🇪🇸 Spain Visa Guide for Indian Passport Holders

At a glance

Indian passport holders need a Schengen Short-Stay visa (Type C) to visit Spain for tourism or business — Spain is part of the Schengen Area, so this same visa also covers travel across other Schengen countries during your trip. There is no visa-free or visa-on-arrival option. Unlike France, Germany, and Italy (which use VFS Global), Spain's official visa partner in India is BLS International — worth noting clearly if you've applied for another Schengen country before and are expecting the same portal.

About the Schengen Area (full explanation on our France guide)

Spain is one of 29 Schengen Area countries, and a Schengen Type C visa allows a stay of up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day period, calculated across the whole area. See our France visa guide for the full explanation, the list of member countries, and the EU's official short-stay calculator.

Choose your purpose of travel

The Schengen Short-Stay (Type C) visa covers tourism (staying up to 3 months, without a guarantor in Spain — typically booking through a travel agency or making your own flight/hotel arrangements), business visits, and family/friend visits. Long-stay National visas (study, work, family reunification) are a separate, more document-intensive category and out of scope for this guide.

Visa requirement for an Indian passport holder

A visa is required for every visit to Spain, regardless of length or purpose, since India has no visa-waiver arrangement with the Schengen Area.

Where and how to apply

• Apply through BLS International, the official visa partner of the Embassy of Spain and its Consulates in India — this is different from the VFS Global network used for France, Germany, and Italy.
• Jurisdiction and timing rules apply: per BLS International's own guidance, applications submitted at centres under Mumbai jurisdiction will only be accepted from applicants whose travel date is at least 15 calendar days after the date of submission at the centre — applying earlier requires a signed declaration.
• Applications accepted at a Spain Visa Application Centre are forwarded to the Embassy/Consulate the next working day (for Mumbai or Delhi); other BLS centres may take 2–4 additional days to reach the Embassy or Consulate.
• All application forms must be printed after completing them online — BLS International's own notice states that handwritten forms have not been accepted since 4 November 2024.

iamravi.com is not affiliated with the Government of Spain, any Spanish Embassy or Consulate, or BLS International. All application, payment, and biometric steps happen through the official BLS International platform or the relevant Spanish mission — never here. BLS International's own fraud notice warns that staff never ask for cash payments, appointment-securing fees, or payments into personal bank accounts — report any such request to antifraud@blsinternational.com.

Eligibility and passport conditions

Your passport should be valid for at least 3 months beyond your planned departure from the Schengen territory, contain at least 2 blank pages, and must not have been issued more than 10 years ago (older passports are not accepted, per the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs' own guidance).

Application steps

1. Complete the online Schengen visa application form, print it (handwritten forms are not accepted), and sign it.
2. Gather your supporting documents (see checklist below).
3. Book your appointment through BLS International's official website — never through any third party.
4. Attend your appointment at your chosen BLS Visa Application Centre with your printed, signed application and documents, and give biometrics.
5. Pay the visa fee and BLS service charge.
6. Wait for a decision from the Embassy or Consulate of Spain — BLS International returns your passport once processing is complete.

Forms required

The Schengen visa application form, printed after online completion and hand-signed, is the core document.

Document checklist

Per the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs' own published requirements: the completed and signed application form; a recent, passport-size colour photo (light background, facing forward, no dark or reflective glasses, no head covering obscuring the face); your valid passport (issued within the last 10 years, 3+ months validity beyond departure, 2+ blank pages), plus a photocopy of its biometric-data page and any pages showing previous visas or migration stamps; the front page only of your travel medical insurance policy (not the full policy) providing at least €30,000 coverage, valid for repatriation, urgent healthcare, and emergency hospital treatment for your entire Schengen stay; and payment of the visa fee. Widely-reported guidance also cites a cover letter as practically mandatory for Spain specifically, though this was not confirmed as a strict requirement from the primary Ministry pages reviewed.

Photo and biometric requirements

A recent, passport-size colour photo (light background, facing forward, no dark or reflective glasses or garments concealing the face) is required, glued to the application form per BLS International's guidance. Fingerprints and a photo are captured in person at your BLS International appointment.

Fees

The Schengen short-stay visa fee is set at EU level, the same framework as our France, Germany, and Italy guides. We were not able to independently confirm the exact current fee, or the widely-reported requirement to show roughly €100 per day of stay in available funds (reported as the highest financial-proof requirement among major Schengen countries), from a primary Ministry fee-schedule source during this review. Confirm both figures directly with BLS International or the Spanish Consulate before applying and budgeting, since fees are non-refundable regardless of outcome.

Appointment process

Book through BLS International's official website only — BLS International explicitly warns against booking through third parties or paying anyone claiming to guarantee an earlier appointment.

Processing information

Standard Schengen processing is commonly reported as taking 15–20 calendar days, extending to 4–6 weeks during peak travel seasons (June–September) — apply well in advance if travelling during this period, and remember the Mumbai-jurisdiction 15-day minimum lead time noted above.

Common mistakes

• Assuming Spain uses VFS Global, like France, Germany, and Italy — it uses BLS International instead.
• Submitting a handwritten application form — these have not been accepted since November 2024.
• Applying too close to your travel date if you're under Mumbai jurisdiction, without the required signed declaration.
• Submitting your entire insurance policy document instead of just the front page, as specifically requested by the Ministry.

Official links

• Embassy of Spain, New Delhi — Schengen visas
• Consulate General of Spain, Mumbai — Schengen visas
• BLS International — Spain Short Term Visa (India)
• BLS International — Spain Visa Application Centres