Work in Spain: the steps, from official sources
What applies everywhere in Spain on work, each with the official page that confirms it, then the regions whose own rules add to it.
Your plan, in your order. Documents, offices, hours and fees for your city, for your passport and visa.
Open the guideAcross Spain
Book a Social Security appointment
The Social Security sede’s appointment service (cita previa) is for INSS and ISM offices, which handle pensions and other benefits.
Obtain a Spanish Social Security number (NUSS)
The Número de la Seguridad Social (NUSS) identifies you with the Spanish Social Security system; your employer normally requests it when you start work, or you can request it yourself online or in person with your…
Register as self-employed (autónomo)
To work for yourself in Spain you declare the activity to the tax agency (Modelo 036), then register in the self-employed Social Security regime (RETA) via the Import@ss app, and pay a monthly contribution based on your…
US-Spain Social Security totalization agreement
Under the US-Spain Social Security (totalization) agreement, a US worker temporarily sent to work in Spain (or a self-employed person moving their activity for 5 years or less) can remain covered solely by the US system…
Work remotely for a US employer (international telework residence)
Non-EU nationals who work remotely for companies outside Spain can apply for an international telework visa or residence authorization (Ley 14/2013 as amended by Ley 28/2022), and the US-Spain Social Security agreement…
Highly qualified professional and employer-sponsored work routes (UGE route)
Foreigners with a Spanish job offer generally need a work-and-residence authorization that the employer obtains first; highly qualified professionals (including EU Blue Card holders) and intra-company transferees use a…
Social security agreements between Spain and other countries
Spain has bilateral social security agreements with a set list of countries, plus the Ibero-American Multilateral Convention.
Understand your employment contract and payslip (nómina)
Spanish employment contracts follow the 2021 labor reform (indefinite, fixed-term for production or substitution, fixed-discontinuous and training contracts), and your nómina and rights are shaped by the Estatuto de los…
Entrepreneur and self-employed residence routes
Foreigners who want to run a business in Spain can use the entrepreneur authorization (innovative projects, assessed by ENISA, processed by UGE-CE) or the self-employed residence-and-work visa (requested from a…
Where a region adds its own rules
Andalucía
Aragón
Asturias
Canarias
Cantabria
Castilla y León
Castilla-La Mancha
Cataluña
Community of Madrid
Comunitat Valenciana
Extremadura
Galicia
Illes Balears
La Rioja
Navarra
País Vasco
Región de Murcia
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