If you are enrolled in one of our on-campus programmes and are a citizen of a country outside the European Union and European Economic Area and Switzerland, you will need a Spanish study visa to study at ESEI.
Applying for a Spanish study visa can be a long process depending on your country of residence, so make sure you start the process on time to secure your study visa before the start of your studies in Barcelona.
After your enrolment at ESEI, you need to take the following steps to secure your long-term Spanish study visa for programmes that last longer than 6 months.
Step 1
Visa AppointmentStep 2
Necessary DocumentsStep 3
Visa ApplicationStep 4
Visa NotificationStep 5
Arrival in SpainStep 1
Visa AppointmentBook your Study Visa Appointment
You can submit your visa application up to 120 days in advance (from your programme start date). Check the Spanish Embassies and Consulates around the world and find an office closest to your residence. You may be required to book an appointment at the embassy/consulate to submit your application, so this should be done as soon as you are enrolled in your programme.
If you are allowed to travel to Spain without a visa for a period of 90 days or have a Schengen tourist visa for the same period, you can convert your tourist visa into a Spanish study visa directly from Spain. In this case, please contact our admissions team for more information.
Step 2
Necessary DocumentsGather all the neccessary Documents
Check the Spanish Embassy / Consulate website in your country of residence for the full list of required documents required to obtain a Spanish study visa as this usually varies from country to country. You will be required to provide Spanish translation and legalisation of some documents. Required documents generally include:
Step 3
Visa ApplicationSubmit your Visa Application
On the appointment date, you will have to submit all required documents and be prepared for a possible interview. You will be required to pay an application visa fee at this point, so make sure to know the methods of payments accepted by the Embassy.
Step 4
Visa NotificationNotice and Pick up
You should receive notice of the decision taken on your visa application within 2 weeks to 1 month from your visa application submission. In some cases, the embassy/consulate may take longer to provide a decision. If the answer is positive, you will receive a 90-day Spanish study visa on your passport, and you will be required to get your Spanish student residence card (which will replace the visa on your passport) upon arrival in Spain. If the answer is negative, you will be informed of the reasons why you were denied your visa and will have the option to reapply or appeal your case.
Step 5
Arrival in SpainGet your Spanish Student Residence Card in Spain
Upon your arrival to Spain, you will need to register yourself as a resident in Barcelona at the nearest Citizen Help and Information Offices (OAC) (this process is called “empadronamiento” in Spanish) and afterwards book an appointment on the government website to get your student residence card. Your card which is called a TIE (Tarjeta de Indentidad del Extranjero) is normally issued after a month processing your fingerprint and submitting the following required documents:
With a valid student residence card (TIE), you will be allowed to work for up to 30hrs a week on a job contract, take on an internship, and travel to countries within the Schengen region.
Your Spanish Student Residence Card is renewable every year for as long as you are a registered student at ESEI or in Spain. You will be required to start the process up to 60 days before the expiry of your previous residence card, or 90 days after its expiry. We always recommend that you start the process before your current student residence card expires.
Once you have successfully completed your Bachelor and Master studies at ESEI, you can go on to apply for the following residence permits to remain in Spain if you meet the conditions for obtaining them.
Please note that our programmes do not give access to Job-Search Visas in Spain.
Answer all of your questions
The health insurance companies recommended by ESEI, as well as our legal partners, are as follows:Altantida and Sanitas.
Please make sure that the insurance covers €100,000.00 in damages, repatriation, or any emergencies, and cannot have a waiting period of more than 6 months. Depending on the country in which you are applying for the insurance, there might be some additional requirements. Please contact our Admissions office for more details.
In some cases, it is easier to obtain a tourist visa and directly convert your tourist visa to a study visa in Spain. You will need to start the conversion process within the first 50 days from your arrival to Spain. Required documents for the conversion generally include:
We recommend our students to seek help from Antonio Segura Abogados with the conversion process. Please contact our Admissions office for more details.