Moving to Spain via travel + study (visa from Spain)

rolando23 Member

Member since 10 April 2023

rolando23Member10 April 2023 08:48:30

Hello everyone,

I'm a Colombian citizen, living in Colombia. In a couple of months I'm planning to move to Spain.

The initial plan is to spend 3 months as a tourist (entry visa is not required) and then apply for a student visa on-site without leaving the country.

Could you please advise on the following:

1) Assumption:

in order to get a D / long-term visa from Spain, I have to apply for a language course (let's say English for a university program or catalan) or get an invitation letter from a university.

The language / preparation course should be at least 20h/week and duration of the course should at least 181 days (6 months + at least 1 day). Otherwise I can't apply for a student visa from Spain.

Questions:

is it correct that duration of the course should be no less than 181 days fro applying from Spain?
can I really apply for "just" a language course (English/Catalan) as a part of preparation for a university program or it won't be a sufficient argument to get a visa approval?

2) Assumption:

One of the important documents for a visa-application is proof of financial means.

Unfortunately I don't have a possibility to show the necessary funds on my bank account nor on the bank account fo my parents.

The idea is to get by on some savings + living by my cousin. After that, I'll be able to work up to 30 hours if the visa will be approved.

Questions:

Are there any other methods to show financial means? For example any local person from Spain sings a document or my parents stating that they will be in charge of any expenses.
Is that true that I'll be able to work up to 30 hours/week by applying for a visa type I mentioned above?

Thank you

Rolando

gwynj Bulgaria Expert

Member since 30 June 2020

gwynjBulgaria Expert11 April 2023 11:23:55

2548

@rolando23

Spain's a great country to move to. However, as you probably know, it's especially popular with Latin American citizens as it has an accelerated (2 years) route to citizenship. My partner (from Brazil) couldn't stop talking about it when she found out! However, it's harder than it looks... we got our residence permits in 2019, and she still doesn't have her passport.

The official info for student applications is here:

https://www.inclusion.gob.es/web/migraciones/w/estancia-por-estudios

This is a page from an immigration attorney:

https://balcellsgroup.com/student-visa-in-spain/

It mentions finance to support yourself (IPREM = 600 euros per month) and health insurance. I don't know the exact rules, so you would need to discuss with an immigration expert, but, normally, folks have to have proof of funds and proof of health insurance. The IPREM level covers living + accommodation. So if you will be living rent-free with your cousin, I'd guess you'd need some documentation to prove this. My guess is that perhaps a notarized declaration from your cousin might serve in relation to your accommodation and your living costs. But any such declaration would also need documents proving that he has a suitable property and he has sufficient financial resources for both of you.

Similarly, I don't think any kind of invitation letter works. You have to pick a course, be accepted, and pay for it. With the appropriate confirmation letter from the course provider. If the course provider doesn't charge up-front for the entire course, then perhaps you have to show proof of funds for your fees too.

I doubt you can do any course you feel like. It must be "full-time" (I don't know how many hours this is, I think 20+ hours), and it must be a course that has a certificate or title, or is part of a foundation/preparation study required by your university.

Students are definitely allowed to work part-time.

I believe there is a short-term visa (3-6 months) and a long-term visa (6+ months) with slightly simpler paperwork for the shorter one. I don't know if you can apply within Spain, or if you have to apply at the Spanish Embassy in your home country. I think both options OK, but you should check. Personally, if I were short on funds, I would prefer to apply and get approved before flying over anyway.