People's Republic of China vs Kingdom of Spain
A neutral side-by-side of immigration systems, routes and regulators. Each row links to the underlying visa page with its primary government source.
Last reviewed:
Source basis
This comparison combines People's Republic of China and Kingdom of Spain government portals with the primary sources for each side's dominant skilled route. Every detailed figure links through to the underlying route or data page.
Reviewed
Primary sources
- National Immigration Administration
National Immigration Administration (China) - verified
- Ministerio de Inclusión — Portal de Inmigración
Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migrations (Spain) - verified
- National Immigration Administration - services portal for foreigners
National Immigration Administration (China) - verified
- Ministerio — Highly Qualified Professional
Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migrations - verified
People's Republic of China
China regulates the stay of foreign nationals through the National Immigration Administration, with the employer-sponsored Z work visa as the standard route and the R visa for high-level talent. A new K visa for young STEM talent took effect on 1 October 2025, and the Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card (the "Five-Star Card") is the permanent-residence document. The English portal is partial - some rules are published only in Chinese.
- Official portal
- National Immigration Administration (China)
- Languages
- Mandarin Chinese
- Currency
- Renminbi (yuan)
Kingdom of Spain
Spain offers residence permits through consulates abroad and Oficinas de Extranjería inside Spain, with headline routes including the Digital Nomad Visa introduced under the 2022 Startup Law, Non-Lucrative Visa for passive-income residents, and the Highly Qualified Professional permit.
- Languages
- Spanish
- Currency
- Euro
How People's Republic of China and Kingdom of Spain differ
| Dimension | People's Republic of China | Kingdom of Spain |
|---|---|---|
| Total routes covered | 7 | 7 |
| Routes without employer sponsor | 2 | 5 |
| Routes leading to permanent residence | 4 | 6 |
| Typical full settlement timeline | — | Arrival → permanent residence (5 years) → citizenship (10 years for most nationalities; 2 for Latin American). |
| Dominant skilled visa | Z Work Visa (with Foreigner Work Permit and Residence Permit) | Highly Qualified Professional (HQP) permit |
| Skilled visa salary minimum | — | €41,356/year |
| Skilled visa processing time | — | UGE-CE — Highly Qualified Professional does not publish one fixed, route-wide end-to-end processing time that can be stated responsibly for this application route. |
| Skilled visa government fees | — | — |
| Official languages | Mandarin Chinese | Spanish |
| Currency | Renminbi (yuan) | Euro |
| Primary regulator | NIA | CGAE |
| Policy changes (last 12 months) | 1 | 0 |
Skilled-route head-to-head
Comparing each country’s most-used skilled-migration route side by side.
People's Republic of China
Z Work Visa (with Foreigner Work Permit and Residence Permit)
- Salary minimum
- —
- Government fees
- —
- Processing time
- —
- Sponsor required
- Yes
- Leads to settlement
- Yes
Kingdom of Spain
Highly Qualified Professional (HQP) permit
- Salary minimum
- €41,356/year
- Government fees
- —
- Processing time
- UGE-CE — Highly Qualified Professional does not publish one fixed, route-wide end-to-end processing time that can be stated responsibly for this application route.
- Sponsor required
- Yes
- Leads to settlement
- Yes
Routes unique to People's Republic of China
Routes unique to Kingdom of Spain
Visa routes side by side
People's Republic of China (7)
Z Work Visa (with Foreigner Work Permit and Residence Permit)
Sponsor · Leads to settlement · The Z visa itself is short-validity for entry; the work-type residence permit you obtain after arrival is typically issued for one year and renewable.
K Visa (young science and technology talent)
No sponsor · Non-settlement · Indicative only. The K visa is described as offering more flexibility on entries, validity and length of stay than the existing ordinary categories; confirm the current terms on the official page.
R Talent Visa (high-level and urgently needed talent)
Sponsor · Leads to settlement · The R visa is for entry; the work-type residence permit obtained after arrival is typically issued for one or more years and is renewable.
Foreign Permanent Resident ID Card (Five-Star Card)
Sponsor · Leads to settlement · Permanent residence status; the physical card is issued with a validity period and is renewed while you maintain eligibility.
Q Family Reunion Visa (Q1 and Q2)
Sponsor · Leads to settlement · Q1 is a long-stay route: after entry you obtain a family-type residence permit, often issued for up to several years and renewable. Q2 is for short visits only.
X Student Visa (X1 and X2)
Sponsor · Non-settlement · X1 covers long courses: after entry you obtain a study-type residence permit for the programme length, renewable while you study. X2 is for short study of up to six months.
M Business Visa
No sponsor · Non-settlement · Short stays per visit; the visa can be single, double or multiple entry depending on what is granted.
Kingdom of Spain (7)
Digital Nomad Visa (Spain)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Initial 1-year consular visa, extendable to 3-year residence permit, then renewable for further 2 years; counts toward permanent residence after 5 years.
Non-Lucrative Visa (NLV)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Initial 1 year; renewable for 2-year periods; leads to permanent residence after 5 years.
Highly Qualified Professional (HQP) permit
Sponsor · Leads to settlement · 3 years; renewable for 2 years; leads to permanent residence after 5.
Entrepreneur Visa (Ley 14/2013)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Initial 3 years; renewable.
Spain Golden Visa (ending April 2025)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Closed to new property-based applications from 3 April 2025.
Spanish Student Visa
Sponsor · Non-settlement · Programme length; annual renewal.
Family reunification (Spain)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Aligned with the sponsor’s permit; long-term residence is a separate eligibility route.
Frequently asked questions
Which country has an easier skilled-migration route, People's Republic of China or Kingdom of Spain?+
People's Republic of China’s Z Work Visa (with Foreigner Work Permit and Residence Permit) is the dominant skilled route; Kingdom of Spain’s Highly Qualified Professional (HQP) permit requires €41,356/year. “Easier” depends on your salary, sponsor situation, and nationality — see each visa’s eligibility detail.
Does People's Republic of China or Kingdom of Spain have more visa routes without an employer sponsor?+
Kingdom of Spain has more: 5 of its covered routes can be pursued without an employer sponsor, against 2 for People's Republic of China. No-sponsor routes — such as digital-nomad, self-employment, and points-based skilled migration — matter most if you do not yet have a job offer.
Cite or reuse this dataset
This comparison is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Cite the page for the compiled head-to-head table and use the country-comparisons JSON endpoint to retrieve the indexed pair, destination profiles and underlying source datasets.
Suggested citation
Visa Atlas, "People's Republic of China vs Kingdom of Spain immigration comparison", https://visaatlas.org/compare/china/vs/spain. Last verified 22 June 2026.
- JSON endpoint
- https://visaatlas.org/api/public/country-comparisons