Last Updated on March 18, 2026 by Bruno Bianchi
Question about the Spanish student visa
What’s the fastest place to get a Spanish student visa in the US? Ideally factoring in time to get a state ID. Do all of them keep the passport, thereby eliminating the possibility of foreign travel?
Easiest places to relocate would be within the consulates of Miami, Los Angeles or Houston due to family connections. Current consulate is SF. Is it still a disaster? Is a student visa generally faster than an NLV?
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These are the answers of some Facebook group members:
“You cannot consulate shop. You are required to apply at the one that serves your state of residency, regardless of length of time the process might take”
“If you want a Spanish student visa, you can do it by going to Spain and doing it there if you want. I’m sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but student and golden visa are among the few you can do from within the country itself. If you are going to relocate to do it in the US – Miami. I haven’t been tracking exact timing lately, but I want to say a few weeks.”
“One of the states Miami serves would probably be the fastest option. I’ve applied for student visa through Miami three times and 2/3 times I got it within 2 weeks of applying. The third time I emailed them at week 3 and they told me to go pick it up (I think they forgot to tell me it was ready sooner)”
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“Good luck… The problem with a Student Visa is your timing. Language accredited Spanish Courses have already started – today is the 24th of September. You would have to obtain a list of accredited Academies that offer an intensive programme which meets the regulations of a Student Visa, however, you would be able to have part time employment perhaps teaching English or doing a Tefl Celta Course as well. A Celta enables you to teach English at an academy for all age groups or Young Learners or Business executives in house companies. You could contact: #Cervantes. They are certified by the Spanish Government and could tell you about what you need for the Visa academically ONLY – and the timetable required. #NLV: The negative is you cannot work and must sign a legal document that you will not work under this Visa – non lucrative NLV. I am not American so I cannot tell you anything about Spanish Consulates in the Usa. Best of luck.”
“Check out this previous Q&A: How long is taking Spanish consulates to process NLV (Non-lucrative visa) requests?“
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