1. How can you work in Spain? If you want to undertake any kind of lucrative activity, it is necessary being over 16, a visa and a previous work authorization. This authorization makes the worker able to work in a foreign country during its validity. 2. Who does not need a visa? Those workers who are from some European country.

3. Apart from the authorization, do I need something more?
Should the job require an special degree, the worker have to posses it and its homologation in order to be given the authorization. Being member of a professional college could be taken into account.
The employer have to apply for this authorization.

4. Ways of working in Spain
There are three ways to hire foreign workers;

Authorization to work on your own, to undertake lucrative activities on your own, as a businessman. Lafisconta offers a wide range of services aimed to be an investor in Spain. consult us.

Authorization to work for others, to work for others, receiving a wage. Lafisconta can give you advice in each step. consult us.

Foreign workers. The Government can approve a contingent of foreign workers each year, taking into account the current national employment situation. Only those who do not reside in Spain can have access to this contingent.
The contingent can determine an specific number of visas meant for Spaniards’ children and grandchildren. An specific number of visas meant for concrete areas can also be determined.

5. When is the current national employment situation taken into account?
There are some SPECIFIC SITUATIONS in which the current national employment situation would not be taken into account:

a) Holding reliable jobs.
b) Foreigner’s spouses or children, who live in Spain with renewed permits as well as nationalised or European Spaniard’s children. In this last case, he has had to be legally living in Spain for at least one year.
c) Those who have a previous work authorisation and want it to be renewed.
d) Workers wanted for assembling facilities or productive teams.
e) Those who are considered refugees.
f) Those who have been recognised as stateless as well as those who have lost this characteristic the next year after the statutes would finish.
g) Foreigners in charge of ascendants or descendants with Spanish nationality.
h) Foreigners born and living in Spain.
i) Spaniard’s children or grandchildren.
j) Foreigners under 18 with resident permit and in charge of the competent entity, to develop activities which promote their social integration once checked the impossibility of coming back to their original country. k) Foreigners with resident permit obtained through the procedure written in the article 31.3 of the Ley de Extranjería. This permit have one year of validity.
l) Foreigners who have been in possession of work authorisations for temporary activities for at least four years and who have come back to their country.

6. Exceptions for work authorization
It is not necessary a work authorization to hold the following activities:

a) Foreign Technicians and Scientifics invited or hired by the Government, regions or local entities and the Organisms aimed to promote investigation promoted by the different entities.
b) Foreign professors invited or hired by an Spanish University.
c) Foreign directive team and professors from cultural and educational Institutions which depends on other States or private ones officially recognised by Spain, that promote cultural and educational programs, always limiting their activity to this programs.
d) Civil and military servants from foreign State Entities who come to Spain in order to develop activities in terms of cooperation agreements with Spain.
e) Accredited correspondents from foreign mass media.
f) Members of International Scientific Research carrying out a research in Spain and authorised by the Government.
g) Artists who come to Spain for specific performances which are not continue.
h) Ministries and representatives of a religious order or Church registered as a Religious Entity, but limiting their activity to the religious one.
i) Foreigners members of the representative organs, Government and internationally recognized, always limiting their activities to the sindical one.
j) Spaniards who have lost their Spanish nationality.
k) Foreigners under 18 in charge of the competent entity to develop activities which promote their social integration.

Neither foreigners with permanent residence need a work authorization.

7. What is the meaning of ”temporary worker”?
Those workers who come to Spain to develop harvest activities.

The temporary Job offers will be mostly meant for countries which have signed covenants with Spain on migratory control.

8. What is the meaning of “cross-border worker”?
Those foreign workers who live in a cross-border zone, developing their activity in Spain but coming back to their country every day.

9. What is the meaning of “transnational provision of services”?
A foreign company is hired by an Spanish company or the Civil Service to develop services in Spain with its own workers.