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Applying in Spain

How to apply for jobs in Spain

A Spanish job search runs on two tracks: the private job boards and company sites where most adverts appear, and a public network made up of the state agency SEPE plus one employment service per autonomous community. This guide explains both, what Spanish recruiters expect from the CV and letter, how selection usually works and what changes if you come from outside the EU.

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How do you apply for a job in Spain?

Look for vacancies on Empléate, your regional employment service, private boards and company sites, then send a CV of up to two A4 pages written in Spanish, with a short formal letter aimed at that offer. Selection is mostly interview-based, sometimes with tests. Non-EU nationals need a prior residence and work authorisation before taking any job.[2][3][5]

Applying in Spain at a glance

Usual practice for job applications in Spain
TopicUsual in Spain
The CVCurrículum vítae or CV, best kept to two A4 pages, most recent experience first.
PhotoNot compulsory; it can help for customer-facing roles. Leave it off for international employers.
LanguageSpanish, unless the offer says otherwise; knowledge of Spanish is treated as essential for most jobs.
Cover letterCarta de presentación: concise, formal and written for that specific offer, never a generic letter.
EuropassEURES points to the Europass tool for creating a CV online; a well-structured CV of your own works just as well.
Where jobs are postedGeneral boards (InfoJobs, Infoempleo, Indeed), LinkedIn for corporate roles, Tecnoempleo for tech, Empléate (SEPE) and the regional services, administracion.gob.es for public jobs, company pages.
SelectionInterviews first and foremost, sometimes psychometric or job-related tests.
ProbationWithout a collective agreement: up to six months for qualified technicians, two months for others.

[2][3][4]

Where job offers are published in Spain

No single site has every vacancy. Most people combine one or two general boards with LinkedIn or a specialist portal for their field, the public services, and the career pages of the companies they want to work for. Here is what each site is for.

Job sites used in Spain and what each is for
SiteTypeWhat it is for
InfoJobsGeneral job boardA Spanish board with offers in every province and sector, plus salary pages and its own public-employment section. Keep the profile complete and current, because it travels with every application.
InfoempleoGeneral job boardOffers searchable by category, company and province, with separate sections for a first job (primer empleo) and for work abroad.
LinkedInWhite-collar and corporateOffice, professional and management roles, multinationals and recruiter contact. Write the headline in Spanish if you are targeting local employers.
IndeedInternational job siteRuns a Spanish site; use it as a second search next to the local boards. Many listings link out to the original advert.
TecnoempleoTech and telecomsA portal specialised in IT and telecommunications jobs: developers, systems, data and support roles.
Empléate (SEPE)Public employment serviceSEPE's free portal, which pulls offers from partner job sites into one search. Filter by province and sector, then open the original advert before applying.
Regional employment servicesPublic employment serviceEach autonomous community runs its own service and offer list, for example Lanbide in the Basque Country or SOIB in the Balearics. Register as a job seeker where you live to receive matched offers.
Empleo público (administracion.gob.es)Public sectorThe government's search for public-employment calls (convocatorias), a weekly bulletin and online registration for selection exams.
Company career pagesDirect applicationsLarge employers recruit through their own application system; apply on the employer's site and follow its instructions exactly.
Spontaneous applicationsDirect applicationsCandidatura espontánea: sending your CV to a company that has not advertised. Name the department and the kind of role you can fill, with a one-page letter.

Set alerts for two or three job titles on the sites you choose. Ruubu's job matches for Spain search several sites at once and score each offer against your resume, so you spend time only on the realistic ones.

[1][2][6][7][8][9][10][11]

What a Spanish CV and letter should look like

EURES describes the purpose of a CV in Spain plainly: to get you an interview. Keep it to two A4 pages, put experience in reverse order, and quantify results where you can. A photo is optional; it may help for some jobs, but many international and tech employers do without it. Our Spanish CV format guide covers section order, personal details and a sample layout.

Unless the offer says otherwise, both CV and letter go in Spanish. The letter should be short, formal and written for that offer; recruiters notice a standard letter sent to every company. The cover letter builder starts from your resume and the job, which keeps each letter specific. If you only have an English CV, translate your resume and then review the wording yourself.[3]

Questions a Spanish employer should not use against you

Article 4.2.c of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores gives workers the right not to be discriminated against, directly or indirectly, for employment on grounds such as marital status, age, racial or ethnic origin, social condition, religion or beliefs, political ideas, sexual orientation, union membership, language within Spain, disability or sex. Article 17.1 makes clauses and decisions that discriminate in employment void.

In practice your CV needs your name, phone, email and city. Your national ID number, marital status, children and religion are not needed to judge whether you can do the job, so leave them out unless a public-sector form asks for them.[4]

Applying for a job in Spain, step by step

Each employer sets its own pace; public-sector competitions (oposiciones) follow their own published calendars and take longer than private hiring.

  1. 01

    Register and set up searches

    Register with the employment service of your autonomous community and create alerts on Empléate and one or two private boards for the roles you want.

  2. 02

    Adapt the CV to the offer

    Use the job title and skills the advert uses, as long as they are true for you. Check your resume to see how a screening system reads it before you send it.

  3. 03

    Write the carta de presentación

    Three short paragraphs: the offer and why you, two results that match its requirements, availability and a polite close.

  4. 04

    Apply where the offer says

    Use the board's form, the company portal or the email address given, and keep a copy of the advert, which often disappears once the offer closes.

  5. 05

    Prepare for interviews and tests

    Expect a first call with HR, then interviews with the team; some employers add psychometric or practical tests. Rehearse with the interview prep kit.

  6. 06

    Check the offer in writing

    Before you resign elsewhere, confirm the contract type, gross annual salary, number of payments, probation and start date.

How interviews tend to go in Spain

  • Shake hands and use usted with interviewers until they switch to tú, which in many offices happens quickly.
  • Expect questions about your availability (incorporación), notice period and whether you can travel.
  • Bring concrete examples of results; general claims about being hard-working carry little weight.
  • Video interviews are common for first rounds: test the connection and use a neutral background.
  • Ask about the team, the contract type and the next steps before you leave.

Follow-up, salary and the probation period

A brief thank-you email after the interview is good manners; if a week or so passes after the date you were given, a polite follow-up is fine. Track every offer, contact and date in one place; the job tracker does this and reminds you when a follow-up is due.

Spanish offers are usually stated as gross annual salary (bruto anual), sometimes split into twelve or fourteen payments, so ask how many payments the figure covers before comparing offers. Under article 14.1 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores, and unless the collective agreement says otherwise, probation may not exceed six months for qualified technicians (técnicos titulados) or two months for other workers; in companies with fewer than twenty-five employees, the limit for non-technicians is three months.[4]

Applying from outside the EU

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens can work in Spain without a work permit. Everyone else needs, under article 36 of Ley Orgánica 4/2000, a prior administrative authorisation to reside and work before taking up any paid activity; the work authorisation is granted together with the residence one.

In practice this means the employer and the immigration office must approve the job before you start, so raise your status early in the process. For a regulated profession, ask whether your degree needs to be recognised in Spain before an offer is final.[3][5]

Mistakes that cost interviews in Spain

  • Sending a CV in English to an offer written in Spanish.
  • Using one generic letter for every company.
  • Going past two pages with tasks instead of results.
  • Comparing offers without checking whether the salary is gross annual and in how many payments.
  • Accepting a start date before a non-EU work authorisation is approved.

Prepare this application with Ruubu

Each tool works on the resume you already have. Start with the free check, then fit the resume and letter to one posting.

Ruubu on job sites in Spain

Built from the lists Ruubu actually runs, so this block only names sites Ruubu works with today.

Job Matches searches
LinkedIn, InfoJobs, and Indeed
Ruubu for Chrome shows your match score on
LinkedIn, Indeed, and InfoJobs
Ruubu for Chrome fills application forms on
LinkedIn, Indeed, Greenhouse, Workday, Lever, Ashby, SmartRecruiters, iCIMS, Taleo, SAP SuccessFactors, Jobvite, BambooHR, Workable, Oracle Recruiting Cloud, Breezy HR, Rippling, Dover, Gem, Comeet, Eightfold, Avature, Cornerstone, Factorial, and Kenjo

Job sites and hiring systems belong to their owners. Ruubu is independent and not affiliated with them. Every site and what Ruubu does there

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to speak Spanish to get a job in Spain?
For most jobs, yes: EURES calls knowledge of Spanish essential, and CV and letter are expected in Spanish unless the offer says otherwise. Some international companies hire in English, and their adverts say so.
What is Empléate?
Empléate is SEPE's free job portal. It gathers offers from partner job sites so you can search them in one place, alongside the offers of the regional employment services.
Should I put a photo on my CV for Spain?
It is not compulsory. A photo may help in customer-facing roles; many international employers prefer CVs without one. See the Spanish CV format guide.
How long is the probation period in Spain?
Unless the collective agreement sets other limits, up to six months for qualified technicians and two months for other workers, or three months for non-technicians in companies with fewer than 25 employees.
Can I apply from abroad without a work permit?
You can apply, but non-EU nationals need a residence and work authorisation before they start. EU, EEA and Swiss citizens do not need one.

Sources

Statements about rules and official guidance rely on these pages. We opened and read each source ourselves on the date shown.

  1. [1]Encontrar un trabajo (finding a job) · Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal (SEPE)www.sepe.es/HomeSepe/encontrar-trabajo.html ·
  2. [2]Ofertas de empleo: the Empléate portal and regional services · Servicio Público de Empleo Estatal (SEPE)www.sepe.es/HomeSepe/encontrar-trabajo/ofertas-empleo.html ·
  3. [3]Living and working conditions: Spain · European Commission, EURESeures.europa.eu/living-and-working/living-and-working-conditions-europe/living-and-working-conditions-spain_en ·
  4. [4]Estatuto de los Trabajadores (Workers' Statute), arts. 4, 14 and 17 · Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE)www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2015-11430 ·
  5. [5]Ley Orgánica 4/2000 on the rights of foreign nationals, art. 36 · Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE)www.boe.es/buscar/act.php?id=BOE-A-2000-544 ·
  6. [6]InfoJobs: job board home page (bolsa de trabajo, ofertas de empleo) · InfoJobswww.infojobs.net/ ·
  7. [7]Infoempleo: job offers home page (incl. first-job and international sections) · Infoempleowww.infoempleo.com/ ·
  8. [8]Tecnoempleo: job portal for IT and telecommunications · Tecnoempleowww.tecnoempleo.com/ ·
  9. [9]Empleo público: search for public-sector job calls · Punto de Acceso General (Government of Spain)administracion.gob.es/pag_Home/empleoPublico.html ·
  10. [10]About LinkedIn · LinkedInabout.linkedin.com/ ·
  11. [11]About Indeed · Indeedwww.indeed.com/about ·

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