Must apply to a student visa those foreigners who wish to:
US citizens (or any other nationality that does not require a visa to enter Spain) who travel to study less than 90 days do not need to apply for this visa.
The Consulate General of Spain in Los Angeles has jurisdiction over the following states: California (counties: Imperial, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Barbara and Ventura), Arizona, Colorado or Utah (State ID required).
Visa applications must be submitted well in advance of the start of the relevant study programmes, as the procedure involves consultations with other authorities. Incomplete applications are not allowed.
Family members who can obtain a visa to accompany the student:
All applications for study visas (students and family members, conversation
assistants, au pairs, volunteers, etc.) must be submitted IN PERSON at BLS Visa
Application Center for Spain.
BLS - Spain Visa Application Center, Los Angeles
6380 Wilshire Blvd, Suite #1100, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
The presentation may be made by the applicant or through a duly accredited representative, for which the notarized model can be used. See Download Forms section.
The visa collection, regardless of the form of presentation, always have to be picked up IN PERSON by the student/conversation assistant/volunteer/Au pair, etc., at the BLS Visa Service for Spain office.
An appointment will be requested on the following website: https://usa.blsspainvisa.com/losangeles/index.php
Email: info.laxes@blsinternational.net
Telephone: +1 516-888-1169
IMPORTANT NOTE: Starting November 15, BLS will be processing this type of visa, through appointments.
The Revised visa fee and BLS service charge are as follows:
Consulate Visa Fee Based on Citizenship & Duration | Amount in USD |
---|---|
All other nationals | 99 |
United States of America | 160 |
Australia | 476 |
United Kingdom > longer than 180 days | 440 |
United Kingdom < shorter than 180 days | 99 |
Bangladesh | 99 |
Mauritania | 263 |
Ethiopia > longer than 180 days | 510 |
Ethiopia < shorter than 180 days | 99 |
BLS Service Fee | Amount in USD |
All Nationals | 18 |
Notifications (SMS) | 5 |
You must submit the following documents (Documents 1 to 7 are essential to start the process):
National Visa Application Form, completed and signed. You can download it from Download forms section. Do not forget to indicate the email in section #17.
You may submit your application up to 120 days in advance of the start of your educational program.
If the duration of the stay exceeds six months, a Medical
Certificate and Criminal Record Certificate will also be required.Medical certificate with letterhead, signature and seal and license number of the doctor, together with a sworn translation thereof into Spanish indicating:
"This medical certificate certifies that Mr. / Mrs. (...) He does not suffer from any of the diseases that may have serious public health implications in accordance with the provisions of the International Health Regulations of 2005."
If you use the bilingual model provided by the consulate (see section "Download forms"), translation is not necessary.
This certificate is valid for 3 months.
State or local police criminal certificates are not accepted.
The criminal record must be legalized with the Apostille certification of the Issued by the U.S. Department of State and translated into Spanish by a sworn translator.
FBI DEPARTMENT OF BACKGROUND CHECK INFORMATION STATE
https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/identity-history-summary-checks HYPERLINK "https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/identity-history-summary-checks"
Translations: AMERICAN TRANSLATORS ASSOCIATION: https://www.atanet.org/ HYPERLINK "https://www.atanet.org/"
INFO DEPARTMENT OF STATE APOSTILLE
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/records-and-authentications HYPERLINK
"https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/records-and-authentications/authenticate-your-document/apostille-requirements.html"/authenticate
HYPERLINK
"https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/records-and-authentications/authenticate-your-document/apostille-requirements.html"your-document
HYPERLINK
"https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/records-and-authentications/authenticate-your-document/apostille-requirements.html"/apostille-requirements
HYPERLINK
"https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/records-and-authentications/authenticate-your-document/apostille-requirements.html".html
HYPERLINK
"https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/records-and-authentications/authenticate-your-document/apostille-requirements.html"
If the applicant has stayed six months or more during the last five years in another country, he must present the criminal record of that country, legalized with the Apostille Certification and translated into Spanish. If the country is not a party to the Hague Convention, the document must be legalized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and then by the Spanish Consulate in that country. The legalization must always be done on the original of the document by the country / state issuing it.
Documents required for family members.
For each family member accompanying the student, the following must be presented:
Correction of the application: The Consular Office may request the applicant to present the missing documents, or to provide additional documents or data that are necessary for the resolution of the application. The applicant may also be called for a personal interview.
STUDENT VISA FOR CHILDREN UNDER 18
In the case of minors and not traveling accompanied by their parents, the application must be submitted by their parents or duly accredited legal guardians.
In addition to the documents detailed above (requirements 1 to 9), you will need to submit the following:
Notarized declaration of the person or persons taking care of the minor in Spain, with a copy of the DNI or NIE and certificate of Sexual Nature issued by the Registry of Sex Offenders of the Ministry of Justice (https://sede.mjusticia.gob.es/es/tramites/certificado-registro-central)
or express authorization for the Administration to obtain such
certification.
(https://www.mjusticia.gob.es/es/Ciudadano/TramitesGestiones/Documents/1292428513701-Modelo_de_autorizacion.PDF)
Note: We regret we cannot accept photographs that do not meet these requirements
Please provide one recent photograph (not more than 6 months old) of yourself, which should not have been used previously in the passport. The photograph should be in colour and:
Note: Please follow these instructions carefully. If photographs presented do not meet these requirements your application will be considered incomplete. A photo booth meeting these requirements is available at the centre.
The visa collection, regardless of the form of presentation, always have to be picked up IN PERSON by the student/conversation assistant/volunteer/au pair, etc., at the BLS Visa Service for Spain office.
The Consulate General of Spain, through BLS – Spain Visa Application Center, Los Angeles, will notify the resolution of the application. The passport must be collected by the applicant personally at the offices of BLS – Spain Visa Application Center, Los Angeles, from Monday to Friday between 3:00 and 4:00 PM, within a maximum period of two months. If the collection is not carried out within the period, it will be understood that the interested party has renounced the visa granted, and the procedure will be archived.
Once the visa has been collected, the applicant must enter Spanish territory during the period of validity. Within one month of entry (for stays longer than 180 days), the foreigner must personally apply for the Foreigner's Identity Card, at the Police Station, Aliens and Documentation Section closest to his home. In the case of minors, this procedure may be carried out by a representative.
If the duration of the studies does not exceed six months, the visa will be sufficient to document the stay.
The processing time for this type of visa can take approximately 2 to 6 weeks. It is recommended that air tickets are not purchased until the visa is granted.
The Consulate General of Spain in Los Angeles has full authority to evaluate and request additional documents from those initially submitted by the applicant.