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ARCHIVED - Investors and property owners in Spain warned that delays could leave thousands without a Spanish visa
Employees of the Spanish Foreign Office in the UK, who are on strike, have sent out a press release warning of visa issues
Investors and others with interests in Spain will struggle to get a Spanish visa in the upcoming weeks – despite some applications being accepted – due to the ongoing strike in the Spanish Embassy and Consulates in the UK, according to the staff on the picket lines.
Applications for the so-called “Golden Visas”, which is where visas are granted for investments in Spain over a certain amount, as well as residence visas increased dramatically after the December 31 2020 as a result of Brexit. Since then, anyone wanting to invest in Spain or stay for longer than 90 days needs to apply for a visa. Applicants can do so through the Spanish Consulates and Embassy in the UK. However, their employees have been called to take industrial action since March 14, 2022 in response to low wages.
In their fourth week of strike action, users of the Spanish Consulates are starting to suffer the consequences of this situation as there are limited appointments and significant delays in the processing applications. For the affected applicants, this could result in important financial losses. In addition, applications for a NIE – an identification number that is always required when there is any financial relation with Spain – may also be affected.
It is believed that the situation will worsen over Easter, since around this period Consulates get overwhelmed with applications, not only for visas, but also for Spanish passports.
The Spanish Foreign Office employees, who are employed by Spain, keep demanding improved work conditions to be able to face the current cost of living crisis. They are asking for a pay rise to compensate them for years of loss of purchasing power and pay parity for the same employment categories.
They stated that “we are committed to continue the strike until our requests are met”.
Image: PLEX Reino Unido
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