Students and Training
Students are in Spain on a stay permit, which is different from a residence permit. It can be applied for in the country of origin or residence, or from Spain, where the deadlines are very specific and short.
The visa is granted and issued at the Spanish embassy or consulate in the country of origin or residence, stamped in the passport and, for some countries, required in order to enter Spain. The documentation is the same everywhere, although internal procedures and some documents vary from one embassy or consulate to another.
Usual documentation
- Completed visa application and processing fee.
- Full passport.
- Enrolment on the official course, or registration for the master's or bachelor's degree.
- Sufficient financial means for living expenses, according to the applicable legal threshold, proven with a bank account in the student's name or with a notarial deed from the person taking responsibility, stating the amount, apostilled or legalised and translated.
- Criminal record certificate from the country of residence and from the countries of the previous five years, apostilled or legalised and translated.
- Medical certificate in accordance with the 2005 International Health Regulations; whether it needs an apostille or legalisation depends on the consulate.
- Private medical insurance with full cover, hospitalisation and repatriation, without co-payments.
Anyone who is in Spain lawfully (as a tourist, with or without a visa depending on the country) can apply for the study permit directly. Timing is decisive: a tourist stay in the Schengen area lasts 90 days counting the day of entry, and the application must be filed in the month before it expires.
Requirements
- Type of studies: it determines which permit can be applied for afterwards. The enrolment, starting before the tourist visa expires, is filed together with the EX00 application form and the passport. Eligible courses are Spanish courses at schools certified by the Instituto Cervantes, courses at centres authorised by the regional government (vocational training or similar) and bachelor's or master's degrees at public or private universities; always in person and full time, 20 hours a week.
- Sufficient financial means, according to the applicable legal threshold for the holder and for each family member, unless accommodation paid in advance for the whole stay is proven.
- Full public or private medical insurance, without co-payments.
- Medical certificate in accordance with the 2005 International Health Regulations if the stay exceeds six months.
- Criminal record certificate from the country of origin, up to date, legalised or apostilled and translated by a sworn translator.
Advantages
- Many possibilities of changing to a residence permit in the future.
- Ease and speed of approval.
- The possibility of linking family members to the stay.
- You can travel to and return from your country of origin with the permit.
A relatively new permit, created by Royal Decree-Law 11/2018 of 31 August when transposing an EU directive. For university and higher-education students who want to remain in Spain actively looking for work.
Advantages
- Fast decision: if the Immigration Office does not reply within 20 days of filing, the permit is deemed granted (positive administrative silence).
- You move from a study stay to residence, and the clock for citizenship starts running.
- It buys time for anyone aiming at another permit who does not yet have the minimum residence required.
Requirements
- Sufficient financial means for one year of residence in Spain, according to the applicable legal threshold.
- Keep private medical insurance without co-payments, or public cover if you have it.
- Having completed university or higher-education studies immediately beforehand.
- Basic documentation: EX01 application form, fee 790-052, passport, NIE and municipal registration (empadronamiento), if you have them.
When to apply
Once studies are complete, with the degree certificate or proof of completion. It can be applied for up to 60 days before the study stay expires or up to 90 days afterwards; it is best to do so before expiry.
Where and how to apply
Exclusively online, addressed to the Government Delegation or Sub-delegation of the province of residence, through the Mercurio platform. Without a digital certificate the application is not admitted for processing.
Filing through a lawyer
GRAS International Mobility can file and follow up the application with its own digital certificate on the applicant's behalf.
It also stems from Royal Decree-Law 11/2018, to improve the position of foreign students when they finish their studies in Spain. Administrative silence is positive: with no reply within 30 days from the day after filing, the application is deemed granted.
It is a fast route into the labour market that upgrades your status from a study stay to residence, with the clock for citizenship by residence starting to run. No minimum prior stay is required: a one-year master's degree may be enough. An internship visa can also be applied for if what you studied in your country of origin or residence during the previous two years is to be put into practice in Spain.
Documentation
- From the student: EX04 application form, full passport in force, higher-education degree obtained in the previous two years or studies in progress and, if there is no internship contract, medical insurance without co-payments and financial means; if the study stay is shorter than six months, a medical certificate and, if of criminal age, a criminal record certificate from the country of origin or of residence for the last five years.
- From the host entity: tax number (NIF) and registered deed of incorporation, a document proving the signatory's legal representation, the signatory's NIF or NIE (or consent to verify their identity) and a certificate of being up to date with tax and Social Security obligations, unless checked ex officio.
- Internship agreement: programme and educational purpose, duration, conditions and supervision, hours and the legal relationship between the intern and the entity.
- Internship employment contract: original and copy signed by both parties, the same minimum content as the agreement and proof that the company has the financial and material means, including payment of the salary.
Who files it
The host company or entity, exclusively online with a digital certificate through the General Electronic Register of the State Administration (AGE); a professional authorised by its representatives may also do so.
Important notes
- Documents from other countries must be translated into Spanish, or into the co-official language of the region, by a Spanish sworn translator.
- Every public document from a non-EU country must be legalised at the Spanish consular office of the issuing country or apostilled under the Hague Convention of 5 October 1961.
The classic route for students with more than three years of study stay who want to move to residence when they finish. With the residence permit for an internship contract it is now less common, because of its longer timescales and stricter requirements, but it remains available to anyone who finds a company willing to hire them: it does not require the negative certificate from the Public Employment Service, which is hard to obtain for initial authorisations.
The application is filed by the hiring company, not by the student: its representative at the Immigration Office, or an authorised professional online.
Documentation
- EX-03 application form in duplicate, signed by the hiring company.
- Full passport, travel document or registration certificate in force.
- Qualifications and, where applicable, the professional qualification required for the profession in the contract, and a certificate of having successfully completed the studies, research, training or internship.
- From the company: identification of the employer (filed by the director or by a person holding a special power of attorney), the employment contract signed by both parties and proof of financial solvency with the tax documentation that corresponds to the legal or natural person.
- Proof that the student has not received a grant or subsidy from public or private bodies under Spanish cooperation or development programmes, or those of the country of origin.
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