Student visa to do the MIR residency in Spain as a foreign doctor

Which visa do I get when I win a MIR place?

You get a student visa for specialised health training, which you apply for at the Spanish consulate in your country of residence once you have the place award resolution and the resident contract. This is the route set by the additional provision of Law 44/2003 on health professions for foreign residents in training.

The visa lets you enter and, if the training exceeds 6 months, you must apply for the Foreigner Identity Card (TIE) within 1 month of entry. From then on your document is a study-stay TIE tied to the training programme: the work inherent to the residency is covered without a separate work authorisation, according to the Ministry of Inclusion's information sheet on stays for training and article 33 of LO 4/2000.

There is an order that cannot be skipped: first, recognition of your degree (homologación) by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, before the exam registration closes (18 September 2025 for the 2026 call, according to Redacción Médica); then the exam and the place award; then the visa; and, once in Spain, registration with the medical college of the hospital's province. Bookahospi handles the recognition and Booka the visa and the TIE.

How many MIR places are there for non-EU doctors?

The MIR 2026 call, published in the BOE on 21 August 2025, offered 9,276 places (8,998 public and 280 private). The quota for non-EU doctors is the legal maximum of 10 %: 928 places, according to Redacción Médica.

Exactly who the quota applies to depends on each year's call order. The rule Redacción Médica reports across several editions is that non-EU doctors without a residence authorisation in Spain compete for the quota, while those already residing legally enter the general round; check the current order before registering, and Booka reviews it with you according to your documentary situation.

The Ministry of Health may also require C1 Spanish in certain cases, according to Redacción Médica (September 2025). It is a requirement of the call, not of immigration law, but it affects your calendar: the certificate must be ready before registration.

Study stay or non-lucrative residence: which suits me during the MIR?

The study stay is the ordinary route and the one that fits the place: it covers the programme's activity and the consulate issues it against the resident contract. Non-lucrative residence is a residence authorisation, not a stay, which is why it does count towards citizenship; in exchange it requires proof of your own financial means and private insurance with no co-payments, and whether it fits a paid MIR place depends on the criteria of the consulate and the Oficina de Extranjería.

Do MIR years count towards Spanish citizenship?

No. A study stay, including specialised health training, is not legal residence for the purposes of article 22 of the Civil Code. A Colombian, Venezuelan, Mexican or Argentine doctor can apply for citizenship after 2 years of continuous legal residence, but the clock does not start until they hold a residence authorisation: the one obtained by switching from stay to residence and work on finishing the MIR, or a non-lucrative residence if they chose it.

This is what surprises residents most after 4 or 5 years of specialty training: on finishing, their citizenship count is at zero. That is why the choice between a stay and non-lucrative residence should be made before the visa, and why the switch to residence and work must be filed on time as soon as you finish.

Steps and timelines: from the call to joining the hospital

The calendar is set by the BOE and the consulate. These are the eight steps, with who does each and its timing; the 2026 call dates serve as a reference and change every year.

1. 1

   Degree recognition (you, with Bookahospi)

   Application to the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities. It must be resolved before exam registration closes: 18 September 2025 for the 2026 call, according to Redacción Médica. Timing: depends on the Ministry; it is the step that needs the most lead time.

2. 2

   Registration for the call (you)

   The MIR 2026 call was published in the BOE on 21 August 2025. Register with your recognised degree, passport and, if the Ministry of Health requires it in your case, the C1 Spanish certificate. Timing: set by the call order.

3. 3

   Exam and place award (you and the Ministry of Health)

   After the exam, places are chosen in order of ranking within your round. Timing: the award calendar is published by the Ministry of Health each year.

4. 4

   Resident contract and consular preparation (hospital and you, with Booka)

   The hospital issues the resident contract. Booka gathers the award resolution, contract, passport, apostilled criminal record certificates and medical certificate. Timing: immediately after the award, because the start date is weeks away.

5. 5

   Student visa at the consulate (you, with Booka)

   Application at the Spanish consulate in your country of residence. Some consulates waive insurance and financial means because of the paid contract, according to Machelin Díaz. Timing: set by each consulate; book the appointment on the day of the award.

6. 6

   Entry and joining the hospital (you)

   New residents in 2026 joined on 4 and 5 June, according to Redacción Médica. Enter with the visa in force and with original documents for college registration.

7. 7

   Registration with the provincial medical college (you)

   For foreign residents the college asks for a prior letter, employment history summary, original degree with the recognition, apostilled certificate of good standing under 3 months old and passport, NIE or permit, according to Redacción Médica's registration guide (May 2026). Timing: before you start practising; each college sets its procedure.

8. 8

   Study-stay TIE card (you, with Booka)

   Application at the police station within 1 month of entry if the training exceeds 6 months, with fee 790 code 012 of 16.08 €. Timing: appointment and collection depend on the station.

Which documents does the consulate ask for and can I bring my partner?

The consulate asks for the place award resolution and the resident contract, your passport, criminal record certificates from the countries where you lived in the last 5 years, apostilled and sworn-translated, and a medical certificate with the International Health Regulations 2005 wording, both under 3 months old. For a general student visa you must show 100 % of the IPREM per month (600 € in 2026) for each month of stay and insurance with full cover, according to Goveasy and Tuvisadoonline (2026 guides); for the MIR, some consulates waive insurance and means because of the paid contract, according to Machelin Díaz.

• Place award resolution and the hospital's resident contract.
• Passport valid for the whole training period.
• Criminal record certificates for the last 5 years, apostilled and translated, under 3 months old.
• Medical certificate with IHR 2005 wording, under 3 months old.
• Health insurance and proof of means, unless your consulate waives them because of the resident contract.

On your partner: family members of people in specialised health training may apply for an authorisation jointly with the resident's, under Instruction SEM 3/2025 as reported by Machelin Díaz. It is a different route from ordinary family reunification, which requires holding a residence authorisation; Booka checks which one applies to you and files it alongside your visa.

The consular visa fee varies by country and currency, so we do not publish a single figure: your consulate states it and Booka includes it in your itemised quote, separate from the Spanish fees (052 and 012).

Which permit do I apply for when I finish the MIR?

On finishing your specialty you apply to switch your study stay to residence and work. RD 1155/2024 expressly includes specialised health training among the studies giving access to this switch and removes the previous regulation's requirement of 3 years' prior stay, according to Machelin Díaz.

With a contract from the hospital where you trained, or any other, the switch to employee status is the natural exit. From that residence authorisation the 2-year clock for Ibero-American citizenship starts, as does the 5-year clock for long-term residence. The guide on moving from study to work explains the full file.

By country of origin

What changes if you come from Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina, Mexico, Peru or Cuba?

The student visa for the MIR is applied for at the consulate in your country of residence with the post allocation and the contract. Before that, your degree must be recognised: the apostille of the degree and transcript is issued by your country's authority shown in the table.

• All are Ibero-American countries: Spanish citizenship after 2 years of legal residence (art. 22 of the Civil Code) and exemption from the DELE exam as Spanish speakers.
• Documents must be filed less than 3 months old and with a sworn translation if not in Spanish.

Consular addresses and districts: exteriores.gob.es. Apostille authorities: Hague Conference (hcch.net).