Visas for teaching English in Spain

The first question to settle, before flights, before courses, before anything, is whether you can legally be in Spain. It comes down to your passport, so let's make it simple.

If you hold an EU, EEA or Swiss passport

You're in the easiest position there is. That includes Ireland, so Irish citizens have the simplest path of anyone. You can live, work and teach in Spain with no visa and no work permit. If you're staying more than three months you register for an EU citizen's certificate (the "green NIE") and get a social security number, and that's really it. The rest of this page is for everyone else.

If you're from outside the EU

UK (since Brexit), US, Canadian, Australian and New Zealand teachers all need a route in. A tourist stay does not count: the 90 days in 180 you get as a visitor allows no work at all, paid or unpaid. Here are the real routes, and who each one suits.

The student visa (the main route)

This is the workhorse for most non EU teachers. You enrol in a course (a Spanish language course, or a long teacher training course), which entitles you to live in Spain while you study. The 2025 reform tightened it, so here's what actually matters now:

• An accredited course. For a Spanish course the centre must be officially registered, and Instituto Cervantes accreditation is the recognised quality mark. The course has to be in person (at least half) and at least 20 hours a week.
• Apply from your home country. Since May 2025, students on a language course apply at the Spanish consulate where they live and can no longer switch over from a tourist stay inside Spain. (Only university students keep the in country route.)
• Show your funds. You need to prove 100% of the IPREM, which is €600 a month (about €7,200 for a year), on top of your paid course fees.
• Insurance and checks. Private health insurance with no copays, a criminal record certificate, and a medical certificate.

The work rights catch (read this)

This is the most misunderstood point online, so we'll be straight about it. The reform created two tiers:

• University level students can now work up to 30 hours a week automatically, with no extra permit. A real improvement.
• Students on a language or training course (where most teachers sit) do not get automatic work rights. A separate work authorisation has to be requested. So do not assume a language course alone lets you work legally, and confirm your exact case with the consulate or with us.

Language students also get only one renewal, and renewing means showing academic progress, including taking a DELE or SIELE Spanish exam.

Language assistant programmes

These (Auxiliares de Conversación, NALCAP for North Americans, the British Council scheme, BEDA and others) are the most popular legal entry for many teachers, because they bundle a stipend, health cover and a student visa in one package. You're paid a grant of roughly €700 to €1,000 a month for light hours (12 to 16 a week), so it's a grant rather than a job, which is what keeps the paperwork simple. We cover them in full in the language assistant guide.

Working holiday visas

If you're young and from the right country, this is the cleanest route of all: it lets you live, work and teach (academies, private classes, anything) for a year, with no course or sponsor required. Spain has agreements with five countries.

There is no working holiday agreement for UK or US citizens, who lean on the student or assistant routes instead. Canada stands out: the higher age limit and full work rights make it the most flexible of the non EU nationalities.

Digital nomad visa

If you teach online for students or companies outside Spain, this is worth a serious look. You need to show income of about 200% of the Spanish minimum wage, which in 2025 is roughly €2,368 a month (closer to €2,850 in 2026). Your work has to be for clients abroad (a small slice of Spanish clients is allowed if you're freelance). It's the cleanest long term route for an established online teacher.

Other routes, briefly

• Employer sponsored work visa. Possible in theory, rare in practice, most academies won't sponsor a teaching role.
• Non lucrative visa. Allows no work in Spain at all, so it isn't a teaching route, though some use it as a stepping stone. It needs much higher funds (around €2,400 a month).
• Family or partner. If you're the spouse or registered partner of a Spanish or EU citizen, your residence card lets you work. A strong route if it applies to you.
• Spanish ancestry ("Ley de Nietos"). This descendant citizenship window closed to new applicants on 23 October 2025, so it's no longer an option for new cases.

Once you arrive: the paperwork

• NIE, your foreigner ID number, needed for almost everything. It usually comes with your visa.
• TIE, the physical residence card, applied for within a month of arriving if you're staying over six months.
• Empadronamiento, registering your address at the town hall, which unlocks most other paperwork.
• Autónomo, if you teach privately. You register as freelance and pay a reduced rate of about €80 a month for your first year (some regions refund even that).

Document checklist

The single most common timing trap is the criminal record certificate, so order it first. By country that's the ACRO check (UK), the FBI federal check (US), the RCMP check (Canada), the AFP check (Australia) or the NZ Police certificate. Then comes the bit people forget:

• An apostille on foreign documents (Spain uses the Hague apostille).
• A sworn translation (traducción jurada) of anything not in Spanish.
• A medical certificate for stays over six months.
• Most consulates want the police certificate issued within 90 days, so sequence carefully.

Quick notes by nationality

• UK: student visa plus a course, or the British Council assistant programme. Digital nomad visa if you teach online. No working holiday option.
• US: NALCAP is the flagship route, plus the student or digital nomad visas. No working holiday option.
• Canada: the most flexible, with both NALCAP and the working holiday visa (up to age 35).
• Australia and New Zealand: the working holiday visa is usually the fastest start, plus student and assistant routes.
• Ireland and the EU: no visa at all, just register on arrival.

Frequently asked questions