EX-03: residence and work permit as an employee in Spain

EX-03 (“Solicitud de autorización de residencia temporal y trabajo por cuenta ajena o autorización de trabajo por cuenta ajena”) is the official application for a temporary residence and work permit as an employee in Spain, and for its renewal. The current edition follows Royal Decree 1155/2024. The form is in Spanish and has three pages: two to fill in and one with instructions.

An initial permit is needed when a Spanish employer hires a foreign national for more than 90 days and less than five years. EX forms are accepted only in the official version: FoxDocs enters your data into the fields of the official PDF without changing its layout.

• the initial permit is filed by the employer (in person or through its legal representative) electronically via the Mercurio service of the Ministry of Territorial Policy; the employer signs the form;
• the renewal is filed by the worker — in person at the Oficina de Extranjería of their province or via Mercurio; from two months before the permit expires up to three months after (late filing may lead to a fine);
• fees on form 790: for an initial permit the worker pays code 052 (item 2.1.3) and the employer code 062 (item 3.2.1) if the work permit lasts six months or more; for a renewal, 052 (2.2.3) and 062 (3.2.2); payment is due within ten working days of filing;
• the decision takes up to three months: silence means refusal for an initial application and approval for a renewal;
• after an initial permit is granted, the worker applies for a visa at the Spanish consulate within one month, enters Spain, is registered with Social Security and applies for the TIE card within one month of that registration.

• section 1 — the worker: passport, NIE, surnames, given name, sex, date and place of birth, nationality, marital status, parents’ names, address, phone, e-mail, legal representative and a tick for school-age children;
• section 2 — the employer: name, NIF/NIE, activity, CNAE code, registered address, contacts and representative;
• section 3 — the employment contract (initial permit only): job title, contribution group, CNO occupation code, collective agreement, contract type, contribution account code (CCC), total gross pay and workplace address;
• sections 4 and 5 — representative filing the application and address for notifications, consent to electronic notifications (DEHú);
• section 6 — initial permit or renewal and the ground (shortage occupation list, job offer via the employment service, special cases, change of employer);
• place and date, who signs and the authority the application is addressed to.

• the EX-03 form signed by the employer (for a renewal, by the worker);
• a full copy of the worker’s passport and proof of qualifications where the job requires them;
• the employer’s documents: NIF or NIE; for a company, the registered deed of incorporation and the signatory’s powers; proof of solvency (income tax, VAT, corporate tax or VILE report for three years) and a description of the job;
• the employment contract in the official model and, where the labour-market test does not apply, proof of that;
• for a renewal, documents for your ground and a school report for school-age children;
• foreign documents with a sworn translation and legalisation or apostille. Check the full list for your case against the Ministry’s information sheets.

1. Tell the chat in any language who is hiring, for which job, and whether it is an initial permit or a renewal.
2. The assistant fills the boxes in capitals, splits the date of birth into dd/mm/yyyy and the NIE into its boxes, and ticks the right options in section 6.
3. Download the PDF, check it, sign it and file it with the attachments.

Information sheets 12 and 13 and the EX forms of Spain’s Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration: inclusion.gob.es — Hoja 12, Hoja 13. Checked 2026-10-09. This is not legal advice.