As you may already know and as we saw in this article about the arraigo laboral, we are talking about a residency authorization that allows you to both live and work in Spain; and it allows you to do so for 1 year.
That is why, when this year comes to an end, if you want to stay in the Spanish territory legally, you will have to renew your arraigo laboral.
How to do it? That is the question we will solve throughout this article, as you have 3 different options.
Since 20 May 2025, this authorisation is officially called arraigo sociolaboral, following the entry into force of Real Decreto 1155/2024, from the 19th of November, which approved a brand-new Reglamento de Extranjería and replaced the previous one (RD 557/2011).
The fact is that this card for exceptional circumstances is not really renewed, but modified.
That is to say, it is not possible to have a labor integration card for 2 years in a row.
RD 1155/2024 now expressly allows the arraigo sociolaboral to be extended (prorrogada) for successive one-year periods, as long as you still meet the requirements that justified granting it in the first place.
This means that, in most cases, you no longer need to switch to a different authorisation type just to maintain your legal status; you request a prórroga of your existing arraigo laboral.
Your 3 options to renew your arraigo laboral
There are 3 different paths available when “renewing” (as we have seen, it is actually a change of card type) your sociolabor arraigo in Spain.
These three paths, which we will now analyze, depend on your working situation.
Let’s explore them in detail.
Arraigo laboral renewal with a job contract
In the event that you have been working in Spain during your year of labor arraigo, this will be the most recommended option.
More precisely, under RD 1155/2024, the prórroga is granted if you comply with the same requirements that justified the original concession are maintained in practice, which means:
- Your employment relationship is ongoing, and you present the contract or a certificate confirming your registration.
- If your original contract was for a fixed term, that contract must still meet, at the time of the request, the same threshold required for the initial arraigo laboral: at least the Salario Mínimo Interprofesional (SMI) or the amount set by the applicable collective agreement, in proportion to hours worked, adding up to a weekly workload of at least 20 hours in aggregate.
- You keep the freedom to combine several contracts if you work seasonally, for more than one employer at once, or in consecutive jobs with different employers.
Renew your arraigo as a self-employed worker
If during your arraigo period you have not been working for a company but have set up your own business or have registered as an independent professional (self-employed worker), you must change your labor roots into a residence and self-employed work permit.
In order to renew, you must meet one of the following requirements:
- The professional activity that you have been carrying out will be maintained over time, and you have fulfilled all your tax obligations with the Treasury and Social Security.
- You are receiving cessation of activity benefits in case your activity has been interrupted.
Renew with your own funds
Finally, there is the third possibility: if you do not need to work either as an employee or as a self-employed person and you have sufficient funds to maintain yourself in the country, either yours or that of an immediate family member, you have two routes, and it’s important to understand the difference:
1. Prórroga of the arraigo laboral without working. Under RD 1155/2024, the prórroga is conditioned on being registered as a jobseeker with the Servicio Público de Empleo and actively looking for work, unless you can prove a duly justified reason that prevents you from accessing employment (illness, disability, or having reached retirement age). Having enough funds not to need to work is not, by itself, one of the recognized exceptions.
2. Modification or change into a non-lucrative visa. If you genuinely don’t want to work and can prove sufficient means, the alternative is to request a modification of your authorization, under the general rules for this residency type (RD 1155/2024), rather than a prórroga of the arraigo sociolaboral itself.
Validity period of the new authorization and what Happens if it gets denied
If your application is approved, the government has 3 months to notify you of the decision; in the meantime, your previous authorization remains valid if you submitted the application on time.
The validity period of the new card depends on your situation: if you have already accumulated one year of residence with a permit that allowed you to work, the new permit will be valid for 4 years; otherwise, it will be valid for 1 year.
If your application is denied, you have one month to file an appeal for reconsideration, or two months to proceed directly to administrative litigation.
When and where should you submit your renewal?
As with any other type of residency card, you will have to submit the renewal of your labor roots during the 60 days (2 months) prior to the expiration of your card and 90 days (3 months) thereafter.
Our recommendation is that you do not wait until the end and start the process as soon as possible.
You can submit all the documentation completely online, and once you receive the favorable resolution, you will have to your closest police station to be issued the physical card. The administration has 3 months to give you an answer, so do not panic!
If you would like our team to manage the application for you, from beginning to end, and in order to ensure a successful resolution, do not hesitate to contact us!
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