Autorización de residencia para profesionales altamente cualificados
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Autorización de residencia para profesionales altamente cualificados as of 2025-05-01[4][6] |
|---|---|
| Official name (English) | Not established from a qualifying source No official English designation was found. The PRIE portal's English navigation renders this route as 'High Quality', which is a machine translation, and the ministry's English pages carry a standing machine-translation disclaimer. |
| Legal basis | Ley 14/2013, de 27 de septiembre, arts. 61, 62 y 71 (modalidad nacional) as of 2025-05-01[4][6] Information sheet 66 cites arts. 61, 62, 71 and 71 bis together with Directive (EU) 2021/1883; art. 71 bis and the directive govern the EU Blue Card modality, recorded here as a separate route. |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-08-06[6] |
Who can apply
| Nationals not served by this route | EU, EEA as of 2026-08-06[6] The international mobility section of Ley 14/2013 addresses third-country nationals; EU/EEA nationals and Swiss nationals are covered by free-movement rules instead. Switzerland is not a value in the bloc vocabulary and is recorded here in the note. |
|---|---|
| Criminal-record condition | Yes as of 2025-05-01[4][5] Ley 14/2013 art. 62.3 general requirement, restated on the information sheet. |
Permit terms
| Initial duration | 3 years as of 2025-07-16[4][6][7] Information sheet 66: the authorisation is valid for three years, or for the duration of the contract plus a further three months where the contract is shorter, and in no case for more than three years. Management criterion DGGM 2/2025 restates the same rule by reference to art. 71.3. The three-year figure is recorded as the value and the contract-linked variant is signalled by initial_duration_basis. |
|---|---|
| How the initial term is set | matches the contract |
| Renewable | Yes as of 2023-05-10[1][6] Art. 76.3 provides for renewal of authorisations in this section; the PRIE portal states the renewal periods. |
| Renewal duration | 2 years as of 2026-08-06[6] |
| Work rights | Not established from a qualifying source |
Permanent residence and citizenship
Requirements
| Job offer required | Yes as of 2025-05-01[4][6] The route exists for companies requiring the incorporation of a foreign professional in Spanish territory; a copy of the contract or of the professional relationship between the parties, and a job-post profile, are required documents. |
|---|---|
| Salary threshold |
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| Labour-market test | No as of 2026-08-06[6] |
| Qualification requirement | degree, equivalent experience as of 2025-05-01[4][6] Alternative qualifying routes. degree: a qualification equivalent to at least level 1 of the Spanish Framework of Qualifications for Higher Education, corresponding to level 5A; the PRIE portal describes graduates and postgraduates of recognised universities and business schools and holders of higher vocational training qualifications. experience_equivalent: knowledge, skills and competences evidenced by at least three years of professional experience at a comparable level. Where a regulated profession is to be exercised, homologation under the relevant sectoral rules is an additional condition rather than an alternative route, so 'regulated_profession' is not listed. |
| Employer sponsorship | Yes as of 2025-05-01[4][6] The legal entity wishing to hire the foreign national files the application. Compliance with the hiring requirements is accredited once and registered with the UGE-CE for three renewable years; changes must be notified within thirty days or the registration lapses. Where a regulated profession is exercised, homologation under the relevant sectoral rules is required. |
| Job-search route | No as of 2025-05-01[4] This is not a job-search instrument; a job offer or contract is a condition of the authorisation. |
Process
| Where to apply from | either as of 2025-05-01[4][6] |
|---|---|
| Statutory processing time | 20 days as of 2025-05-01[1][4] Information sheet 66: twenty days from electronic submission, with the authorisation deemed granted by positive administrative silence if not resolved in that period. Corroborated by the current text of Ley 14/2013 art. 76. |
| Fees |
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Family inclusion
| Family members may be included | Yes as of 2026-08-06[5][6] |
|---|---|
| Eligible relations | spouse, unmarried partner, minor child, adult dependent child, parent as of 2026-08-06[5][6] |
| Family may apply at the same time | Yes as of 2026-08-06[6] The PRIE portal states that family applications may be made simultaneously or successively. |
| Family members' work rights | full as of 2026-08-06[6] |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
The next step is your own case. That assessment is legal work. Create profile for our assistance in this.
Profile benefits
- A 30-minute call with our consultant, who reads your profile first.
- An offer for legal support built around your case, covering the whole process.
Verification
| Sources cited | 8 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 8 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2023-05-10 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-08-06 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-11 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Ley 14/2013, art. 76 (texto vigente) — API de legislación consolidada del BOE, bloque a76
Boletín Oficial del Estado — Datos Abiertos · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2023-05-10 · Accessed 2026-08-06 - [2] Hoja 49 – Autorización de residencia de larga duración nacional
Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2025-05-01 · Accessed 2026-08-06 - [3] Hoja 50 – Autorización de residencia de larga duración UE
Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2025-05-01 · Accessed 2026-08-06 - [4] Hoja 66 – Autorización inicial de residencia y trabajo de profesionales altamente cualificados
Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2025-05-01 · Accessed 2026-08-06 - [5] Ley 14/2013 – Sección de Movilidad Internacional, texto consolidado (PDF)
Programa de Residencia para Inversores y Emprendedores (PRIE), Ministerio de Economía, Comercio y Empresa · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-06 · Superseded by es-boe-ley-14-2013 - [6] Profesional Altamente Cualificado — Portal PRIE
Ministerio de Economía, Comercio y Empresa — Secretaría de Estado de Comercio · official portal · Tier 1 · Accessed 2026-08-06 - [7] Criterio de gestión DGGM 2/2025 — duración de las autorizaciones de residencia de la Ley 14/2013
Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones — Dirección General de Gestión Migratoria · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2025-07-16 · Accessed 2026-08-06 - [8] Umbral salarial — profesionales altamente cualificados y Tarjeta azul-UE (actualización junio 2026)
Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones — Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos · official guidance · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-01 · Accessed 2026-08-06