You can enter, reside and work in Spain as an intra-corporate transferee if you are a manager, specialist or trainee employee. The definitions and conditions of admission are governed by the EU Directive on intra-corporate transfer (Articles 3 and 5 of Directive 2014/66/EU). If you fulfil the conditions, you will be issued an EU Intra-Corporate Transferee permit.
Please note that before being transferred from a company branch located outside of the EU to a branch in Spain, you must have been employed by that company for a 3-month period, whether you are a manager, a specialist or a trainee.
Where and how to apply
The application shall be submitted to the Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos (Large Business and Strategic Groups Unit), online here.
The host entity must apply or an agent of such company or entity duly accredited.
The applicable fee is 71, 81 euros.
The law indicates that if in 20 days there is no formal answer, the application is considered to be positive.
Once the decision is notified and only if you are abroad, you should apply for a visa at the Embassy or Consulate of Spain in the place of residence. In case you are already in Spain, a visa must not be applied for.
There is a simplified procedure for recognised entities. It consists in a creation of a public registry in which those companies who meet the requirements established in the law are included for a 3-year period. Being included in this registry excludes these companies of accrediting another set of further requirements when they submit the application. The requirements to be included in the registry are any of the following:
- having an average workforce during the three months immediately prior to filing the application greater than 250 workers in Spain, registered in the relevant Social Security System;
- annual net business turnover in Spain, of over 50 million euros; or volume of own funds or equity or net worth in Spain exceeding 43 million euros;
- annual average gross investment, from abroad, not less than 1 million euros in the three years immediately prior to the application filing date;
- companies with an investment stock value or position according to the latest data from the Foreign Investments Registry of the Ministry of Economy of over 3 million euros;
- in the case of small and medium-sized businesses established in Spain, prove that they belong to a sector considered strategic, which is certified by a report from the Directorate-General for International Trade and Investments.
Documents required
- A passport;
- health insurance documents,
- background checks;
- certification of the company
- a higher education qualification or equivalent or a minimum professional experience of 3 years;
- the existence of a previous and continuous employment or professional relationship of 3 months with one or more of the companies of the group;
- company documentation proving the intra-corporate transfer;
- documentation proving the relationship with Social Security.
Duration of validity of permits
The period of validity of the ICT permit is of at least two years or the duration of the transfer (whichever is shorter), and may be extended to a maximum of 3 years for managers and specialists and 1 year for trainee employees
Appeals
If an application for a permit has been rejected, decisions can be challenged by way of an administrative appeal. And if you disagree, you can go court.
Extension or renewal
The residence permit can be renewed for an additional two-year period as long as the requirements have been fulfilled.
Change of status
If there are changes in the personal situation or if the purpose of the stay changes while a person with an ICT permit is in the country, the situation will be considered individually.
Family members
Family members who accompany or join the intra-corporate transferee may apply jointly and simultaneously or successively for their residence permit, and, where appropriate, their visa.
Family members are: the spouse or unmarried couple; children who are minors or those of legal age being financially dependent on the holder; parents in their charge.
Other rights
A person with an ICT permit benefits from equal treatment with nationals of Spain in what regards freedom of association; recognition of diplomas and professional qualifications; provisions regarding social security (with conditions); access to goods and services (with exceptions).
Other
With the visa and residence permit, you may live and work anywhere in Spain, including relatives if they meet the expected age labour regulations.
The application for residence permits and renewals extends the validity of the stay or residence status of the applicant until the procedure is terminated.
No labour market test.
Upon the fulfilment of certain conditions you can, on the basis of an ICT permit issued in one EU country, work in other EU countries if the entity where you will work belongs to the same company. If the duration of your mobility is shorter than 90 days during a 180-day period, you are subject to short-term mobility rules. If the duration of the mobility is longer than 90 days, you are instead subject to long-term mobility rules.
The following procedures apply if you have an ICT permit in an EU Member State and intend to move and work in Spain:
Short-term mobility
Companies established in other European Union Member States may post the foreign nationals who hold an EU ICT intra-corporate transfer permit to Spain during the validity period of said permit, provided they previously inform the Unit for Large Companies and Strategic Economic Sectors. The Directorate-General for Migrations may refuse, setting out the grounds, the mobility within a period of 20 days in the following cases:
- when the conditions stipulated in article 73 of Law 14/2013 are not fulfilled;
- when the documents submitted have been acquired on a fraudulent basis, or have been falsified or manipulated;
- when the maximum duration of the transfer has expired.
The company located in Spain and that hosts the worker from another EU Member State must notify to the Unit for Large Companies and Strategic Economic Sectors, before the transfer date.
To do so, it must submit the following communication fulfilled and signed through the Common Electronic Registry of the General State Administration, addressed to the Subdirectorate General of Immigration, of the General Direction of Migration.
Documents required
- The communication fulfilled and signed by the company located in Spain and that hosts the worker from another EU Member State;
- a copy of the passport of the worker who is going to exercise the intra-mobility EU;
- a copy of the worker's current ICT EU resident card issued by the other Member State;
- a copy of the work contract in force with the company of origin.
Long-term mobility
Companies established in other European Union Member States may post the foreign nationals who hold an EU ICT intra-corporate transfer permit to Spain during the validity period of said permit, provided they previously inform the Unit for Large Companies and Strategic Economic Sectors. The Directorate-General for Migrations may refuse, setting out the grounds, the mobility within a period of 20 days in the following cases:
- when the conditions stipulated in article 73 of Law 14/2013 are not fulfilled;
- when the documents submitted have been acquired on a fraudulent basis, or have been falsified or manipulated;
- when the maximum duration of the transfer has expired.
The company located in Spain and that hosts the worker from another EU Member State must notify to the Unit for Large Companies and Strategic Economic Sectors, before the transfer date.
To do so, it must submit the following communication fulfilled and signed through the Common Electronic Registry of the General State Administration, addressed to the Subdirectorate General of Immigration, of the General Direction of Migration.
Documents required
- The communication fulfilled and signed by the company located in Spain and that hosts the worker from another EU Member State;
- a copy of the passport of the worker who is going to exercise the intra-mobility EU;
- a copy of the worker's current ICT EU resident card issued by the other Member State;
- a copy of the work contract in force with the company of origin.
Procedure for family members: Notification is also applied.