Spain Visa for Family of EU Citizen from UAE

You live in the UAE, and your husband, wife, child or parent is a citizen of a European Union country. You want to travel to Spain with them, or go to join them there. The Spain Visa for Family of EU Citizen from UAE is the visa for that trip.

Quick Answer: The visa fee is waived for family members of EU citizens. The waiver holds only when your relationship papers are valid and recent. See “What You Pay” below for the full rule. You pay the BLS service charge of AED 73. The visa is type C, and it can be valid for up to two years. It lets you stay up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Book an appointment at BLS, and travel with your EU family member or go to join them.

Who Can Apply for the Spain Visa for Family of EU Citizen from UAE

The law names four groups as family members. The first is the spouse. The second is a registered partner. This holds when the law of the host state treats a registered partnership as equal to marriage. The third group is direct children under 21, or children of any age who depend on the EU citizen. The fourth group covers dependent parents and grandparents. The same rule also covers the parents and grandparents of the spouse or partner.

Two more groups can also qualify, but their path is not automatic. The first group is other family members. They live with the EU citizen or depend on them, in the country they came from. The same group also covers a family member who needs the EU citizen’s personal care for serious health reasons. The second group is a partner in a lasting relationship, with proof. Spain must look at the full case, and it must give reasons if it says no.

An unregistered partner can qualify too, when the couple can prove a stable life together for at least one year. When the couple has children together, proof that they live together is enough. In the UAE, this case is not a standard BLS category. Contact the visa section of the Spanish Embassy in Abu Dhabi first, at emb.abudhabi.vis@maec.es, before you prepare the file.

Travel With Your EU Family Member, or Go to Join Them

This visa rests on one condition. You must travel with your EU family member, or go to join them in Spain. The EU citizen can be your husband, wife, registered partner, child or parent. You must show the travel link. A joint plane ticket works, and so does a registration certificate that shows you live together.

If you plan to travel alone, this visa is not for you. The same rule holds when your trip to Spain has nothing to do with your EU family member. In that case, apply for a normal tourist visa instead. Our Spain Visit Visa from UAE guide covers that route.

If Your Husband or Wife Is a Spanish Citizen

Spouses of Spanish citizens face one extra step, and it catches many people out. The step depends on your marriage papers. Check if your marriage is registered in the Spanish Civil Registry.

If your marriage is registered, take an updated marriage certificate issued within the last six months. There is one exception. If the Embassy of Spain in Abu Dhabi registered your marriage, a copy of the family book is accepted. An old marriage certificate counts too.

If your marriage is not registered, you must register it first. Do this through the Spanish Embassy in Abu Dhabi, when either spouse lives in the UAE. Take this step before you apply for the visa. For details, write to emb.abudhabi.nac@maec.es.

If registration is not possible, the Embassy will judge your case on your foreign marriage certificate. An interview or other checks may be required. In any case, the foreign certificate must be recent and issued within the last six months. It must also be legalised or apostilled, and officially translated into Spanish.

One more point matters here. As proof of a marriage to a Spanish national, only a certificate issued by the Spanish Civil Registry is accepted. A foreign certificate alone does not prove the marriage for this route.

Warning: Do not book your BLS appointment until the marriage paper is in order. An unregistered marriage plus a foreign certificate can bring an interview. The Embassy may also ask for extra checks, and your case will then take longer. Register the marriage first, or ask the visa section what your case needs.

What You Pay

The visa fee is waived for spouses and relatives of EU citizens, but only on one condition. Your relationship papers must be valid and recent, and they must come from the authorities of an EU country. When they do not, you lose the waiver and apply as a tourist instead.

The table below shows the visa fee for each group. The BLS service charge is separate, and it is not in this table.

Other nationalities pay different fees. The BLS table also lists AED 151 for nationals of Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Georgia and North Macedonia. The same fee covers Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia and Ukraine. Gambian nationals pay AED 321. Cape Verde nationals pay AED 259, and Cape Verde children between 12 and 18 years pay AED 129.

The visa fee can change without notice, and the dirham figure follows the current exchange rate. You pay the visa fee by cash or card.

On top of the visa fee, BLS charges a service charge of AED 73, VAT included. The charge applies to every applicant at the centre. The service charge is non-refundable.

You also need travel insurance. Hand the certificate in at the centre with your file. The policy must pay for medical evacuation and the trip home, with cover of at least €30,000. Insurance tied to a credit card does not count.

What This Visa Gives You

Under the community regime — the EU free-movement rules for family members of EU citizens — the visa is preferential. The law says it is issued free of charge, as soon as possible, on an accelerated procedure. It is a type C visa, with the code ESC printed on it. It can be valid for up to two years.

It lets you stay in the Schengen area for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. The Schengen area has 29 European countries without border controls between them. The list includes Spain, France, Germany and Italy. The visa also allows transit through the territory and airports.

If you do not meet the community-regime requirements, you can still apply under the general regime. That visa is neither preferential nor free. Its validity can range from a few days to a maximum of five years.

The Papers You Need

BLS and the Embassy use a fixed checklist for this visa. The list below follows it.

• Application form. Fill it in English or Spanish, sign it, and date it. When the applicant is under 18, both parents must sign the form. Both parents must also give a signed letter of consent and their original passports, with photocopies. They must also give a valid birth certificate of the child, translated into English or Spanish. Our Spain Visa for Children guide covers minors in detail.
• Letter from your local sponsor. It must be an original letter in English. The letter must state the purpose of the trip, your qualification, salary and start date of employment in the UAE. It must not be older than one month. If a family member sponsors you, an original NOC is also mandatory, with the same details. NOC is short for a no-objection certificate from your employer. The NOC and any salary certificate must be signed. They must show the full name and position of the person who signed. Each one must also include their Emirates ID number, or a copy of their Emirates ID. If you sponsor yourself, give a copy of your trade licence, officially translated into Spanish or English.
• Passport. It must have at least two empty pages, and it must not be older than 10 years. Your UAE residence visa in it must be valid for at least 3 months. Count that time from the date the requested visa expires. Give your previous passport too, if you have one.
• Photograph. Give one recent biometric passport-size photo, with a white background. The photo must not be older than 6 months.
• Photocopies. Copy the passport pages with your personal data and residence visa. Also copy your previous Schengen, US, UK, Canada and Japan visas.
• Insurance. The rule is in “What You Pay” above. The cover must be at least €30,000, and it must include medical evacuation and the trip home. It must stay valid for the full stay and all Schengen countries.
• Proof of relationship. For a Spanish citizen, give a copy of the Libro de Familia issued within the last six months. You can also give a marriage certificate from the Spanish Registro Civil, issued within the last six months. If the Embassy of Spain in Abu Dhabi issued the Libro de Familia, it is accepted whatever its date. For a citizen of another EU country, give an attested marriage certificate or similar, issued within the last six months. It must be registered in an EU country, and officially translated into Spanish. Also give proof that you travel with the EU citizen or join them, for example a plane ticket reservation. Give a copy of the EU citizen’s passport, or their DNI (Spanish national identity card). If the child is a minor and the parents are divorced or separated, give the official custody document.
• Proof of dependence. For children over 21 and for parents and grandparents, give a sworn statement from the EU citizen. The statement must say that you are their dependant. Also give a document from your country of origin that proves the dependence.
• Return ticket booking. Give a booking for your return ticket.

Example: You live in Dubai, and your husband is a Spanish citizen. Your marriage is registered at the Embassy of Spain in Abu Dhabi. You take a copy of your family book, your passport, and the rest of the file to BLS. Your relationship papers are valid and recent, so the visa fee is waived. You pay only the AED 73 service charge. BLS sends your file to the Embassy the next working day.

How to Apply, Step by Step

Step 1: Book an appointment. Since July 2026, EEA and EU spouses must book an appointment in advance. BLS no longer takes them as walk-ins. Book your own appointment on the BLS website. Appointments are free, so do not pay any third party for a slot.

Tip: Book early. Once an appointment is booked, you cannot reschedule it. You must cancel it and book a new one. The fees you paid online are not refunded.

Step 2: Prepare the file. Use the checklist above. Only complete files are accepted. Once you submit, no changes in dates or conditions of travel are allowed unless duly justified.

Step 3: Go to a BLS centre. Submit your file in person at the Dubai or Abu Dhabi centre.

Dubai centre: BLS International Spain Visa Application Centre, I Rise Tower, 27th Floor, Office C-13, Barsha Heights (Tecom), Dubai. Abu Dhabi centre: BLS International Spain Visa Application Centre, Office 1311, Tamouh Tower, 13th Floor, Marina Square, Al Reem Island, Abu Dhabi. Both centres open Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 17:00. Applications are taken from 9:00 to 15:00. Passport collection is from 15:00 to 17:00. Both centres are closed on Saturday, Sunday and Embassy holidays. Phone: 043875660. Email: info.uae@blshelpline.com. Queries are answered within 2 working days.

Step 4: Wait for the decision. Your file is sent to the Embassy of Spain in Abu Dhabi on the next working day. The BLS page states a minimum processing time of 3 weeks. Submit your file at least 3 weeks before your travel date. The Embassy checklist says the process can take up to 3 weeks. Plan for 3 weeks either way. The Embassy should resolve all applications within a maximum of 3 months. The law gives the Embassy 15 calendar days to decide. That time can extend to 45 days in individual cases. That is the legal backstop, not a promise. The Embassy gives no status updates by phone or email, so do not call for updates.

Apply no more than six months and, as a rule, no later than 15 calendar days before your trip. In UAE practice, plan around the 3-week BLS rule, because it is longer than the 15-day legal minimum.

Step 5: Collect your passport. Collect it from the same centre between 15:00 and 17:00. If you do not pick it up within one month of notification or grant, the file will be archived.

If You Already Hold an EU Residence Card

A valid residence card as a family member of a Union citizen means you need no visa. The card exempts you from the visa requirement. Your passport will also not be stamped on entry or exit when you show the card.

Note: This covers the Article 10 residence card, issued by an EU, EEA or Swiss state. Its full name is the “Residence card of a family member of a Union citizen”. A normal UAE residence visa does not exempt you.

If Your Spouse Is British

Spouses of British nationals are not eligible for the EU spouse category. They should apply for a standard Schengen visa instead. The only exception is relatives of British citizens who are beneficiaries of the Withdrawal Agreement. When your husband or wife holds a British passport and no Withdrawal Agreement status, use the standard Schengen visa.

If You Plan to Move to Spain to Live

This visa is for a short stay only. Relatives who are relocating to Spain with Spanish citizens need to apply for a residence visa instead. The same applies when you plan to stay beyond 90 days. Once in Spain, family members who stay longer must apply for a residence card. The card is for a family member of a Union citizen.

If Your Visa Is Refused

A refusal is always notified in writing, with the grounds stated.

You may appeal for reconsideration to the Consular Office. You have 1 month from the day after you receive the refusal notice. Spanish law gives one month for this appeal.

You may also file a court case with the High Court of Justice of Madrid. You have 2 months from the day after you receive the refusal notice. The same deadline runs from the dismissal of the reconsideration appeal. Spanish law gives two months for the court case.

If you applied through BLS Dubai centres, you may raise the appeal to the Embassy. Do this when you submit the new requirements after the rejection letter. You need no prior appointment for this. Questions go to info.uae@blshelpline.com.

The full appeal steps are in our guide on Spain Visa Rejection from UAE. The guide also has the refusal form and the deadlines worked out.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the visa really free?

The visa fee is waived only when your relationship papers are valid and recent. See “What You Pay” above for the full rule. You still pay the BLS service charge.

Do I need an appointment at BLS?

Yes. Since July 2026, EEA and EU spouses must book an appointment in advance. Walk-ins are no longer taken.

My marriage is not registered in Spain. Can I still apply?

First register the marriage through the Spanish Embassy in Abu Dhabi. See “If Your Husband or Wife Is a Spanish Citizen” above for the steps. When registration is not possible, the Embassy judges your case on your foreign marriage certificate.

How long can I stay in Spain on this visa?

You can stay for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. The visa itself can be valid for up to two years.

My husband is British. Does this visa cover me?

No. Spouses of British nationals are not eligible for the EU spouse category. Apply for a standard Schengen visa instead.

What if my visa is refused?

You can appeal for reconsideration to the Consular Office within 1 month of the day after you receive the refusal. You can also go to court in Madrid within 2 months. The full steps are in our Spain Visa Rejection guide.

Official Sources

• BLS UAE — Spain Spouse of European Union Citizen Visa from UAE — who qualifies, the fee table, insurance, and processing time.
• BLS/Embassy checklist — Spouses & Relatives of EU Citizens (PDF) — the full document list and the fee-waiver condition.
• Directive 2004/38/EC — EUR-Lex, consolidated text 16.06.2011 — who counts as a family member, the visa fee waiver, and the residence card.
• Visa Code — EUR-Lex, consolidated text 28.06.2024 — the 6-month/15-day window, the 15/45-day decision period, and refusal notification.
• Ley 39/2015 — BOE — the 1-month appeal deadline.
• Ley 29/1998 — BOE — the 2-month court deadline.
• BLS UAE — Contact Us (centres, hours, phone, email)
• BLS UAE — Homepage (appointment and appeal notices)
• Spanish Foreign Ministry — Visas for family members of a citizen of the Union — the Ministry’s general visa page: relocation to Spain and the 29 Schengen countries. This is the general page, not the Abu Dhabi page.

Disclaimer: Bolo Asan is an independent guide for people living in the UAE. This page is general information, not legal advice. Visa rules change, and the Embassy decides each case on its own file. Check the official BLS and Embassy pages linked above before you apply.

Last Updated: 8 November 2026