7. OTHER LABOR MODIFICATIONS

1. International Mobility

The changes in international mobility seek to promote and facilitate the arrival of investment (capital) and talent (qualified professionals) to Spain, eliminating obstacles and administrative complications, while still complying with national security requirements.

1.1 Facilitation of entry and stay

• Certain situations are regulated in which, for reasons of economic interest, the granting of visas and residence permits to certain categories of foreigners is facilitated and expedited. The national employment situation will not be taken into account. Nor will consideration be given to those sectors considered strategic by several Ministries.

• Specifically, the Law regulates the entry and stay in Spain of foreigners who fall under the following circumstances:

Investors.
Entrepreneurs.
Highly qualified professionals.
Researchers.
Employees making intra-company transfers within the same company or group of companies.

• Foreigners must meet the entry conditions set out in Regulation (EC) 562/2006 (Schengen Borders Code) for entries not exceeding 3 months, and in the case of visas for stay, the requirements of Regulation (EC) 810/2009.

• Applicants for residence visas provided for in Regulation 265/2010 must demonstrate compliance with the following requirements to the competent authority:

or Have sufficient means of subsistence for oneself and one's family members.

or Compliance with security requirements: not being illegally in Spain, being over 18 years of age, and having no criminal record in Spain and in the countries where they have resided in the last five years, and not being listed as inadmissible in countries with which Spain has an agreement in this regard.

It should be noted that, to expedite the procedure, a period of 7 days is expressly provided for the Directorate General of the Police to respond to inquiries from Diplomatic and Consular Missions regarding the security risk posed by the applicant. Once this period has elapsed, the response will be considered favorable.

or Public or private health insurance with an insurance company authorized to operate in Spain.

Family reunification is expressly provided for spouses and children under 18 years of age, or over 18 years of age who are not objectively capable, jointly and simultaneously or successively to the entry authorization, and where applicable, the visa.

1.2 General rules of the authorization granting procedure

• Visas for stay and residence may be issued for one, two, or multiple entries, with a validity period not exceeding five years. They will be issued by Diplomatic Missions and Consular Offices. Applications will be processed and the applicant notified within 10 business days.

• The processing of residence permits will be handled by the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit. The processing time will be 20 business days, and if no decision is reached within this timeframe, the permit will be considered granted by tacit approval.

• Renewal of residence authorization may be requested for periods of two years.

1.3. Investors

• This new category is aimed at non-resident foreigners who intend to make a capital investment in Spain. Applicants can apply for a stay visa, or, if applicable, a residence visa for investors.

• This includes legal entities that are not domiciled in a tax haven in accordance with Spanish regulations, and in which the foreigner directly or indirectly owns the majority of the voting rights, and has the power to appoint or dismiss the majority of the members of its administrative body.

• The investor visa lasts for 1 year and will constitute sufficient title to reside in Spain.

• To obtain the visa, you must prove an investment in Spain with one of the following characteristics:

or 2 million euros in Spanish public debt, or 1 million euros in shares or equity interests in Spanish companies, or in bank deposits in Spanish financial institutions.

or Acquisition of one or more properties with a combined value of at least half a million euros for each applicant.

or Investment in a business project of general interest that meets one of the following conditions: creation of jobs, socio-economic impact in its geographical area or relevant contribution to scientific and/or technological innovation (accredited by a report from the commercial office at the consulate).

Subject to compliance with a series of requirements, foreign investors who wish to reside in Spain for more than one year may obtain an investor residence permit, with an initial duration of two years, which may be renewed for another two years.

To do so, they must: have a valid residence visa, or one that has expired within the previous 90 days, have traveled to Spain at least once during the authorized period of residence, prove that the investment has been maintained at a value equal to or greater than the minimum amount required, and have complied with tax and social security obligations.

1.4 Entrepreneurs and business activity

• For the purposes of the Law, entrepreneurial and business activities are those that are of an innovative nature with special economic interest for Spain, with a favorable report from the competent body of the General State Administration.

• Job creation in Spain will be given special consideration. The professional profile of the hiring company, the business plan and its financing, and the added value for the Spanish economy, innovation, and investment opportunities will also be taken into account.

The law allows for a one-year visa to be used for the preliminary procedures required to start a business. Once proof of the effective commencement of business activity is provided, it will be possible to obtain residency status for entrepreneurs, without requiring a minimum prior period of residence.

• Foreigners who apply to enter Spain or who, holding a residence or stay authorization or visa, intend to start, develop or manage an economic activity as an entrepreneur may also be provided with a residence permit.

• In addition to the general requirements provided, those necessary for the start of the activity, established in the corresponding sector regulations, must be met.

1.5 Highly qualified professionals

Companies that require the incorporation of foreign professionals for the development of an employment or professional relationship may apply for a residence permit for highly qualified professionals.

This employment or professional relationship must fall under one of the following categories:

• That the management or highly qualified staff belong to a company or group of companies that meets one of the following characteristics:

• Average workforce in Spain exceeding 250 employees during the previous three months.
• Annual net turnover in Spain exceeding €50 million, or equity or net worth exceeding €43 million in Spain. •
Average annual gross investment from abroad of at least €1 million in the three years immediately preceding the application.
• Companies with an investment stock or position value exceeding €3 million according to the latest Investment Registry data.
• In the case of small and medium-sized enterprises established in Spain, belonging to a sector considered strategic.

• These companies may request the collective processing of authorizations to carry out intra-company transfers of groups of professionals.

• Management or highly qualified personnel who are part of a business project that involves, alternatively and provided it is considered to be in the general interest:

• Creation of direct jobs.
• Maintenance of employment.
• Creation of jobs in its sector of activity or geographical area.
• Extraordinary investment with socioeconomic impact in its geographical area.
• Interest for Spain's trade and investment policy.
• A significant contribution to scientific and/or technological innovation.

• Graduates and postgraduates from prestigious universities and business schools.

Visas and residence permits will also be granted to foreigners who wish to carry out training, research, development and innovation activities in public or private entities in the cases provided for in the Law.

1.6. Transfers

A visa and a residence permit are regulated specifically for foreigners who, within the framework of an employment or professional relationship or for professional training purposes with a company or group of companies established in Spain or in another country, move to Spain.

To do so, the following requirements must be met:

• The existence of a genuine business activity.
• A higher education degree or equivalent, or 3 years of professional experience.
• A prior and continuous relationship of 3 months with one or more of the group's companies.
• Company documentation proving the relocation

2. Seizure of the main residence due to debts with Social Security

• With the aim of providing a second chance to self-employed workers affected by an administrative debt enforcement procedure, Law 14/2013 establishes a modification consisting of extending, from one to two years, the period that must elapse between the notification of the first enforcement action and the material realization of the auction, the competition or any other administrative means of alienation, when it affects the habitual residence of a self-employed worker.

• Thus, for the purposes of satisfying and collecting tax debts and any other type of debt subject to collection within the Social Security System, if a property has been administratively seized and the self-employed worker provides conclusive proof that it is their primary residence, the execution of the seizure will be conditional upon, firstly, that no other sufficient assets of the debtor are known that are susceptible to immediate liquidation in the enforcement proceedings, and secondly, that a minimum period of two years elapses between the notification of the initial seizure order and the actual execution of the auction, the competitive bidding process, or any other administrative means of disposal. This period will not be interrupted or suspended under any circumstances, including extensions of the original seizure or renewals of the registry entries.

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