

• Internship agreement. The host organization signs an agreement describing the training program, its duration, the supervision conditions, the schedule and the legal relationship with the intern, with the participation of the educational institution or training center where applicable. The host organization files the application and, under this form, you must show health insurance and sufficient financial means. The permit lasts as long as the agreement, up to a maximum of twelve months, and can be renewed only once, without exceeding two years in total.
• Training employment contract for gaining professional experience. This is governed by article 11 of the Spanish Workers’ Statute and its implementing regulations, so there are employment rights and obligations for both the company and the worker, such as pay, Social Security contributions, an individual training plan and mentoring. It lasts between six months and one year, and the company must show it has the means to fulfil the contract.

If you live outside Spain, you will need a visa. Before signing the agreement or contract, it is worth checking that it fits this route.

Residence for internships

Yes, if you hold a long-term student stay permit and have completed university studies at undergraduate level or higher in Spain. The residence permit to look for work or start a business is applied for in the sixty days before your stay expires (or up to ninety days afterwards, at the risk of a fine) and is granted for a maximum of twenty-four months, with no extension.

While it is valid you must keep health insurance and sufficient financial means, and this permit does not allow you to work. Its value lies in what it lets you prepare:

• Residence and work. If you find a job suited to your level of studies, you can apply for the relevant residence and work permit, meeting its requirements and deadlines. For general-regime permits, the national employment situation is not applied only if you have been resident in Spain for at least one year; other routes, such as the highly qualified professional permit, are not subject to the national employment situation.
• Professional internships. If an internship opportunity comes up, you can apply for the residence permit for internships even before your job-search period ends, provided you meet its requirements. Its advantage is that it does not require passing the national employment situation test.
• Business project. If you start a business, you can apply for the self-employment permit or, if the project is innovative, consider the Law 14/2013 route.

Planning the transition from your studies to a residence permit that lets you work in Spain from the outset helps you avoid losing deadlines and options.

Residence to look for work

The general route is the temporary residence and self-employment permit, governed by the Spanish Immigration Regulations (Royal Decree 1155/2024). If you do not live in Spain, you apply at the Spanish consulate in your country of residence. You must show that the planned investment is sufficient and what impact it will have on job creation, that you have the necessary qualifications or experience (and professional registration, if the profession requires it), and that you have any licenses the activity requires. A report from a self-employed workers’ organization is usually provided to assess the investment and employment.

The initial permit lasts one year and is limited to one autonomous community and one sector; renewals are for four years. If your project is innovative and of special economic interest, the entrepreneur residence permit under Law 14/2013 may be considered instead. Choosing well between the two routes is part of the strategy.

Residence and self-employment

The non-lucrative residence permit allows you to live in Spain without carrying out any employment or professional activity, if you have your own financial means. You must show, per month, 400% of the IPREM (Spain’s public income reference index) for the main applicant and 100% for each family member who comes with you, plus health insurance with an insurer authorized in Spain. You apply at the Spanish consulate where you live, and your family members can apply with you.

The initial permit lasts one year and the renewal two, provided you keep the financial means and insurance and have lived in Spain for more than 183 days in the calendar year. It does not allow you to work: if your plan is to work remotely for companies or clients outside Spain, the right route is usually the residence permit for international remote workers.

Non-lucrative residence · Digital nomad visa

The first thing is not to miss the deadline. A renewal can be filed in the two months before expiry or in the three months afterwards (in that case, with a possible fine), and filing on time extends the validity of your permit until a decision is made. Before filing, it is worth checking which requirement is the problem and whether there is another way forward:

• For some renewals, if you cannot prove one requirement, an integration effort report issued by your autonomous community may be taken into account.
• If your situation has changed (for example, from employment to self-employment), changing to another permit may be more suitable.
• If you already have five years of legal and continuous residence, it is worth considering long-term residency.
• If the permit is ultimately not renewed for reasons other than public order, public security or public health, second-chance arraigo allows you, if you meet its requirements, to obtain a new one-year permit that authorizes you to work. It requires having lived in Spain continuously for the previous two years.

Each alternative has its own requirements, so it is best to review your case before the deadline.

Renewals and extensions · Arraigo

Yes. Law 14/2013 provides for a residence and work permit for research. It is aimed, among other profiles, at research staff (including doctoral candidates), scientific and technical staff at R&D&I organizations and centers, and teaching staff hired by universities, research centers or business schools established in Spain.

It is normally filed by the host organization with the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit (UGE-CE), and there is a European form and a national form depending on your qualifications and the type of project. It is granted for up to three years or for the duration of the agreement or contract, your family members can apply for their permits at the same time, and once the research is over it is possible to stay for up to twelve months to look for work or start a business, if the requirements are met.

International mobility for researchers

It does not work the same way: it depends on the type of permit you hold and on your nationality.

• General regime (family reunification). As a general rule, you must have lived legally in Spain for at least one year and have applied to reside for at least one more year, as well as showing financial means, suitable housing and health insurance. You can bring your spouse or partner, your minor children and dependent first-degree ascendants (parents). To bring your parents, the sponsor must hold a long-term or EU long-term residence permit.
• Law 14/2013 permits (for example, highly qualified professionals, researchers or international remote workers). Family members can apply for their permits together with the main holder or later, without waiting for that first year.
• EU citizens and Spanish nationals. Their family members do not follow general-regime family reunification, but their own regimes with different requirements.

That is why it is worth identifying which regime applies to you before starting the procedure.

Family reunification

They are different regimes, each with its own rules and requirements.

The residence card for family members of EU citizens (Royal Decree 240/2007) applies to family members of citizens of another EU Member State, the EEA or Switzerland who live in Spain as employees, self-employed workers, students or with sufficient resources and health insurance. Family members of Spanish nationals who have previously exercised their right to free movement in another Member State can also use it.

The residence permit for family members of Spanish nationals (Spanish Immigration Regulations, Royal Decree 1155/2024) is the route for all other family members of Spanish nationals. Both are initially granted for five years and allow you to work, but they differ in which family members are covered (for example, children under 21 under the EU regime, compared with children under 26 for family members of Spanish nationals), in the requirements and in how the application is filed. For the EU family member card, the reference EU citizen must show financial means, through their employment or professional activity or through sufficient resources; for residence as a family member of a Spanish national, no financial means are required. In addition, no criminal record certificate is required for the EU family member card, whereas one is required for residence as a family member of a Spanish national.

Family member of an EU citizen · Family member of a Spanish national

No. Under the Spanish Immigration Regulations approved by Royal Decree 1155/2024, family members of Spanish nationals, including the father, mother or guardian of a Spanish minor, have a specific permit. Depending on the case, it can be applied for from Spain or from abroad.

Family arraigo is a different permit: a residence permit on exceptional grounds that is applied for while in Spain and is now reserved for specific cases, such as the father, mother or guardian of a minor who is a national of another EU Member State, the EEA or Switzerland, or a person who provides support to a family member of those nationalities with a disability. Filing through the wrong route can lead to a refusal, so it is worth reviewing the case before choosing the procedure.

Family member of a Spanish national · Arraigo