Requirements
Qualified Infant, Primary and Secondary school teachers can work in Spain in the private and semi- private sector.
The legal requirement to teach in an Infant, Primary and Secondary Spanish school ("enseñanza reglada") is the previous validation of your qualifications.
You could work also in a "enseñanza reglada" school like a "support teacher", and in this case would not be strictly necessary the validation.
The validating qualifications process takes from six months to a year, but schools are permitted to employ teachers who are in the process of validating their papers.
Read more about the validation qualifications process.
You can work also in "enseñanza no reglada" schools like language schools, individual course academies or other kinds of academies. In this case, it is not necessary the validation of the qualifications, but we think that it is important.
Working in the public sector is more complicate, because of it is necessary aprove the "oposiciones" and a spanish language test.
Read more about the salary of the Infant, Primary and Secondary spanish teachers (enseñanza reglada).
Requirements of European Community citizens
EU citizens no longer need either a visa or work permit to establish themselves in Spain.
They are allowed to remain for six months, by the end of which time they should be in possession of a residence card, (Residencia). Obtaining a residence permit in Spain, you must either have a job, or have proof of sufficient funds to support yourselves and your family.
Requirements of non European Community citizens
Non-EU citizens, planning to live in Spain, need to apply for a work and residence permit (the worker), or a residence permit only (non-workers or dependants).
Citizens from the United States, and most South American countries, are allowed to visit Spain, as tourists, without any permit or visa, for a maximum of 90 days out of 180. Most other countries will require a tourist visa (please contact Relocations España for further details).
Obtaining a residence permit in Spain to work, (Residencia) the employing company in Spain must first process the application, on behalf of the employee, in Spain.
Once the authorities in Madrid have stamped the official job offer, this is then passed to the employee in the country of origin, or last legal residence, so that the visa application can be processed at the nearest Spanish Consulate.
When the work permit is granted, the authorities notify the hiring company in Spain, as well as the Spanish Consulate where the visa has been applied for, and the employee can return to the consulate to collect the visa. The employee may now legally reside and work in Spain, even though the process is not yet complete: it may take a few more months and two trips to the police station before the final work and residence cards are obtained.
