Spain – New Rules for EU Blue Card

Background

Instead of including the 2021 Directive in the Immigration Law (Ley Organica 4/2000) as had been done with the previous EU Blue Card Directive (2009); now the new Directive has been introduced in Law 14/2013, of September 27².

Approved almost 10 years ago, Law 14/2013 came about in a context of recovery measures introduced to deal with the economic and social crisis.  The objective was to create a regulatory environment favourable to competitiveness and the internationalisation of Spanish enterprises and, specifically, the granting of visas and residence permits in order to attract investment and talent to Spain.  Law 14/2013 included the investor visa (so-called “Golden Visa”), the entrepreneur visa, the highly-skilled professional visa, and the intra-company visa.

New Blue Card or EU Highly-Skilled Professional

A new article 71 bis in Law 14/2013 establishes the complementarity of the national regime for authorisation of entry and residence of highly-qualified professionals with respect to the EU Blue Card regime.  Spain will have a national highly-qualified professionals permit and an EU highly-qualified professionals permit (the new Blue Card).

Similarities

Who can apply? In both cases the application can by submitted be the enterprise or by the employee.

Validity: The initial permit will be granted for three years whereas renewal will be for two years.  After five years both paths can lead to the long-term permit if requirements are met.

Differences

The Blue Card is for those labour activities in which:

• the level of education needed is equivalent to the level 6 of European Qualifications Framework (EQF)³ ꟷ (same level of the Marco Español de Cualificaciones para el Aprendizaje Permanente (MECU))⁴;
• or five years of labour experience that accredits the individual’s knowledge, capacities, and competencies for the job position and the particular economic sector; except in the information and communications technology area, where three years of experience, in the seven years prior to the Blue Card application, will be requested.

National Highly-Skilled professional permit is for those labour activities in which:

• the level of education needed is equivalent to the level 5A of MECU;
• or three years of labour experience that accredits the individual’s knowledge, capacities, and competencies for the job position and particular economic sector.

Particularities of new Blue Card

The Blue Card can be cancelled or not renewed when:

• the Blue Card holder does not have a valid contract of high qualification:

1.      and has been unemployed for more than three months and has had this type of permit for less than two years.

2.      and has been unemployed for more than six months and has had this type of permit for at least two years.

• When the Blue Card holder moves to another EU country and has obtained the EU Blue Card in that other country.

Pending Instructions

A new twentieth additional provision is included in Law 14/2013 establishing that new instructions will be approved this time without a timeframe (see our previous GMS Flash Alert 2023-031, 9 February 2023).

Contacts