The residence permit is the authorization granted by the government to a foreigner who does not come from a country of the U, to legally reside in Spain for a period of more than 90 days. There are different ways to obtain a residence permit in Spain as well as different types of permits. In this article we summarize the most important things you need to know about how to get it and under what requirements.
There are two main types of residence permit: temporary and long-term. Both are aimed at non-EU foreigners, since citizens from the European Union, EEA and Switzerland have the right to enter, leave, circulate and reside freely in Spanish territory.
Temporary residence permit: it is an authorization to live in Spain for a period greater than 90 days and less than 5 years. It can be renewed, according to the circumstances that motivated the authorization.
Long-term residence permit: this authorizes you to reside and work in Spain under the same conditions as Spaniards. There are several requirements to obtain it and one of them is to have resided legally and continuously in Spanish territory for 5 years.
To obtain a residence permit, the applicant must meet certain general requirements that are the same for any type of permit:
As a general rule, when submitting the application, a series of documents must be submitted:
The first step is to present the application and documentation at the Immigration Office of the province of residence. Something to keep in mind is that documents in a foreign language must be translated into Spanish or the co-official language of the territory where the application is submitted.
Secondly, you have to pay the temporary residence fee, which is around €16.
And after that? Once these steps have been followed, the Immigration Office has a period of 3 months to respond and issue, if it deems appropriate, the permit. If after this period no response is received, it means that the request has been rejected. If it has been accepted, the foreigner has one month to request the Identity Card at the Immigration Office or the Police Station of the province where he processed the authorization.
It is important to note that the temporary residence permit is valid for one year and entails a self-employment or employment authorization during its validity. After a period of one year, an extension of the permit or another type of residence authorization can be requested.
