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Student visa for Spain, for students from Nepal
As a citizen of Nepal you will normally need a student visa or residence permit for Spain before your course starts. Some nationalities may enter Spain without a visa and apply for the residence permit there instead; check the official page below for the rule that applies to your passport.
The numbers
- Money you must show
- €600 a month: €7,200 for a year
- Work while you study
- Up to 30 hours a week, with no separate work permit
- Stay after you graduate
- 24 months to look for work, but you may NOT work during it
100% of IPREM, frozen since 2023. Halves to €300/month if accommodation is prepaid. Tuition is separate.
Ministry of Inclusion, Hoja 1, updated November 2025, checked 2026-09-24
Raised from 20 by the 2025 reform. Exceeding it extinguishes your study authorisation.
Ministry of Inclusion, Hoja 4 bis, May 2025, checked 2026-09-24
Ministry of Inclusion, Hoja 20, checked 2026-09-24
The visa
The route is the long-duration study stay (estancia de larga duración por estudios). Note it remains a stay, not a residence permit, which is precisely why the Madrid fee surcharge bites.
What the 2025 reform changed, and it is a real improvement: for higher education the authorisation is now granted for the entire official length of your programme, valid from one month before studies start to fifteen days after they end. A four-year degree gets one four-year authorisation instead of four annual renewals. Non-higher-education courses remain capped at one year.
The money: €600 a month, 100% of the IPREM, which is frozen at its 2023 level because no new budget was passed. That is €7,200 for a twelve-month course. If accommodation is prepaid for the whole stay, the requirement halves to €300 a month. Accompanying family members need 75% of IPREM (€450) for the first and 50% (€300) for each additional person. Tuition is not counted inside these amounts, show fees separately on top.
Also required: private medical insurance with minimum €30,000 cover including repatriation, and a criminal record certificate if the stay exceeds 180 days.
Apply at the consulate at least two months before studies begin. The legal deadline for a decision is one month from submission; in practice appointment availability, not the decision, is the bottleneck. The fee is around €80, charged in local currency.
On arrival, if your stay exceeds six months you must apply in person for the TIE card within one month of entering Spain.
Where to apply
At the embassy or consulate of Spain that covers Nepal, or through the visa application centre it names. Book early: in the busiest months appointments can be weeks away. Apply only through the official website; nobody can sell you a faster place in the queue.
Questions students ask
Do students from Nepal need a visa to study in Spain?
As a citizen of Nepal you will normally need a student visa or residence permit for Spain before your course starts. Some nationalities may enter Spain without a visa and apply for the residence permit there instead; check the official page below for the rule that applies to your passport.
How much money do I need to show for a Spain student visa?
€600 a month: €7,200 for a year. 100% of IPREM, frozen since 2023. Halves to €300/month if accommodation is prepaid. Tuition is separate. (source: Ministry of Inclusion, Hoja 1, updated November 2025, checked 2026-09-24).
Can I work while I study in Spain?
Up to 30 hours a week, with no separate work permit.
This page is general information from official sources, not immigration advice. For a decision about your own case, the official source or a regulated adviser is where that belongs.