Re-enter Spain on student visa after visiting as a tourist
I see lots of posts on staying in a country as a tourist after the expiration of a student visa. This is the opposite.
I will be studying in Spain from August 2016 through July 2017. I carry a US passport, and my Spanish student visa process is underway.
However, I would like to arrive in Spain in July 2016 to vacation with my family before school begins. So I have two options:
- Ensure my student visa begins in July rather than August
- Travel in July as a tourist, leave the Schengen area, and return after the August start date of my student visa
I am having trouble with #1 because one of the health/medical insurance visa requirement (must be covered for duration of stay). I am covered through my school (and have the appropriate documentation) for the months of my program, but not for July. And it's been difficult to find appropriate coverage for one month only.
So moving on to #2. My plan would be to enter Spain as a tourist and have onward travel plans to UK/Morocco. I would stay in Spain for two weeks, fly outside the Schengen area, spend a weekend there, and re-enter Spain on my student visa, which would be valid by that point.
Questions: Any ideas on #1? Do you see any potential issues with #2?
Best Answer
Both your options should work without any problem, but you also have a further, much simpler and also legal option: Enter in July as a visa-exempt US citizen and stay. Assuming that your Spanish long-term visa is valid from e.g. August 1st, the period you stay until end of July will count on your 90/180 days visa-free allowance and the long-term visa will take effect on August 1st without any action from your side.
Your situation is similar to back-to-back short-term visas. Let's say you are from a country requiring a visa for any stay in the Schengen area and you already have a visa valid until July 31st. You are however planning a trip from July 20th to August 10th. Since overlapping visas are not allowed, you will if your new visa application is granted, be issued a new visa valid from August 1st. Since there is no interruption in the validity of the two visas, you can simply enter with the old visa and stay beyond the validity of the first visa. Also in this situation, it is not required by you to exit the Schengen area before the expiration of the first visa and reenter on the second visa later.
Pictures about "Re-enter Spain on student visa after visiting as a tourist"
Can I apply for student visa while on tourist visa in Spain?
After the last change in the Spanish Immigration Law, you can now apply for your student visa from both your country of origin (at the Spanish consulate), or directly while in Spain with your tourist visa.How can I stay in Spain after student visa?
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The 90-day rule This rule simply states that you can live in Spain without residency for a maximum of 90 days. After those 3 months, you need to either obtain a residence permit, or leave the country. And that is because the shortest stay option is the tourist (or Schengen) visa, which lasts exactly for 90 days.How many times can I visit Spain each year?
As we have discussed so far, you have a total of 90 days in Spain as a tourist. If you want to avoid entering into an irregular situation and run the risk of receiving a sanction, you have two main options: The first, as is obvious, return to your country of origin (or leave the Schengen area)New Requirements for entry to Spain 2022 FCS form and EU certificate
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