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Did you know that a Spanish student visa lets you work?

 
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jovencito



Joined: 11 Oct 2005
Posts: 46

PostPosted: Thu Apr 14, 2011 5:48 pm    Post subject: Did you know that a Spanish student visa lets you work? Reply with quote

As a non-EU living and working in Spain, here's some useful information for everyone saying that it's impossible to work in Spain, legally or not.

First, when I came to Spain things were (from a work perspective) the same as they are now. People with no work papers still get decent paying jobs. If you want to come and stay and work in Spain legally, you can do it quite easily by going through a TEFL program that offers a student visa. The student visa allows you to work legally up to 20 hours a week. This is usually enough to live on and you can always teach private classes if you want to earn a bit more. The student visa allows you to live in Spain, in most cases up to one year and it is renewable. As I said, there are TEFL programs in Spain that will help you get a student visa.

There's also an odd law in Spain that allows you to apply for residency if you can prove that you've been in Spain for 3 years legally or illegally. You need to get "empadronado", something that you arrange after you get to Spain.

I know two people that recently (6 weeks ago) came to Spain with the student visa, took their TEFL course and are now working earning 18 Euros an hour. Much more than you'll get working for a local government program.

Google tefl course student visa spain to find programs offering the student visa.
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mozzar



Joined: 16 May 2009
Posts: 339
Location: France

PostPosted: Thu Apr 14, 2011 10:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That sounds like a boat load of misinformation. No TEFL courses can provide you with a visa. A student visa from a proper university course can't be renewed once the course has finished.

And it's not 3 years you need to be legal - it's more like 10.

Not sure why you would post this message. I'm guessing you run a company that will sell a course and then abandon the students afterwards.
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spiral78



Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 12:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ok, so I googled as suggested. Yes, it's a TEFL course provider.
There are two issues here:

To apply for the legit student visa, you have to actually join a Spanish study course that runs 20 hours per week. You can work in your spare time to help support your study. This sounds legit (but will obviously not allow one to work full-time, and of course you must pay for and attend your Spanish course for the entire length of time you wish to be in Spain !)

This is all fine and seems above-board so far as I can tell. It's always been true that one can work on a legitimate student visa.

The shady part in my opinion is that the website states several times that one will find work with or without a visa. Perhaps. But encouraging newbies to take illegal jobs, risking being caught and banned from the EU, is WRONG.

(school name omitted)_TEFL_Spanish_Student_Visa.pdf

Quote:
What about visas?
If you are from the USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand you do not need a visa to come
to Spain.
You should get a Student Visa if ALL the following apply to you:
� You want to take the EBC TEFL course + Spanish language programme
� You are not from the European Union
� You want to study full-time (20+ hours per week) in Spain for more than 3 months



Quote:
You will still be able to find work in Spain with or without this visa which is why applying
for the Student Visa is aimed at people that want an extended stay in Spain to study Spanish.


Quote:
Can I apply for the visa but not take the Spanish course?
No you can't, you MUST take the Spanish course or you will NOT be able to apply for a
student visa.
I wanted to get a student visa through the old EBC student visa process?
The old EBC student visa process is no longer active. If you want to join the new process
then you can. The new process was effective as of July 15, 2010.
Can I apply for the visa after I start the EBC course?
No you can't, you MUST get your visa BEFORE you come to Spain and attend the course.
When should I apply for the visa?
You MUST apply at least 6 weeks before your course start date. If you don't, then your visa
will not arrive in time for the course.
Exactly what is the process?
Follow these 4 steps.
STEP ONE: Apply for a course in Madrid.
STEP TWO: Contact your nearest Spanish Consulate and find out exactly what personal
documentation you will need to submit.
Some of the documents you will need to submit are proof of study abroad, which is where
EBC comes in. EBC will give you all the documentation you need in order to justify your
Student Visa application.
STEP THREE: Send EBC your �600 reservation deposit and the personal details that EBC
will need to prove your studies in Spain.
Once your reservation deposit has been processed, EBC send you the documents you will
need in order to justify your Student Visa application. You will also receive a letter
explaining what to do with the documents.
STEP FOUR: Take all the documents to the Spanish Consulate and start the application
process, after which (we all hope) you will be given your Student Visa.
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mozzar



Joined: 16 May 2009
Posts: 339
Location: France

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 8:27 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

MOD EDIT

If anything, working legally is all he�s about.

Quote:
An FYI: there are also Spanish government runs programs to get non-EU English teachers for jobs in various parts of Spain. The pay is not good (usually around 600 to 700 Euros a month). Guess what!! the non-EU's are brought over on a student visa and many of them don't even attend a course while they are working.


These are well known and advertised on the forum. But the key words here are government run. I did a course with one of the providers mentioned and there were Americans on the course. Three months later they all had to leave. They had work in the mean time but it was really just an extended holiday.
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spiral78



Joined: 05 Apr 2004
Posts: 11534
Location: On a Short Leash

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 8:33 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

No. I'm totally IN FAVOUR of programmes that allow non-EU teachers to come over and work LEGALLY.

As I said above:
Quote:
This is all fine and seems above-board so far as I can tell. It's always been true that one can work on a legitimate student visa.


To set the record straight, I am

1. NOT AFFILIATED WITH ANY COURSE PROVIDER (I have no personal reason to either draw or not draw newbies to any region).
2. Have been around long enough to see people get caught from time to time. It's not nice.

Quote:
the non-EU's are brought over on a student visa and many of them don't even attend a course while they are working.


That's NOT technically legal. Possible to get caught and penalised.

Another important point that needs to be raised is:

How much should the students who sign up for the TEFL cert and the 20-hour-per-week Spanish courses cost over a period of nine months to a year?

The only fees for the Spanish course I saw on the website were for four weeks. Should that be multiplied (if I recall, it was around 700 euro/month)? Or is it cheaper if the student attends for a longer period of time?

This would obviously be a significant expense and the company should certainly be up front about it.

http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=83922&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=15
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naturegirl321



Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 8:52 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I've also looked into the student visa. Basically, here's the info

You CAN work PT on a student visa.

you MUST be studying though. You can't just enrol and not attend courses.

In order to get a student visa you have to jump through a lot of hoops, such as proving that you have enough money (Between 500 and 1000 a month, I can't remember if that's dollars or euros) You need to have that money IN THE BANK when you apply. You also need insurance for the duration of that time you're there.

So while it is an option, it' s a bit tough. Let's say you need at least $6000 in the bank for a year of study, you also have to pay for living there, (studies, food, housing (expensive)). Work will get you some money, but I'm not sure if you'd be able to save a ton though. I tell peopel who want to go there, go for the cultural experience, not the money.

I think that's the basic stuff. never heard of the empadrado thingy, but it sounds good.
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Sashadroogie



Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 9:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sounds very similar to the Chinese scam employed by many TEFL schools in the UK a few years back. Chinese student arrives in UK/EU on a study visa, which was obtained by having enrolled in a TEFL school. 'Student' turns up at the school only every so often to re-new paperwork and pay school fees (in full!), but the rest of the time is slaving away in McDonald's or worse - always far in excess of the 20 hours a week or whatever that can be legally worked to support the student.

This can continue for a couple of years until either the student is caught by the authorities and deported and the school fined, or the student goes back home, totally broken from having in effect to pay extortionate tax to a crappy TEFL school as well as work for a crappy sweatshop.

But make no mistake about it - was and still is totally illegal. Schools were even shut down. (Small school with 3 classrooms and 7,000 students registered is a bit of a giveaway.)

So think carefully before you decide to put yourself in the same position as a vulnerable migrant worker. Bare-faced exploitation isn't all that good a cultural experience...
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WindyCityWanderer



Joined: 17 Mar 2011
Posts: 7
Location: USA

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 2:05 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
the non-EU's are brought over on a student visa and many of them don't even attend a course while they are working.

That's NOT technically legal. Possible to get caught and penalised.

In the program that jovencito mentioned, you go to Spain on a student visa because the Spanish government calls the program "an academic continuation education grant." So, from what I can tell your work in the classroom (and you're just a teaching assistant, not a lead teacher) is the continuing education aspect, and you get 700 euro/month as the grant (1000 euro/month in Madrid).
Also, as someone who is going through the process now, a year long student visa is a pain to get if you're from the US. You need proof of health insurance, proof of funds (provided by the language and culture assistant program if that's what you're doing), a medical certificate of good health, dated within 3 months of the visa application, and an FBI background check (which can take up to 12 weeks to get back), apostilled by the Department of State, and some other documents from the program/school I can't remember off the top of my head. So, its something you need to start planning months before even applying for the visa, and NOT a quick or easy process.
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naturegirl321



Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 2:57 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

WindyCityWanderer wrote:
Also, as someone who is going through the process now, a year long student visa is a pain to get if you're from the US. You need proof of health insurance, proof of funds (provided by the language and culture assistant program if that's what you're doing), a medical certificate of good health, dated within 3 months of the visa application, and an FBI background check (which can take up to 12 weeks to get back), apostilled by the Department of State, and some other documents from the program/school I can't remember off the top of my head. So, its something you need to start planning months before even applying for the visa, and NOT a quick or easy process.


Quick question: does the FBI check have to be completely clean? What happens if someone has a minor violation, such as underaged drinking or drug paraphanalia? Can you still get accepted?

Sonds expensive, if medical costs are the same, my student visa medical check up with complete bloodwork cost a couple thousand back in 2001.
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WindyCityWanderer



Joined: 17 Mar 2011
Posts: 7
Location: USA

PostPosted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 3:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm not sure about how clean the background check has to be. On another forum I visit, some people have been worried about old DUIs, something like destruction of private property (as a minor) and some other small violations.
It would probably depend on the consulate, they all seems to have their own particular spin on the official rules.

I don't know about medical costs - I went through my school's health center and just had to get a Tb test and say I haven't been to anywhere tropical basically.
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naturegirl321



Joined: 04 May 2003
Posts: 9041
Location: home sweet home

PostPosted: Sat Apr 16, 2011 2:20 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

WindyCityWanderer wrote:
I'm not sure about how clean the background check has to be. On another forum I visit, some people have been worried about old DUIs, something like destruction of private property (as a minor) and some other small violations.
It would probably depend on the consulate, they all seems to have their own particular spin on the official rules.

I don't know about medical costs - I went through my school's health center and just had to get a Tb test and say I haven't been to anywhere tropical basically.


Ok, thanks for the info. I guess if there are no tests it should be pretty cheap. I'd hope that minor offences would be excused, espeically if the are years old. I know someone how has been trying to get a record exponged and it takes forever, is pretty disorganised, and expensive to boot.
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pr455



Joined: 08 May 2011
Posts: 135
Location: MADRID, SPAIN

PostPosted: Thu Jul 14, 2011 3:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I am here working on a student visa, but I came through the North American Language and Culture Assistant Program (NALCAP), which has us working in school as English Language Assistants and we do not do a course at all. We are given student visas because we are getting a grant and that makes sense. During my time here on a student visa I have:

1. worked for a public university,

2. worked for a private university,

3. given teacher training courses,

4. given language assitant training course,

5. given presentations in the USA about the NALCAP,

6. given a presentation at the 1st Bilingual Conference for Schools in Spain.

A lot can be done with a student visa in Madrid.

Suerte,

Shawn
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