🇪🇸 Spain · Permanent Residency
Permanent-residence routes: eligibility, required years of residence, and the official application steps — including any investment routes where a country offers them.
Quick answer
Spain grants long-term residence (residencia de larga duración) after generally 5 years of continuous legal residence, letting you live and work indefinitely on equal terms with Spaniards. You show continuous residence and a clean record; long-term residence then leads toward Spanish citizenship (often after 10 years).
After five years of continuous, legal residence in Spain you can usually apply for long-term residence (residencia de larga duración), which grants indefinite residence and work rights. Note that Spain abolished the investor Golden Visa on 3 April 2025, so residence-by-property-investment is no longer available; other routes (work, family, study-to-work, entrepreneur) lead to long-term residence. The immigration authorities decide.
- Long-term residence is usually available after five years' continuous, legal residence.
- The investor Golden Visa was abolished on 3 April 2025 — residence-by-property-investment is gone.
- Work, family, study-to-work and entrepreneur routes lead to long-term residence.
Step-by-step
- 1
Confirm the qualifying period
You generally need 5 years of continuous legal residence in Spain (some absences allowed within limits).
- 2
Gather documents
Prepare proof of continuous residence, valid ID/NIE, and a clean criminal record.
- 3
Apply for long-term residence
File the application with the immigration office (Extranjería) and pay the fee; you may choose the EU long-term variant.
- 4
Complete fingerprinting and card
After approval, book the fingerprint appointment (huellas) and collect the residence card (TIE).
- 5
Maintain and renew
Long-term residence is effectively permanent; renew the physical card periodically and avoid absences beyond the allowed limits.
- 6
Understand path to citizenship
Spanish citizenship generally needs 10 years’ residence (2 for Ibero-American and some other nationals), with language and civics tests.
Checklist
- 5 years’ continuous legal residence
- Proof of residence + NIE + clean record
- Extranjería application (national or EU long-term)
- Fingerprint appointment (huellas) + TIE card
- Effectively permanent (renew physical card)
- Respect absence limits
- Citizenship: 10 years (2 for Ibero-American)
- Language + civics tests for citizenship
Official authorities
- Spain immigration portal (inclusion.gob.es)
Official long-term-residence information.
Frequently asked questions
How long until long-term residence?
Generally 5 years of continuous legal residence in Spain, after which residence is effectively permanent.
Can some nationals naturalize faster?
Yes — Ibero-American, Andorran, Filipino, Equatorial Guinean, Portuguese and Sephardic-origin nationals can often naturalize after just 2 years.
Is the real-estate Golden Visa still available?
Spain has moved to end the real-estate route of its investor (Golden Visa) residence — check the current rules before relying on it.
Official-information aggregation, not legal advice. Always verify on the authority's own site.
Government portals
- General Access Point (administracion.gob.es) — Central portal for Spanish public administration services
- Immigration e-Office (Extranjería) — Residence, foreigner ID (NIE/TIE) and immigration procedures
- Tax Agency (Agencia Tributaria) — Spanish income tax (IRPF) and VAT (IVA) filing
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs (visas) — Visa applications abroad and consular services