US Based Company New Spanish Office

[dupree]

So my US based company is opening an office in Madrid and are intending to send my family and I over to open up the office for a period of 1 year. The office is not currently opened nor registered in Spain but should be by months end.

We are scheduled to move June 1st. Couple of questions:

1) I am sure I need a Visa, as does my family, but will I be able to obtain this before June 1, from what I have been reading it doesn't seem likely

2) will the process be quicker/easier since the company is US based and I am really just being transfered to a different branch within the same company?

I have googled till my fingers hurt but I can't find anything that addresses my particular situation and the outsourced HR dept. is telling me they do not provide any immigration services.

Thanks

[Bevdeforges]

Hi, and welcome to the forum.

Sounds exciting - opening up a new, Spanish office for your company! I'm located a bit north (i.e. in France) so can't really help you with the specifics, but I do have a little bit of experience in "opening new offices overseas" so maybe can point you in the right direction.

1. Yes, you and the family will need visas if you're coming from the US (i.e. outside the EU). For a June 1 move, yes, this is probably a little late to be starting the process. However, see #2.

2. Technically, you're not being transferred to a branch if you're going over to set up a new office/branch. Though in some ways, that may make it easier. If your HR people "don't do" immigration, you need to work with the legal beagles in your company that are handling the new branch in Madrid. Part of the process of doing the formal registration of the company should be to get you (and anyone else going over from the US) whatever visas you need to carry out your mission. If you're part of the start-up team, you may need some sort of "commercial trader" card in lieu of a visa. (Something like this exists in France. There's a slightly different designation in Germany - or was when I went over there.)

So, in any event, the legal team doing the ground work should be talking to the Spanish consulate about the requirements for getting the start-up team "street legal."
Cheers,
Bev

[dupree]

Thanks for the info. I will still be, on paper, employed and paid by the "Parent Company" in USD to my US based account. So while I am setting up the subsidiary to hire and pay Spanish locals I will not be, technically, a part of the subsidiary.

If that means anything to anyone or anyone has any feedback it will be appreciated...both myself and my HR contact are indeed investigating but I thought I would mine the knowledge of those that have lived it.

Thanks

[Bevdeforges]

The documents being filed to establish this new Spanish office/branch or whatever have to name a "managing director" and possibly one or two other officers of the new Spanish company. (In French, the managing director is called the "gérant" - I suspect the Spanish term is similar.)

One of these named individuals (who must be either a Spanish national or someone with the proper visa or residence card to conduct business in Spain) will have to contact the immigration people in Spain on your behalf to get the visa process going. In essence, they will inform the immigration authorities that you are being "offered" a position assisting the new company and will vouch for the fact that you will return home after your year (or whenever).

Admittedly, this is based on how it works in France, but the process seems to be similar in several EU countries that I have had experience dealing with. But the key thing is to get one of those named individuals to start the ball rolling.
Cheers,
Bev