An engineer from the EU or the European Economic Area needs no visa to work in Spain. For an engineer from outside the EU whom a company employs in Spain, the usual route is the highly qualified professional (PAC) residence permit of Spain's Law 14/2013, which the company or the engineer files online and which the authorities must decide within 20 days. The EU Blue Card is the version of that permit with a salary threshold and EU-wide mobility. The digital nomad visa is for people who work remotely for companies based outside Spain, so it does not replace a work permit when a Spanish company is the employer.
What is a Spain work visa for a tech hire?
A Spain work visa for a tech hire is the residence authorisation that allows a non-EU engineer to live in Spain and work for the company that hires them. For skilled profiles, Spain grants it under the international mobility section of Law 14/2013, which covers investors, entrepreneurs, highly qualified professionals, researchers, intra-company transfers and international teleworkers (Article 61.1).
That section runs on a fast, online procedure handled by the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit (Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos, UGE-CE) of Spain's Ministry of Inclusion. For a software engineer, three permits from that section are relevant: the national highly qualified professional permit, the EU Blue Card and the international telework visa, better known as the digital nomad visa.
Do EU engineers need a visa to work in Spain?
EU engineers do not need a visa or a work permit to work in Spain. Under Article 3.2 of Royal Decree 240/2007, citizens of EU and EEA countries can take any job, as employees or self-employed, on the same terms as Spanish nationals. Law 14/2013 says its permits do not apply to them (Article 61.2).
The one formality comes after arrival. An EU citizen who stays in Spain for more than three months must register in person in the Central Register of Foreigners, at the immigration office of their province or a police station, under Article 7 of the same decree. A company hiring a Portuguese or Polish engineer can therefore issue the contract and register them with Social Security like any local hire.
Spain work permits for engineers compared (2026)
The three permits differ in who can use them, who files the application and whether an employer in Spain is involved. The table compares them on the same attributes, with the rules in force in 2026.
| Attribute | National PAC permit | EU Blue Card | Digital nomad (telework) visa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | A highly qualified worker a company needs in Spain | A highly qualified worker with a degree or equivalent experience | A worker or freelancer working remotely for companies outside Spain |
| Who files it | The company or the engineer (Article 71.1) | The company or the engineer (Article 71.1) | The engineer |
| Employer in Spain | Yes | Yes, with a contract or firm offer of at least six months | No: an employee can only work for companies outside Spain |
| Salary or income | No figure in Law 14/2013 | At least 1.4 times Spain's average gross annual earnings | 200% of Spain's minimum wage, per consulate guidance |
| Decision time | 20 days, then tacit approval (Article 76) | 20 days, then tacit approval (Article 76) | Visa: 10 working days (Article 75.5) |
| Initial validity | Up to three years (Article 71.3) | Up to three years (Article 71.3) | Visa up to one year; residence permit up to three years |
| Renewal | Two-year periods | Two-year periods | Two-year periods |
| Family | Spouse or partner, children and dependent parents can apply together (Article 62.4) | Same as the PAC | Same, with extra income per family member |
The salary threshold of the EU Blue Card comes from Order PJC/44/2026, and the digital nomad income figure from the requirements published by Spain's consulates. Both are explained in their own sections below.
How the highly qualified professional (PAC) permit works
The highly qualified professional (PAC) permit is a residence and work authorisation for a foreign professional whom a company needs in Spain for a highly qualified job, valid across the country under Article 71 of Law 14/2013. For a company hiring a senior engineer from outside the EU, the process runs in six steps:
- Register the company with the UGE-CE. The company proves it meets the requirements once and stays registered for three renewable years, under Article 76.4. Any change must be reported within 30 days.
- Sign a contract or a firm job offer. The application is built around the job the engineer will do in Spain.
- File the application online. The company or the engineer can file it; if the engineer files, the UGE-CE informs the company, under Article 71.1.
- Wait for the decision. The maximum time is 20 days from the electronic filing, and if no decision arrives in that time the permit is deemed granted, under Article 76.1.
- Get the visa if the engineer is abroad. Spanish consulates decide residence visas in this section within 10 working days, under Article 75.5.
- Apply for the foreigner identity card (TIE). It is required when the permit lasts more than six months, under Article 76.2. In the meantime, the passport is enough to register the engineer with Social Security during the first six months (Article 76.5).
The permit lasts three years, or the length of the contract plus three months if the contract is shorter, and can be renewed for two years at a time while the conditions hold, according to Article 71.3.
Who qualifies as a highly qualified professional in Spain
A software engineer qualifies as a highly qualified professional in Spain through either a degree or equivalent professional experience, and the bar depends on the permit. Article 71.2 of Law 14/2013 sets two levels:
- National PAC permit: a qualification at least equivalent to level 1 of Spain's higher education qualifications framework, or at least three years of professional experience that can be considered equivalent. The detailed criteria are in the instructions referred to in the law's twentieth additional provision.
- EU Blue Card: a higher education qualification of at least three years, at level 6 of the European Qualifications Framework, or at least five years of equivalent and relevant professional experience. For ICT professionals and managers, the experience required is three years within the seven years before the application.
In practice, a software engineer with a bachelor's degree, or a self-taught developer with several years in the role, can fit one of the two routes. Article 62 adds the general conditions: being over 18, a clean criminal record, health insurance and sufficient resources.
EU Blue Card salary threshold in Spain (2026)
The EU Blue Card in Spain requires a contract or firm offer with a gross annual salary of at least 1.4 times the average gross annual earnings per worker published by Spain's National Statistics Institute (INE), under Order PJC/44/2026, in force since 31 January 2026. Law 14/2013 had set the range at between 1.0 and 1.6 times the average (Article 71 bis).
The latest INE figure is €29,540.26 of average annual earnings per worker in 2024, published on 28 May 2026. Under Article 3.2 of the order, each new INE survey applies to applications filed from one month after its publication.
A reduction coefficient of 0.8 applies in two cases, according to Article 2 of the order: occupations in groups 1 and 2 of Spain's occupational classification that appear on the catalogue of hard-to-fill occupations, and applicants who obtained their qualification no more than three years before applying. The UGE-CE publishes the resulting amounts on its website.
Can a company hire an engineer on Spain's digital nomad visa?
A company in Spain cannot employ an engineer on Spain's digital nomad visa. Under Article 74 bis of Law 14/2013, an employee holding it can only work for companies based outside Spain, and a freelancer can bill Spanish clients for up to 20% of their total professional activity.
The visa works the other way round: it lets an engineer who already works for a foreign company move to Spain and keep that job remotely. Article 74 ter requires the employer to have been active for at least one year, the employment or freelance relationship to have lasted at least three months, and proof that the work can be done remotely.
The income requirement is 200% of Spain's minimum wage (SMI) per month, plus 75% of the SMI for the first family member and 25% for each additional one, according to the requirements published by Spain's embassies. The visa lasts up to one year, and the residence permit applied for in Spain up to three years, renewable for two-year periods (Articles 74 quater and 74 quinquies).
When a company in Spain wants the engineer on its own payroll, the correct route is the PAC permit or the EU Blue Card.
How long it takes to hire a non-EU engineer in Spain
Hiring a non-EU engineer in Spain takes two separate timelines: the search, until the offer is signed, and the permit, which starts once there is a contract or firm offer. The permit has a legal maximum of 20 days for the decision, plus up to 10 working days for the visa if the engineer applies from abroad, under Articles 76.1 and 75.5 of Law 14/2013.
The search timeline depends on the role and the market. Kulturo's published target is a first batch of validated candidates in under 7 days, and 30 days from kick-off to signed offer, before the candidate's notice period. Those are targets, not averages, and the permit runs after them.
Kulturo's guide to hiring AI, data and DevOps engineers in Spain covers what the search looks like for each of those profiles.