Researcher visa

Visa to engage in training, research, development and innovation activities at public or private entities in the following cases: 

• Research staff referred to in article 13 and additional provision one of Act 14/2011 of 1 June on Science, Technology and Innovation.
• Scientific and technical staff carrying out scientific research, development and technological innovation work at business entities or R&D&i centres established in Spain.
• Researchers hosted, in the framework of an agreement, by public or private research bodies.
• Teaching staff hired by universities, higher education and research bodies or centres, or business schools established in Spain. 

The following family members of the researcher may also obtain the visa: 

• The spouse or unmarried partner.
• Children and adult children who are financially dependent on the researcher and who have not created a family unit of their own.
  
• Relatives in the ascending line in the researcher's care.​

Required documents for the researcher​​​​​ 

1. National visa app​lication form. Each applicant, or their representative, must complete and sign a visa application form, filling in each of its sections. If the applicant is a minor, one of their parents or a duly accredited representative must sign the application. 
2. Photograph. A recent, passport-size, colour photograph, taken against a light background, facing forward, without dark or reflective glasses, or any garments concealing the oval of the face. It must conform to ICAO standards, stamped with date and place where the photo was taken.​
3. Valid, unexpired passport. A photocopy of the page or pages of the passport that contain biometric data. The passport must have a minimum validity period of 1 year and contain two blank pages. Passports issued more than 10 years ago will not be accepted.  
4. Residence permit. Original and a copy of the residence permit issued by the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit. 
5. Criminal Record Certificate no more than five months before the application date (Legalized with the Hague Apostille Certification issued by Global Affairs Canada only and translated into Spanish). Documents issued by the Government of Canada. This includes federal agencies and bodies such as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) will be apostilled by Global Affairs Canada only. Criminal Record Certificates issued by the RCMP headquarters in Ottawa do not need to be notarized as long as they are signed by the Director General of the Canadian Criminal Real Time/Identification Services, and they contain the official RCMP dry seal. Applicants of legal age who apply for a visa for a stay of more than 180 days must submit the original and a copy of the criminal record check certificate(s) issued by their country or countries of residence for the past 5 years. It must be a negative criminal record issued by the RCMP containing fingerprints and photo of visa applicant. If in the last five years, you have resided in another country, a criminal record from the authorities of that country.  ​​​
6. Proof of residence in the consular district. If the applicant is not a Canadian citizen, they must provide documentation proving their residence status in Canada (permanent residence permit, working permit, study permit, etc.).
7. Proof of the representative's identity and capacity. If the visa application is submitted through a representative, a copy of the identity document or passport of the representative and of the power of attorney or document accrediting representation must be submitted. The originals must be shown when submitting the application. Canadian documents do not need to be legalized or translated. Documents from third countries must be legalized or apostilled and, where applicable, must be submitted together. 
8. Payment of the visa fee. CHECK THE VISA FEE HERE​. We ONLY accept cash, money order or certified cheque payable to the Consulate General of Spain in Toronto. For nationals of Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, the United States of America and the United Kingdom different rates are applied for reasons of reciprocity.​ If you are applying together with your family, all the fees can be paid in the same cheque.

Required documents for family members​​ 

For each family member accompanying the researcher, the following must be submitted: 

• All the required documents specified in sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8. Where applicable, those specified in section 7 also. 

• Documents constituting proof of family relationship with the applicant accrediting financial means: birth or marriage certificates issued by the civil registry, certificate of registration as an unmarried couple or any other document substantiating an unmarried partnership with the applicant. Only documents from outside of Canada must be legalized or apostilled and, where applicable, must be submitted together with an official translation into English or Spanish. If the applicant travels with the family, each member of the family must submit an independent visa application, the documents to be enclosed and a document proving the relationship (marriage or birth certificate, as the case may be). All family applications can be sent in the same envelope.

• In the case of adult children, documents proving their financial dependence and civil status. Foreign documents must be legalized or apostilled and, where applicable, must be submitted together with an official translation into Spanish.  

• In the case of relatives in the ascending line, documents proving they are in the researcher's care. Foreign documents must be legalized or apostilled and, where applicable, must be submitted together with an official translation into Spanish.
   
  
• Medical insurance certificate. 

When necessary to assess the application, the Consular Office may request additional documents or data and may also ask the applicant to come in for a personal interview.

Procedure​​​ 

This Consular Office is competent to accept visa applications from individuals residing in the consular district. 

• Who can apply for a permit: Visa applications must be submitted in person by the applicant or by an authorized representative just in cases of long distances or proven difficulties in traveling. Appointment must be requested in advance by sending an email to cog.toronto.citasvis@maec.es. ​

• Rectifying the application: 
  APPOINTMENT REQUEST PROCEDURE FOR VISA APPOINTMENTS.
  We suggest that you review the list of documents required for the type of visa you wish to apply for, which can be found in the section corresponding to each type of visa.
  It is advisable to have the entire required documentation ready at the time of submitting the application, in order to avoid prolonging the processing times for your visa.
  1) APPLICATION FOR REGISTRATION IN THE APPOINTMENT APPLICATION.
  To request an appointment, you must first register in the system. To do so, send an email to the following address: cog.toronto.citasvis@maec.es
  Important: This account does not respond to queries of any kind, it only accepts requests for registration in the Appointment application. Any other email will be ignored and deleted.
  In the subject of the email, you must write CITA VISADO RIN
  In the email, you must include:
  • A clear photo of yourself along with your international passport (the data must be legible), as indicated in the image.
   
  You must not wear dark glasses or cover your face or hair in any way.
  The photo format must be compatible with Microsoft Windows (JPEG or PDF is suggested) and must be sent as an attachment, or embedded in the body of the email. Never linked to cloud services. The passport must be perfectly legible. Otherwise the email will be deleted.
  • Residence permit issued by the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit.
  • Criminal record certificate legalized by Global Affairs Canada.
  In the body of the email, you must include the following information, in that order and on separate lines, using the Latin alphabet in capital letters and without accents, as they appear in your PASSPORT (except for the email address):
  • Name and surname of the applicant in capital letters WITHOUT ACCENTS, APOSTROPHES OR OTHER CHARACTERS.
  • Passport number (without spaces or dashes).
  • Planned start date of the trip (in DDMMYYYY format).
  • RIN.
  Remember that visas can be requested at most three months in advance from the start of the activities or course you are going to take.
  EXAMPLE:
  ANGEL PEREZ LOPEZ;P123456;27122022;RIN
  REMEMBER:
  If all the information and requested documents are NOT included, your email cannot be processed.
  Do not send the email again before 14 days have passed. It may cause a delay of up to two (2) more months.
  For each applicant you must send a separate email. The total size limit for attached documents is 1 MB.
  REGISTRATIONS THROUGH THIRD PARTIES WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. INTERESTED PARTIES MUST PROCESS THEIR REGISTRATION PERSONALLY.
  The lack of any of the requested data or documents will result in the email being archived without processing.
  You must complete a registration for each visa. Each applicant must send a separate email, even if they are minors. Include the name of the father and mother in the case of a minor.
  2) PROCESSING YOUR APPOINTMENT.
  Once you receive the confirmation email with your username and password, you must choose the date and time of your appointment: To book the appointment, click on the following link:  ​CLI​CK HERE
  When you book your appointment, you will receive an email confirming that your operation was carried out correctly. You can cancel your appointment up to 3 days before the appointment. Due to our limited resources and time and in order to ensure equal opportunities for all applicants to attend, each applicant can make one request every two months and may not cancel more than 5 times in one year. Once the first appointment request has been made, you have 4 months to complete your request. After this time, your user will be deactivated.
  If you have already made an appointment for a certain date and wish to change it, you must access the appointment system with the user name and password that was sent to you and cancel your appointment in "History and cancellations". Once cancelled, you can choose a new available date.
  Consulate staff cannot cancel, create or modify appointment dates. For this reason, emails for this purpose will not be answered.
  When necessary to assess the application, the Consular Office may request additional documents or data and may also call the applicant for a personal interview.​
  
  

• Decision period: The legal period for reaching a decision is 10 days as of the day after the submission date of the application, but this period may be extended when an interview or additional documents are requested. 

• Collecting the visa: The visa must be collected personally by the applicant without the need for a prior appointment, within a maximum period of 1 month, counting from the day following the date on which the favorable resolution is notified.​ The Consular Office will inform the applicant regarding the procedure for the return of the passport and any other original documentation.  ​   

• Visa refusal: Visa refusals will always be notified in writing, setting forth the grounds on which the decision adopted was based. 

• Appeals: If a visa is refused, the applicant may submit an appeal for reconsideration to this Consular Office within 1 month of the day following the date on which notification of the refusal is received. An application for judicial review may also be filed with the High Court Justice of Madrid within the 2-month period beginning the day after the date on which the applicant receives notification of the visa refusal or of the dismissal of the reconsideration appeal. 

• Validity period of the visa: The visa is valid for 1 year, or for the same period as the residence permit granted, provided that this permit is for less than 1 year.
  The visa accredits residence in Spain during its validity period, making it unnecessary to obtain a Foreigner Identity Card. However, this card may be applied for at the Foreign Nationals' Office or the corresponding Police Station. 

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