Working in Spain:
If you're an EU national youhave as much right to work in Spainas a Spaniard. However if you intend to stay in the country for more than 90
days you are required to apply for a resident's permit (residencia). Strictly
speaking you should apply within 15 days of your arrival in Spain but there
are few people who actually do this simply because they don't know at the
outset whether they intend to stay permanently or not. Applying for a
resident's card can be bureaucratic so most people prefer to spend some time
looking for work and securing a job before getting involved in too much red
tape.
If you're from one of the EU countries you can enter Spain as a tourist and register
with the National Employment Institute (Instituto Nacional de Empleo / INEM) as
a job-seeker, just as a Spanish job hunter would do. If you're not EU resident you
will need a visa to enter Spain and a work permit (This includes people who have a work permit for another EU
country). A permit will only be issued when it has been demonstrated that the
job in question has been advertised to EU nationals without success. This is
what's supposed to happen but of course there are many abuses of the system by
employers who prefer to take on, for example, South American immigrants who are
prepared to work for much lower wages than most EU citizens.
If you're a non EU national and you fail to find work in the first 90 days, you
can apply for a 90-day extension but you can only stay in Spain for a
maximum of 182 days in any one calendar year if you don't have a resident's
permit. If you find a job with an
employer you'll need a formal job offer in order to apply for a resident's
card. As an EU national you don't need a work permit to start a business in Spain but you
will need to present a business plan to the authorities giving details such as
your proposed investment, location of business premises, projected income etc.
Non EU nationals are normally expected to prove that they intend to invest a
sizeable sum of money (around 100,000 Eur) and / or that their business will
create a number of jobs for Spanish or EU nationals.
Anyone planning to work in a profession such as medicine or law must apply for
membership of the appropriate professional body in Spainbefore they will be allowed
to practise.
If you're going to be operating from your own business premises (such as a
shop, restaurant or workshop) you'll have to apply for a business opening
licence (licencia de aperture) before opening. To sell or serve alcohol or food
you'll need to acquire a health licence which will involve an inspection by the
local authorities.
Be prepared for frustrating delays of several months, depending on the area,
before the necessary permits and licences are processed. It's worth employing a
bi-lingual gestor (a kind of Mr Fix-it who can guide you through all the
bureaucracy) especially if you don't speak Spanish. You'll find at least one Gestoria
in every town in Spainand there are usually several to choose from in the popular ex-pat areas.
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