A large number of foreigners who live in Spain do so for study reasons. People from all around the world who decide to move to the country to complete their higher education course, degree, master’s or PhD), and their student visa is the document that allows them to do that legally.
But at some point, the question that many of them ask themselves is quite common: is it possible to work in Spain with a student visa? Does the Spanish immigration law allow me to work on weekends when I do not have a class, for example, or throughout the week?
In this article, you will find the answer to this question, including everything you must know about it (spoiler: yes, that is possible, although there are different options that you will have to evaluate to do so).
There are 2 legal options that will allow any foreign student to work:
- If you are in Spain for higher education, you are automatically authorized to work both as a self-employed individual and as an employee; this is always subject to certain conditions, which we will discuss later.
- If you are in Spain for other types of studies, you must apply for a specific work authorization.
Another way to “work” with a residence permit for studies in Spain is through curricular internships that are directly linked to your studies and your educational institution. In these cases, the internships (whether paid or unpaid) are considered part of your studies.
Let’s see those below, although remember that if you have any doubts you can ask our lawyers anything:
Requirements to work with a student permit
First of all, let’s remember that the main purpose of the student visa is to allow the foreigner to study in Spain, to complete an academic course in the country, whatever that course is. Therefore, the ability to work (under any legal option) is a complement to the student card.
Therefore, regardless of whether you need to apply for a work permit while studying in Spain due to the nature of your studies, you must meet certain specific requirements and adhere to specific restrictions.
It is important to note that the time in Spain while studying would not be counted for the calculation required to obtain citizenship.
In addition, she will have to renew her student visa at the end of the academic year, and once renewed, the capacity to work will be too.
Furthermore, there are some fundamental considerations which are essential for the validity of the job:
First, authorization to work will be geographically limited to a specific autonomous community—typically, the autonomous community where you are pursuing your studies.
There are two exceptions to this geographic limitation: it does not apply when the work is performed in a locality bordering your autonomous community, nor when the position does not involve travel that would interfere with your studies (for example, remote or occasional work).
On the other hand, this job cannot be a full-time one (just 30 hours per week), and the working hours cannot affect class time. In short, the contract must be part-time, and must never coincide or overlap with lectures.
Apply for the compatibility of studies and work
As mentioned above, a student visa that was obtained after the entry into force of the modification of the immigration regulations makes it possible to work automatically with the visa if you are enrolling in higher studies.
However, if the card was issued before that, and for all other types of study (post-compulsory secondary education, SEPE courses, etc.), you must apply for a work permit.
This involves complying with the following requirements to obtain this authorization to work:
- The student must have sufficient qualifications to carry out the professional activity for which she is hired (something that can be demonstrated through the accreditation of the required professional training, whether it is a high school or higher education dipoloma, degree, etc.).
- The hiring company must be registered with the Social Security and be up to date with its payments and tax obligations with the Tax Agency and Social Security.
- In addition, this employer must have sufficient economic capacity to hire and pay the student’s salary, providing the corresponding supporting documentation to prove it.
- The employment contract signed by both parties must also be presented.
- In case that the student wants to perform economic activities as a self-employed individual (called “autónomo” in Spain), she must present a business plan (which must be approved), viable from an economic point of view.
- The application form to be completed is form EX-00, which you can download here.
- It must be demonstrated that the studies are compatible with work.
- Finally, as in any other procedure, a complete passport plus a copy must also be submitted.
Legal procedure to get your work authorization
This authorization to work as a student is not granted automatically if you are not currently enrolled in higher education.
It will be important to follow the established legal procedure in which the employer (and not the student) will initiate the application at the immigration office located in the province where the student will end up working (and not where she is studying), provided that you will be working as an employee and not as a self-employed person.
In the latter case, it will be you who will need to submit the application at the Immigration Office in the province where you will be working.
The corresponding fee must be paid, and the student must wait for the resolution of the foreigners’ office in order to start working.
Moving from student visa to work permit
So far we have analyzed the case in which a foreign student combines her studies with a job. In other words, she carries outa professional activity during her studies.
However, this poses a major problem: either through an internship agreement or through their student visa itself, the maximum hours that the student can work are limited, as well as the remuneration or salary that can be generated.
That is why the solution presented below may be the ideal path for many.
Once they finish their studies, these foreign students can effortlessly obtain a work permit.
A residence and work permit that allows them to have a full-time employment contract with a salary that better suits their needs.
In that sense, there are 3 different ways to go from a student visa to a work permit in Spain:
- After one year as a student in Spain, it is possible to move to a work permit as a highly qualified worker as long as you get a job offer as a manager or in a technical position, and that the salary is higher than 43,000€ per year.
- Also, after finishing your higher education, it is possible to change to a job search visa, a non-lucrative residence for one year that allows the foreigner to stay in the country while looking for a job.
- On the other hand, after completing her studies (and no matter their length) it is possible to change to a regular work permit, either employed or self-employed (in the latter case upon presentation of a business plan).
FAQs About Student and Work Visas in Spain
How many hours can I work with a student visa in Spain?
Up to 30 hours per week, provided that your work schedule does not conflict with your classes. For higher education, this authorization is automatic; for other types of studies, you must apply using Form EX-00.
Additionally, you are limited to working within the autonomous community where you reside, with some specific exceptions.
What is the difference between working while pursuing higher education and working while pursuing other types of studies?
If you are in Spain for higher education, you are automatically authorized to work as an employee or self-employed individual, with no additional paperwork required beyond the general conditions (maximum 30 hours, compatible schedules).
If your stay is for another type of study (post-compulsory secondary education, SEPE courses, etc.), you must apply for a specific work authorization before starting work, meeting requirements such as:
- the required professional qualifications
- a signed contract
- in the case of self-employment: a viable business plan.
What happens when I finish my studies? Can I continue working?
- Apply for a permit as a highly qualified worker if you receive a job offer that meets the required salary conditions
- Apply for a job-search permit (a one-year non-lucrative residence permit)
- directly convert to a regular work permit, either as an employee or as a self-employed individual.
Can I work in Spain on a student visa?
Get in touch with our lawyers and let us guide you step by step:
