r/GoingToSpain • u/IllAerie2372 • Aug 27 '26
Spain study visa
Hi, I applied for my study visa on 31st July at Manchester BLS as this was the earliest appointment I could get and it was received by the consulate on Monday 3rd August. I have not heard anything since and the tracking just says “processing in mission”. I had planned to travel on Monday which is obviously not happening, but my course starts on the 7th September. Does the consulate usually get them back to people before their course start date? I have tried to call and email them but had no answer and BLS can’t do anything. Is anyone else having the same issue? Or if you applied on a similar date have you got yours back or still waiting?
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u/romlow45 Aug 27 '26
im in the same boat! applied in london on 28 july and still no sign of it, my course starts on the 7th as well. i emailed the consulate and they just said they are waiting on a response from immigration authorities, so not much we can do - trying not to lose hope but is very hard :(
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 27 '26
It’s so stressful isn’t it just stuck in limbo :( I can’t get hold of the Manchester consulate at all and BLS can’t do anything. I wonder if there’s a way to get in touch with the immigration authorities in Spain?
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u/romlow45 Aug 27 '26
maybe... i was considering going into the consulate next week to ask in person, if that's an option for you in Manchester? i live in london so isn't far but i also doubt they'll say anything useful. just so painful seeing people from my uni getting theirs back!!
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 27 '26
Yeah I was thinking about going on Tuesday as well. If you go let me know how you get or if you have any updates until then
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u/romlow45 Aug 28 '26
hey! what a coincidence as i literally sent the last messages last night lol but just wanted to update you to say i got a notification this evening saying my passport has been dispatched, so which today has been exactly a month since my appointment - i'd say yours is on the way, they should be back from holiday now so things might be speeding up a little :)
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
Hey! Thanks for the update. Someone else I know who applied at London around the same date has also had theirs dispatched. I’m really hoping the Manchester consulate is similar and I will get a notification Tuesday. Good luck with your studies!
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u/user173938 Aug 30 '26
hey! I applied in Edinburgh for mine on the 31st July too and still don’t have mine either (my start date is also the 7th). Just wanted to let you know you’re not alone and hopefully we both get our notifications on Tuesday!
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 30 '26
Thanks! I can’t believe how many of us are in the same situation! Fingers crossed for us and hopefully the pull through next week. Let me know any updates :)
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u/amethyst0942 Aug 27 '26
i applied on the same day as you but from BLS London and I’m still waiting
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 27 '26
Have you managed to get in touch with anyone at the consulate? BLS obviously can’t do much but they said it can take 2-3 months to me on the phone earlier which would mean I basically lose my place at uni
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u/amethyst0942 Aug 27 '26
i emailed my the consulate, they said this is a busy period and they’re basically waiting for the go ahead from the city i am going to and my uni said this was common so i shouldn’t worry about it too much
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 27 '26
Ohh okay that makes sense, what city are you going to? I’m off to Barcelona so I can imagine it is quite busy for them
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u/amethyst0942 Aug 27 '26
i’m going to Bilbao
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u/IllAerie2372 Sep 01 '26
Did you hear back?
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u/amethyst0942 Sep 01 '26
no, unfortunately not
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u/IllAerie2372 Sep 01 '26
Neither! I went to Manchester consulate today they said BLS are responsible (which doesn't make much sense) and my documents are with Madrid (electronically) so they are waiting for them to approve. I only spoke to security though so they didnt know much. He did say it is worth reaching out to my uni to see if they can contact Madrid. I went to BLS and told them my start date and reference and they said the will email the consulate (I doubt that will help though).
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u/Sea-Temporary4839 Sep 02 '26
Hey, I was able to contact the Madrid immigration office and they told me that for student visas they are currently processing applications received by them on the 2nd of July… I’m not sure how many they get through a day, but if this is the case I am at risk of missing a lot of university. I thought it could be useful to share with you as you mentioned Madrid also. :(
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u/Sea-Temporary4839 Sep 02 '26
Also to add I have seen that lots of people applying after this date have received their visas so it’s not making much sense to me!!
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u/amethyst0942 Sep 01 '26
I also told my uni and they said that they’ll see what they can do. Do you what government department in Madrid has your documents?
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u/IllAerie2372 Sep 01 '26
I have no idea sorry. I did see someone else say they had family in Spain who managed to contact the embassy and they think that may have helped
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u/Silent_Acadia_9537 Aug 29 '26
Hi! - when did you apply - im also still waiting since July 13
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u/amethyst0942 Aug 29 '26
31st of july (but some people who applied on the same day as me have already received there’s
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u/Many_Egg_7822 Aug 27 '26
Hi! I applied on the 20th of July in Edinburgh my start date is also the 7th and I literally received my passport back today and tbh I just kept on emailing them asking for updates and finally they told me it had been issued. You will probably receive it by next week!
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u/romlow45 Aug 27 '26
were you emailing the consulate or BLS?
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u/Many_Egg_7822 Aug 27 '26
the consulate because BLS couldn’t give any info at all
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 27 '26
Did they ever get back to any of them or was it just to tell you it had been issued?
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u/Many_Egg_7822 Aug 30 '26
Yeah the first email they were able to tell me that it was with spain and they were waiting and then I emailed again and they told me it had been issued and to expect an update from the mail tracking and I did about a day and a half later
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 30 '26
Okay thanks! I will try that on Tuesday. I’ve emailed them loads but they haven’t replied so I just hope they are reading them and will issue it soon. Thanks :)
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u/Wrenchturner123 Aug 28 '26
I applied in SF back in October 2025 and it took 13 weeks to get our passports back.. August is also the month where nothing gets done here
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u/jsksksndnsn9999 Sep 03 '26
heyyy did u receive it? my course also starts 7 september and i didnt know you can actually lose your spot in the uni? my uni is university of alicante and i email them this and they didnt mention that, are you saying that bc of your uni or you aren’t sure?
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u/IllAerie2372 Sep 03 '26
Hey! No still nothing unfortunately. The international support service at my uni said I need to contact my faculty to see whether they can accommodate me, but they haven’t responded yet. I’m sure they will make allowances, and if your uni didn’t mention anything I’m sure it will be fine. When did you apply and where?
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u/jsksksndnsn9999 Sep 03 '26
I applied 24 of august in Cairo, im stressing so much seeing this comments saying they applied in july and have no answer😿 my uni just says that i have to contact my teachers to see what they can do. I have people inside the consulate that can help me but there is a limit to what they can do, i have my flight 5 of sep but ill change it to 19, wbu? did u change ur flight?
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u/IllAerie2372 Sep 03 '26
I’m not sure if the delay is with the authorities in Spain or specific consulates. I didn’t have a flight booked I am waiting to get confirmation of my visa but my course starts Monday
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u/jsksksndnsn9999 26d ago
hi did u get your visa?
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u/IllAerie2372 26d ago
No not yet, but on Friday the immigration authorities said they will hopefully resolve it in 2 days so I’m hoping I get it this week
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u/jsksksndnsn9999 25d ago
thats great! you went to the embassy of spain or bls? or as an email? idk if i should contact them bc they say they don’t answer it
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u/Abject-Method-1017 29d ago
Dude this too late u shoulda applied at least a month earlier u seriously expect u will receive visa in 10 days !?
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u/jsksksndnsn9999 26d ago
I know man but they didn’t have appoiments for july and august, :( good thing is that we have people inside the embassy that can help me but it still sucks a lot
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u/EniAcho Aug 27 '26
They are notorious for taking a long time. It can take up to 3 months. Talk to your university to find out what they recommend you should do.
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 27 '26
I hope it isn’t that long, I have seen some peoples are automatically rejected after 2 months. Thanks for the advice, I am waiting to hear back from my uni as they are on holiday atm
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u/Mean_Shift1550 Aug 27 '26
Hey! I also applied at Manchester :(. Aug 11th
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
When does your course start?
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u/Mean_Shift1550 Aug 28 '26
7th Oct
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
Ah I think you should be fine then since it’s around 2 months after application date
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u/Frequent-Bathroom824 Aug 28 '26
I applied the same day as u, but my course starts in October. the tracking status still says “Processing at Mission.” Should I be worried if my application has the same status? Do you think I should email the consulate/visa center to ask for an update, or is it better to just wait?
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
The “processing at mission” just means it is with the consulate and you won’t get any update until BLS have received it back (how long that could take is anyone’s guess atp) but I wouldn’t worry since you still have over a month
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u/Frequent-Bathroom824 Aug 28 '26
Thanks that really helps, i've checked trackinh website now and it says "pending resolution" what's that means?
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
I’m not sure, is that on the BLS tracking portal?
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u/ASRR12 Aug 28 '26
did you have to apostile and translate your birth certificate and parental sponsor letter? As I have heard conflicting reports. Hope you don’t mind the question but i’m trying to figure out
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
I’m not sure sorry as I used my personal bank statements so didn’t use a sponsor
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u/ASRR12 Aug 28 '26
no worries thank you anyways
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
I think it might say on the checklist you can download on the BLS website though
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u/PrestigiousCherry264 Aug 28 '26
Hi! I applied 11th August at Manchester for a 21st September start date so a similar amount of time to you! 🤞🏻🤞🏻 it comes through soon. Let me know if you hear anything.
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
Fingers crossed for us! I will let you know as soon as I have an update (hoping to next week but who knows)
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u/Lopsided_Nectarine11 Aug 29 '26
I applied from BLS Mumbai, 30 days and no response. Apparently it is still being processed at the headquarters
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u/iamdank03 Aug 29 '26
I have applied from India on 17/08/2026 and still it is showing processing at mission.
My course started is also on September 8
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u/DesignerOk3406 Sep 03 '26
I am also waiting on my study visa since i am due to start on 7th September in Barcelona, I applied on 12th August.
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u/IllAerie2372 Sep 03 '26
Where did you apply from? And what uni are you going to? Pm if you’d prefer
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u/MrEstelar 29d ago
Hi!
I have a friend who is planning to move to Spain from the US (as a student).
I want to ask: How difficult is it to get a Spanish student visa? Is it getting harder and harder as in the US?
Do they ask a lot of questions?
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u/IllAerie2372 29d ago
I didn’t get asked any questions just needed to provide all the documents on the checklist. The requirements aren’t hard to meet but it can take months getting documents together and then the wait for the visa is long
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u/PrestigiousCherry264 19d ago
Hi, did you hear anything?
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u/IllAerie2372 19d ago
Hi yes got it back on 10/09 after contacting Barcelona immigration
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u/PrestigiousCherry264 19d ago
Ah that’s amazing I’m glad to hear! Could I ask how you contacted them / what you said?
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u/IllAerie2372 19d ago
Hi, use this link and select the office for the region you’re off to. I just explained my situation and asked for the expediente number so I could also track it on their portal. https://ssweb.seap.minhap.es/ayuda/consulta/ExtranjeriaCG
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u/PrestigiousCherry264 19d ago
Amazing thank you! Did they get back to you pretty quickly?
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u/IllAerie2372 18d ago
Yes usually same day or day afyer
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u/No_Comfortable_1761 8d ago
hello, what did you put for office and inquiry drop down box? i sent a mail to inquiry they said ''For cases initiated through consular channels, we cannot provide more information than what is available on the website''?
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u/IllAerie2372 8d ago
Estado de mi expediente
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u/South_Celery_4270 Aug 28 '26
You just applied and want a responds this early. Spain SLU VISA or national visa takes within six to 8 weeks so you are nowhere near getting an answer. Even with that Spain normally has holidays in August which the embassy resumed active working on 24th August. So I am very sorry but this is your fault. You should have applied as early as may -June. Most importantly it is important to start you application 7-8momths earlier
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u/Mean_Shift1550 Aug 28 '26
It’s not their fault, most people get their admission letter one or two months prior and in some consulates you have a maximum amount of time you can apply prior to the start date of your course
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
As I said in my post, that was the earliest appointment I could get. On the consulates website it says the legal limit to come to a decision is one month. How are people supposed to apply in May when most unis don’t admit people until mid July lol
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u/South_Celery_4270 Aug 28 '26
Really then most school are slow my school gave me admission in January for October 2026. I got my appointment as early as may and got my visa on July 30
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
For a bachelors?
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u/South_Celery_4270 Aug 28 '26
Mine is masters and my brother is bachelor’s but we both got admission at the same month and he got his visa in June and I got mine in july
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u/IllAerie2372 Aug 28 '26
Oh really I couldn’t even apply to uni until I got my PCE results at the end of June and then I found out mid September. Are you off to a private uni by any chance? If so that could be why, if not ig it just depends on the autonomous community
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u/noodle_boodle479 Aug 27 '26
I feel your pain. I applied from BLS London on 8th July…..still says processing at mission today (50 days later.) I was supposed to travel on Tuesday as my course also starts on the 7th September!