Survival Guide for Marie Curie Research Fellows in Spain:
The Fellow Document
(Version 1.1, September 1999)
This Fellow Document is a guide for Marie Curie Fellows in Spain with respect to social
security, taxation, and administration. Some further information (e.g. about social life, etc.)
is also available, but dependent of the place where you are. Most universities or research
centres have offices of information for foreign students. Since the law is subject to constant
change, this document will be updated regularly. The latest version can be found on the
World Wide Web pages of the Spanish Group of the Marie Curie Fellowship Association.
It is important to emphasise that this document is neither exhaustive nor legally binding. The
Spanish Group of the Marie Curie Fellowship Association cannot accept any legal
responsibility for the correctness of this guide. Feedback is welcome on the content and
usefulness of the Fellow Document (if you have any suggestion about this guide, please send
it by E-mail to jgilab@fcu.um.es).
Introduction
The Marie Curie Fellowship Association has been created to provide a distinctive identity for
the scientists past and present recipients of European Community research grants. The
objectives and activities of the Association are:
 to create a more visible identity and to increase the prestige of Marie Curie
Fellows
 to facilitate contact between Fellows during and after their Fellowship
 to establish structural links with the research environment, including industry
 to stress the European dimension of Marie Curie Fellowships
 to enhance the public's appreciation and understanding of science
The Spanish Group has similar objectives at a national level, with emphasis on the two
following points:
 to enhance communication among Marie Curie Fellows in Spain and to
establish a network through the use Internet facilities (electronic mailing list,
WWW site) and through regular meetings in form of discussion groups, seminars
and workshops to different topics.
 to solve practical problems arising for new Fellows in Spain.
This document addresses the second objective. Although it does not pretend to resolv all
potential problems, it brings together practical information otherwise scattered in different
places and provides advice to guide MC Fellows during their stay in Spain.
The Information is organised as follows:
1.
Introduction
1.1 History of European grant schemes
1.2 Principles behind the fellowship
1.3 Arrival in Spain, practical steps to take when arriving and leaving Spain
2.
First steps in Spain
2.1 General Information about Spain
2.1.1 Cultural diversity
2.1.2 Language
2.1.3 Brief outline of general information
2.2 Residency Permit
2.3 Accommodation
2.4 Money and banks
2.5 Kindergarten & schools
2.6 Transportation
Driving-Licence and Automobile
3.
Arriving Formalities. The Contract.
3.1
The Host Institution and the Contract
3.1.1 Arriving and Establishing Contact
3.1.2 Find out who is responsible for the administration of your Fellowship in the
host institution.
3.1.3 Get informed!
3.1.4 Meet the administrator and talk about your grant.
3.1.5 If you are asked to sign the contract immediately at the meeting: Do not!
3.2
The Contract
3.2.1 The basic features of a grant contract
3.2.2 The calculation of the grant allocation by the Spanish law
3.2.3 Holidays
4.
General Conditions for the Community Provisions on Social Security
4.1 Social Security in Spain
4.2 Health insurance
4.2.1 Health and Insurance
4.2.2 Hospitals and Physicians
4.2.3 Maternity Insurance
4.3 Unemployment
4.4 Retirement and pension schemes
5. Tax System
5.1 General Rules of Taxation
5.2 Introduction
5.3 Tax liability: Who have to make the "Declaración de la renta"
5.4 Income tax
5.5 Tax allowances and relieves
1. Introduction
A person working in Spain paid by the Marie Curie Fellowship scheme will, in principle, has
the same rights and obligations as other persons working in the Spanish labour market. They
will be legally employed as individuals for a fixed period with their salary based on the
collective agreement between the relevant trade union and the Spanish State. A person's legal
position concerning employment does not alter according to whether he/she is employed by a
state organisation, public organisation, private organisation or an international (or
intergovernmental) organisation when it comes to the status of the person employed. A contract
stating the conditions and length of employment has to be made between the person and the
organisation concerned.
Principally these arrangements will not differ from contracts in the Spanish labour market. The
contract will normally state the wage and pension conditions which apply in this collective
agreement. In all other aspects the research fellow will have the same status as an employee in
Spain and can receive residence and work-permits in accordance with EU-rules, as long as they
are employed to do research activities in accordance with the contract. However, under the 5th
Framework Programme of the EC, Category 20 fellows will normally be considered in Spain as
doctorate students. If they are registered as Ph.D. students at a Ph.D. programme and following
the courses in relation hereto and they are here as part of their Ph.D. project they will be looked
upon as students.
As the Marie Curie Fellowship programme emphasises the research activities, and the research
is part of the expected outcome of the work, it can be assumed that most of those coming to
Spain would be considered as working in Spain. They will then be employed as researchers on a
contract with a wages in accordance with collective agreements and the correct level of wages
will be dealt with in an agreement between the institution and the research fellow.
In relation to the social and fiscal regime, this division has mainly an impact on coverage of
different types of social benefit. For instance, a person considered as a student would have less
coverage and would not be able to use the specific tax, since this applies to researchers only.
1.1 History of European grant schemes
Since the launching of exchange of scientists in the EURATOM RTD programme about 6000
researchers received EEC fellowships. The fellowship programme has undergone a number of
modifications since its initiation in the 50's. They have changed not only the total number of
grants per year but also the nature of the grant contract. The timetable below provides a
summary of the evolution of the fellowship:
First Framework Programme 1958-1986
· direct contract between the Commission and fellows
· individual fiscal responsibility of fellows
· scale calculated since 1981 in ECU
· a correction coefficient serves to equalise purchasing power in each country
· 1985-1986 research allocations for the host institute
Second Framework Programme 1987-1991
· since 1989 readjustment of the scale to account for social security costs
Third Framework-Programme 1990-1994 : Human Capital and Mobility (HCM)
· contracts between the commission and the host institution
· the host institution signs a contract with the grant holder respecting national social and
fiscal regulations
· the general conditions define the amounts to be paid to the host institutions
· the grant accounts for differences in the cost of living in member states, salary costs
covered by the employer for hiring a researcher, and travel allowance
· the different social and fiscal contributions in the member states lead to variations in
net salaries from one country to another
Fourth Framework Programme 1994-1998 : Training and Mobility of Researchers (TMR)
· a proposal for a unique contract between the grant holders and the Commission has
been rejected by the national delegations of France, Germany and Denmark
· grants should provide income comparable to those of national researchers at an
equivalent level
· in comparison with the HCM programme the TMR gross salary has been reduced by
about 10% (cat 20) or 15% (cat 30) of gross income in many countries, but
publications and conferences have no longer to be covered by the salary
· mobility allowance has been introduced Generally speaking, the changes are towards
localisation of the contract both in terms of its administration and integration into the
employment infrastructure of the host country.
Fifth Framework Programme 1999-2002 : Marie Curie Fellowships (MCF)
· Time for Category 20 grant has been reduced to 9 months.
1.2
Principles behind the fellowship
The actual amount allocated in the grant, is jointly determined by the Commission and the
representative of the host country. Fellows funded under the same category and working in the
same country should receive the same standardised grant regardless of marital status. The grant
should be similar to the salary of local researchers of equal qualifications and experience in the
host country. Furthermore, a monthly flat-rate and possibly tax free allowance should be offered
as a compensation for the higher costs for living in a foreign country. Besides the
aforementioned principles concerning remuneration, another principle is the integration of the
fellow into the local social security system.
1.3 Arrival in Spain; practical steps to take when arriving and
leaving Spain
The researcher should first establish contact with the Spanish laboratory involved in the project,
particularly with her/is supervisor as s/he will often know the best way to get in contact with
different public and administrative persons. Usually s/he will introduce you to some person/s,
generally from the laboratory, who can help you in finding accommodation, social life, etc.
Afterwards you should start solving some administrative issues such as open a bank account,
contact the administrative officer of your host institution to sign your contract, apply for a
National Security number, chose your doctor under the national insurance scheme if it were the
case, etc. This problem solving may take some time and you will probably have to queue more
than once. Do not despair if some civil servant of any department is not able to give you the
required information. It would be preferable, but not needed, if someone from the lab can
accompany you to solve these questions –Spanish people are known to be very kind and
generous in giving a helping hand to foreigners, especially if your Spanish is not yet good-.
2. First steps in Spain
2.1
General Information about Spain
Climate and geography:
The country consists of a continental territory and two archipelagos: Balearic islands and
Canary islands and two cities on Northern Africa: Ceuta and Melilla. Its total peninsular surface
is 493.486 km2, with 39,434 million inhabitants and a growth rate of 0.2 in 1991. Spain is the
third biggest country in Europe, after Russia and France, and the second most mountainous,
after Switzerland. The population is mostly concentrated on the coasts, with exception of
Madrid.
Although Spain lies in the temperate zone, its rugged relief gives rise to a great diversity of
climates.
The Cantabrian mountains mark the first well-defined climatological dividing zone. To the
north of this range, i.e. in the narrow northern strip, where the Basque Country, Cantabria,
Asturias and Galicia are situated, lies what we may call rainy Spain, with a maritime climate par
excellence, with only slight variations in temperature, mild winters and cool summers, an
almost constantly cloudy sky and frequent rainfall, although less so during the summer. This
climate, which is typical of western Europe, favours a northern European type of
vegetation.
To the south of the Cantabrian range lies dry Spain, which has extremely varied climated,
always characterised by scarce rainfall and a pitiless burning sun in an intensely blue sky,
occasionally crossed by shortlived, fierce local thunderstorms.
In terms of surface area, rainy Spain accounts for about a third of the country, while the other
two thirds make up dry Spain.
Spain has an height average of 660 m, and almost 50% of the surface is between 600m and 1200
m. The Spanish ”meseta central” is the biggest plateau in Europe, and it is bordered by different
mountain chains. The highest ones are Sierra Nevada in the South with the highest peak of the
continental Spain (Mulhacen, 3.482m)., and the Pyrenees in the North, with a height average
over 2000 m. The highest peak of the whole Spanish territory is the vulcano Teide in the Canary
Islands, reaching 3.711 m. There are several Natural Parks and an important wild life, including
bears, wolves, lynxes, and a numerous variety of birds and plants.
Spain is a democratic state with a parliamentary monarchy. The country is divided into 17
”Comunidades Autonomas”, autonomous regions with different competences. The Spanish
Constitution insures religious freedom. Most people are traditional Roman Catholic, but other
denominations are active, namely in the main cities. Euro is the official currency, but as in the
rest of the E.U., legal tender will only be available by 2002. Until then, the "peseta" is the
money of current use. Conversion rate is 1 Euro = 166.386 Pts.
2.1.1 Cultural diversity
“Spain is different”. Almost everyone in Europe has heard this old slogan from the
sixties. But, is Spain really that different? And, also, what makes it different?
First, we can consider Spain as a very diverse country with much more to offer than sun
and beaches. In fact, Spain is one of the biggest countries in the European Union (only the
unified Germany and France have a bigger surface), and a rich cultural diversity exists inside of
its borders. In this text, we will to present Spain, and attract you to come and work in Science in
Spain. Yes, Science too.
In merely 100 Km, the weather, the countryside, the cities, the people, the gastronomy
is absolutely different. It happens quite a lot of times when traverse Spain. The topical South,
hot, with the constant presence of the Islamic heritage in the monuments and in the phenotype
of the people, the universal Andalusia, in fact has all these things, and, of course, many others.
How many of you know that only a few Km away from Seville, in Cadiz, which is in the middle
of the hottest area of continental Europe, there is a small group of mountains called the Sierra de
Grazalema, which has the highest rainy measure of Spain?. Even higher than in the green North
and comparable to many places in the United Kingdom. Something similar occurs in the
mountains between the dry Extremadura and Seville, where the pigs with which produce one of
our national treasures, the Iberian ham, pata negra, are grown. Just in the East of the same
Andalusia, in Almería, you can find a real dessert, a place that you have probably seen in many
of the spaghetti-westerns. Surprised? This is only one example; we will give you some more,
but you can discover them yourself by coming to Spain.
Two big cities, with equivalent populations and importance, are Madrid and Barcelona.
Madrid is the capital, a modern city that has rapidly developed during this century, especially
during the last 50 years. It is the real crossroad of the country, an open place where people
converge from all different regions, and now, many people from all the European countries who
come to work and study. Madrid is the highest capital in Europe, 700 m above sea level, which
provides it with a continental weather, dry and hot in the summer, cold in the winter. The winds
blowing from the mountains in the near vicinity clean the atmosphere of the industrial
agglomeration, something already known since the Medieval Ages: King Philip II built the
famous monastery in these mountains where he wanted to finish his days: El Escorial. And
Velázquez, the great painter of the XVIIth century born in Seville, moulded it in his series of
portraits of the Royal family. Madrid, obliged to him, exhibits his major works as part of the
masterpieces that from the permanent collection of the famous Prado Museum -known as one of
the most important art museums in the world. More recently, Madrid has been complemented
with more modern collections found in the Thyssen Museum and the CARS (Queen Sofia Arts
Centre): many experts say that Madrid only needs one piece of Leonardo da Vinci to reach the
highest place in the pictorial ranking. Neighbour to El Prado, you can find the oldest Botanical
Garden in the world.
The historical rivalry with Barcelona, the biggest city in the European Mediterranean coast, is
one of the motors that contribute to development in Spain. Barcelona traditionally cumulated a
lot of industry, and was the classical way of mixture between Europe and Spain after the
decadence that started at the end of the XVIIth century. The rich Barcelona, mixture of gothic
tradition and modernist architecture (Gaudí, of course), the cosmopolitan population in constant
contact with Paris and France in general, and through them with Europe, supposed the cultural
influx in the last two centuries, a modern equivalent of the Santiago’s route in the Medieval
Ages.
Although it is true that in Madrid and Barcelona there is a large industrial concentration,
and the great majority of the research centres in Spain, it is also true that Spain is one of the
more decentralised countries of the European Union. The dispersion of the relatively small
Spanish industry, with the classical big industrial poles of Catalonia and the Basque country,
was transformed in the recent democratic system started in 1975-77 in a country with a
decentralised administration divided in 17 autonomic regions. Many efforts are developed now
by these regional administrations, which results in an emergent decentralised economical
activity. For example, even in classical agricultural communities, as are both Castilles-Leon,
North of Madrid, and Castille-La Mancha (birth-place of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, since
Miguel de Cervantes was born in Alcalá de Henares, near Madrid) South of the capital and
Extremadura. And if it is true that both Madrid and Barcelona have close to four million
inhabitants, cities like Valencia, Bilbao, Seville, Malaga, Saragossa have populations ranging
between half and one million, with important and diverse economical activities.
But maybe, many of you have first or only visited Spain to go to the famous beaches of
the Mediterranean coast. In fact, diversity is so important in Spain that the large and open
beaches of the south (Malaga, Granada, Almeria), compared to the small and closed in the Costa
Brava or in places in the Comunidad Valenciana and Murciana, have little or nothing in
common. But the differences are so subtle, but yet so clear, as the taste of the different fishes
that you can try in Andalusia, Comunidad Valenciana, Catalonia or Murcia.
Absolutely Mediterranean, of course, “by their four sides”, as we say in Spanish, are the
Balearic islands: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. Have you visited them? Them? Yes,
they are really different, one from each other. This Autonomy is one of the favourite places for
tourists, but for all of them, those looking only for sun, incredible beaches and fun, but also for
those, at least as many as the first, who look for peace and silent beaches: to sum up, a real way
of life. Palma de Majorca, the capital of this region, has been traditionally considered as one of
the best cities to live in Spain, lined with unaffected elegance and art de vivre. The north of the
island, chosen by Chopin or Robert Graves, with snows in the Puig Major, contrasts with the
south, more similar to Minorca and Ibiza (the island in which there is no space for another small
hill). It is really difficult to find beaches with clearer blue waters than in these four islands,
undoubtedly one of the roots of the economical boom experimented in them since thirty years
ago, and today the biggest in Spain.
The other islands of Spain are the volcanic Canary islands in the Atlantic ocean. This
archipelago hides, again, an incredible diversity. The islands more in the East (Lanzarote,
Fuerteventura), in front of the Sahara, are desert and lunar, but the ones more in the West (from
Tenerife to Hierro, Gomera and La Palma) are exuberant as in the tropical films. The two big
islands, Tenerife and Gran Canaria had developed services, including, of course, universities,
and one of the most famous and top research centres in Spain: the astrophysical observatory, a
European project. Good weather, strong personality, warm people,... What else do you need to
go and work there?
In both Castilles, and in Extremadura, Spanish splendour still resonates in the old cities
and villages full of History and Art. In Leon and even more in Burgos, the typical Spanish
gothic style cathedrals, more rustic than those in France, and as unforgettable as the strong and
tasty gastronomy, one much more cultural richness. Extremadura confounds its roots in the
Roman Empire, with Mérida and its theatre, and many expressions of the Romans in our
country, as important as the aqueduct in Segovia (Castille-Leon). The dry province of Badajoz
contrasts with Cáceres, the wet and incredible province that surrounds the capital city of the
same name, which is one of the best preserved in Spain. Again in Castille, cities as Toledo,
Salamanca, Segovia and Ávila exhibit centuries of History in each stone. And the stoic and
peaceful countryside, described by the Argentinean novelist Arrieta as “sullen and untroubled as
a monk’s soul”. Salamanca has also one of the oldest universities in Europe, originally founded
in Palencia, and the academic life is both, the heart and the blood of this city tilted on its
students.
In the North of Spain we can travel through different relics of Gaelic roots: from the
mild Galicia, shellfish and melodic voices over a mixed scenario of sea and soft green
mountains, trough the more severe Asturias and Cantabria, till the industrial Basque Country.
The small farms and agricultural properties, old industries and the spiritual presence of the large
amount of immigrants, going from Galicia, Asturias and Cantabria to almost every corner of
earth of earth. Santiago de Compostela, an old and marvellous city, the pilgrimage for
Christians coming from all the world, in confluent ways perfectly established since close to one
thousand years, to reinforce and renew the deep Christian sentiment of our country. There you
will encounter another of the oldest and more traditional universities in Spain, represents the
double face, contoured by modern cities: La Coruña and Vigo. The old Oviedo and the
industrial Gijón represent one of the more traditional rivalries in Spain, both cities in Asturias, a
place that has produced an incredible number of Spanish figures. Santander and San Sebastian
are the elegant summer residence, with particular ways of life, including, of course, gastronomy,
based, of course, in the excellent quality of the fish and shellfish, there. As everywhere in the
North, climb the mountains, and experiment the differences and the similarities between this
little villages in the mountains, many of them mainly isolated, with those in Castille, at the other
side of the mountains, or with the white-villages in Andalusia and the rest of the South. Bilbao
is one of the traditional industrial capitals of Spain, immersed now in a big process of redefinition and host of the new Guggenheim museum.
The North leaves the sea in Navarra, the small villages and farms, and, of course,
Pamplona and its universal feast: the Sanfermines, immortalised by Hemingway, maybe the best
known popular feast of Spain, even more than the Fallas of Valencia, the horses of San Juan in
Minorca or the Tamboradas in Castuera (Aragón), were the cinema director Buñuel was born.
Navarra, the western Pyrenees, has a lot of common things with Aragón, and in the borders
between these two regions was born and grew the most important Spanish scientist in the
History, and one of the most actual all over the world: the neurohistologist Santiago Ramón y
Cajal, the only Spanish scientific Nobel Prize with the Asturian biochemist Severo Ochoa. The
universal painter Francisco de Goya was another of the gifts from Aragón to Spain and to the
rest of the world. The roots of Aragón rest in places as Jaca, in small villages in the middle of
the mountains, overlooking the plains which extends trough Saragossa till the mountains
surrounding Teruel, one of the coldest places in Spain. A similar disposition can be observed in
the inner Catalonia, away from the Mediterranean Sea and from Barcelona.
La Rioja is another small and prosperous region, lovely small and historical towns and
villages in the middle of a sea of wheat dancing under the blow of gentle and refreshing winds.
These wheat fields surround the vineyards of one of the famous Spanish wines: Rioja.
Conserving the strong character of the typical Spanish grape, Tempranillo, the mixture with
other types has opened the world markets to this production, as with our Ribera del Duero, for
example. If you consider vegetables a gastronomic feast, then come to Murcia. Murcia, in the
south, is a succession of fruit gardens, and the production is extensively known all over Europe,
as happens with the oranges and citric products in the Comunidad Valenciana, another region,
as the first, selected by many people to live because of its mild and temperate weather. In fact, if
in December you see from the aeroplane that the mountains in Alicante are white, think of the
flowers of the almond-trees and not of the snow.
And we have come back to the South, the same place where we started our tour. South
for us starts on the North African coasts, in Ceuta and Melilla, the two small and old Spanish
cities, long time unknown to most of us. They explain many things, and perfectly combine with
the famous Andalusian cities: who has never heard something about Granada, Seville or
Cordoba? Places where, again, the remote and mixed history is present in the normal life of
powerful cities, with big and old universities. The music -flamenco-, the eternal presence of the
Spanish horses and the bulls -toros de lidia, although they also exist in Salamanca and
Extremadura, for example- in the fields -dehesas, maybe the more typical ecosystem of Spain-,
the character of this happy people -and its strong and nice accent when the speak our languagehave been representative of our country. We have the prove: imagine in the Spanish myths
incorporated to the Western culture, as Don Juan, or Carmen, for example, both coming from
the South.
Of course, it is not easy, outline Spain in a few words but we hope we reach more or less
accomplished. But it is true that the diversity here is huge, and everyone can find the ideal place
to live. Look for a work in Spain, then: it is your choice.
You can find much more information about many other aspects of Spain at
http://sispain.com
This web page has links to the "Boletín Oficial del Estado" B.O.E., Foreign Affairs Ministry
"Ministerio de asuntos Exteriores", all the Spanish universities and many others about Spanish
wines, gastronomy, Flamenco, etc.
2.1.2 The Language
The official language for the whole country is Spanish, in some ”Comunidades” a second
language is also official: Catalan in Catalonia, Galician in Galicia, Basque in the Basque
Country, and Valencian in the Valencian Comunity.
With 400 Millions of native speakers, Spanish is the second most important language in the
world, and the third most spoken one. Spanish is therefore a key language in many countries,
mostly located in South and Central America but also in Africa (Equatorial Guinea) and Europe
(Spain, where it was born) as well.
In Spain, it is possible to learn Spanish in several public and private language institutes during
the whole year. Many Universities and other private centres offer intensive Spanish courses,
mostly in summer.
The Spanish Culture Institute "Instituto Cervantes" is responsible for spreading the Spanish
language and the culture associated to the Spanish speaking countries. Through the Instituto
Cervantes it is possible to obtain some information about Spanish courses. Its delegations are
spread out in different countries around the world. For further information you can contact the
headquarters in Spain:
Instituto Cervantes
C/ Libreros, 23
28801 Alcala de Henares (Madrid)
Tfno. +34 91 8856100
Fax + +34 91 8830814
informa@cervantes.es
http://www.cervantes.es
Some other interactive courses on the web can be found at
http://sispain.com/english/course
2.1.3 Brief outline of other general information
Shops Opening times:
Shops are generally open from 9:00 to 19:00, Monday to Friday and from 9:00 to 13:00 on
Saturday. Shopping centres and big surfaces are usually open daily from 10 to 21 except on
Sundays.
Banks are open from 9:00 to 15:00, Monday to Friday. In major cities, some agencies are also
open in the afternoons.
Post Offices open at 8:30 and close at 18:30, Monday to Friday. Public and Administrative
Services are generally open from 9:00 to 15:00. However as there are some exceptions it is
advisable to phone and inquire about the exact schedule.
Sports:
There is a broad spectrum of sport activities in Spain. The offer of open air sports is very wide:
sailing, windsurfing, mountaineering, hiking, wild water activities, flying, fishing, riding, golf,
tennis, ski, etc. In many towns are sport clubs and sport facilities. For further information you
can contact:
Spanish Sailing Federation : 91 519 50 08
Spanish Mountain Federation: 91 445 14 38
Spanish Flying and Gliding Federation: 91 547 59 22
Spanish Golf Federation: 91 555 26 82
Spanish Tennis federation: 91 201 08 44
Spanish Winter Sports Federation: 91 344 09 44
2.2 Residency Permit
Any E.U. citizen can enter Spain by simply presenting her/is Passport or ID card. For a stay
longer than 3 months, a residency permit will be needed. It will be issued by the immigration
authorities "Oficina de Extranjeros" in the province that you chose to live in or in the
"Comisaría Provincial de Policía" during the first month in Spain by presenting the following
documents:
· Passport or ID card
· Photocopy of the passport or ID card
· 3 passport-photos
· A copy of your work contract
EU residence permits are also issued to the spouse and children of EU nationals if it were the
case. However, a Visa permit would be needed in the case that a member of your family is not a
citizen of a country of the European Union.
The inscription with the consulate of your home country is encouraged as it may facilitate a
possible repatriation process if necessary.
2.3
Accommodation
When you first arrive you may need to find some form of temporary accommodation. Finding
accommodation is not always easy, mainly in big cities; you should try to ensure that you have
at least a temporary accommodation arranged before coming to Spain. This is particularly
important for fellows with families, who might encounter more difficulties. Many universities
or research centres have some students Halls (Colegios Mayores) or flats for students and
visitors that you can rent at a low price.
Lodging is, as usual, more expensive in major cities and tourist oriented regions in high season.
However it can be very cheap in low season but you should leave the flat in summer or pay a lot
of money for it. Offers can be found in the local newspapers or in real estate agencies. Most
contracts have a minimum duration of 8-12 months. Most apartments are proposed with only
minimum furniture: cupboards, wardrobe, and closet. Central heating is not always available.
The landlord/lady should pay for maintenance, repairs and taxes of the flat but some other
expenses (e.g. neighbour community cleaning, etc.) can be responsibility of the tenant.
A one-months payment is generally requested in advance and sometimes it is not recovered at
the end of the contract. You should not sign any agreement unless you are sure that you
understand it - if you are unsure, seek advice from your University or Research Centre
accommodation office.
2.4
Money and banks
Money transfers and payments can be very slow, thus it is advisable to bring enough money to
deal with first expenses. Cash is generally used to pay for minor amounts (until 10 000 pts),
although bank cards are usually welcomed in shops (except in very small ones or small villages)
and restaurants but not in "tapas bar" for instance. All other amounts are often paid by
credit/debit card. Cheques are not usually accepted in shops, but it is the normal way to pay
larger amounts of money such as rent. Usually they will check your signature asking for your ID
card or passport.
Once you are in Spain you will probably need to choose a bank or "Caja de Ahorros" (which is
a banking enterprise using some of its gains to finance social and cultural events). The most
useful form of account is a current account, which allows you to deposit money and draw it out
simply using a cheque-book at the bank office or Switch card at an automatic cash dispenser. If
you have money which, you do not need immediately other types of account are also available
in case you want to invest some money and get a higher interest. Credit cards must be applied
usually in the bank office. In addition some banks have agreements with universities to offer
special terms to category 20 fellows; you should ask in your university.
To open an account you will have to complete an application form from your chosen bank or
Caja de Ahorros, which is then taken along with proof of identity (e.g. a passport), Spanish
address (e.g. a utility bill) and student/employment status (e.g. a copy of your contract will help
a lot) to your local branch and to make an initial deposit into the account.
Usually capital gains tax is deducted from the interest of the bank account. You should keep this
amounts when filling your "Declaración de la renta" or tax statement at the end of the tax year
(in June).
2.5
Kindergarten and school
The educational law of 1990, the "Ley Organica de Ordenacion General del Sistema Educativo"
(LOGSE) (Law on the General Organisation of the Educational System), established a new
system which started in 1991-92 school-year. The main points of the new system are the
following:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Basic education is compulsory and free of charge, and it is extended up to the age
of 16, the legal age for starting work.
The educational system includes general and special education, i.e. the different
levels of education are adapted to suit students with special needs.
All students have basic vocational training, which is given in secondary
education. Specific vocational training is organised at two levels, the first at the
end of compulsory secondary education, and the higher level at the end of the
'Baccalaureate'.
Improvement in the quality of teaching must be achieved via the renewal of the
contents of the courses, improvement in human resources and material resources,
and better use of the various instruments of the educational system.
Religious instruction is must be available at all schools, but it is voluntary for
pupils.
Special systems are applied for artistic education and language learning.
General education is organised as follows:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Nursery infant education (0 to 6 years)
Primary education (6 to 12 years)
Compulsory secondary education (12 to 16 years)
Post-compulsory secondary education, including the baccalaurate and the middle
grade of vocational training
5. Upper grade vocational training
6. University education (To become university student a university entrance
examination must be passed).
Up from 3 years old, children can go to kindergarten, which is optional. In major cities,
vacancies are hard to find in the public system. The private systems also run kindergartens
where vacancies are more easily found. Moreover, they even take younger children. After 6
years old, children must enter the mandatory education system. Main cities have international
schools, fully equivalent with E.U. systems.
2.6
Transportation
Main cities are usually well communicated either by plain, train or coach. There is underground
in big cities with stations near the universities, however you will find local transport by bus or
train to the city centre from small surrounding towns. In small cities, bus is the normal public
transport available, but many campuses are out of the cities and sometimes not very well
communicated, especially during student's holidays.
2.6.1 Driving-Licence and Automobile
Following the implementation of the Second EC Directive on driving licences, since the 1st
January 1997, drivers who take up residence in another Member State can continue to drive
using their own national licence for as long as it remains valid. This is known as "indefinite
mutual recognition" of driving licences.
If you are bringing a car into Spain for long-term use you are required to register it in Spain.
This is not aggressively policed, but if you are stopped for a traffic violation or involved in an
accident and are found to have been in Spain with the vehicle for some time it could be serious
not to have transferred registry.
A technical control is mandatory for any vehicle with more than 4 years ITV (Inspección
Técnica de Vehículos) which involves taking it to an official garage and having it tested.
Expected cost of 3000 pts.
Many insurance companies for cars have agreements all over Europe and the price widely
depends on the driver's age, service required, car, etc.
It is mandatory to register your car at the local council by filling a form that they will provide
you with on request. There is a council tax for cars (Impuesto de circulación de vehículos) to be
paid annually (ranging from 8000 to 12000 pts, depending on the city and cylinder capacity of
the car). Again, this is not aggressively policed but you may find problems in case of accident or
traffic penalty if your car is not registered or in case you want to sell it in Spain.
3. Arriving Formalities. The fellowship contract.
3.1 The Host Institution and the Contract
The-focus of this document is on the contract between the host institute and the fellow rather
than that between the host institute and the European Commission. Such a contract is legally
binding and should be agreed upon and signed by both the host institute and the fellow.
Unfortunately, some complications concerning the contract were experienced time and again by
host institutes and the fellows. It is hoped that this document can help fellows avoid
unnecessary repetition of misunderstandings by explaining the principles behind the contract
and some of its possible implementations. Information in this document is applicable to all
fellows - Postgraduate fellows (funded under category 20) and Post-doctoral fellows (funded
under category 30 and category R; return fellowships)- unless mentioned otherwise.
At the beginning of your Fellowship, you never know if the relationship with your host
institution is going to turn into a romance, a tragedy, or a comedy. Here is some guidance for
successfully managing this relationship. This seems to be especially important since our
experience shows the administrative side of the Fellowship often turns out to be the worst part
of your stay in the host country.
3.1.1 Arriving and Establishing Contact
These steps are intended to guide you through the administration of your host institution during
your first days. Although we know that these first days are often terribly, with so many things to
do and to take care of, your approach to the management of the contract will influence the
remainder of your time in the host institution. Mistakes made in this phase are often very
difficult to correct later.
3.1.2 Find out who is responsible for the administration of your
Fellowship in the host institution.
Sometimes this is more difficult than it sounds. You might be the first Fellow of this Framework
Programme to arrive. Or, the institution is small and has never dealt with Marie Curie Fellows
before. Or, the management of your grant is split, e.g. between Finance and European Affairs. A
good first port of call is your application for the scholarship: The person who signed the
contract (usually the Rector of the University or the Director of your new Research Institute) is
not often the person who is responsible for bureaucracy. Your supervisor possibly can help you
to find the right person. In some universities the OTRI (Oficina de Transferencia de Resultados
de Investigación) is the office in charge to arrange the contract but they are not responsible for
payments so you should find moreover the civil servant at the administration office of your
laboratory and contact him/her.
3.1.3 Get informed!
After dealing with the rush of the first few weeks, you will have time to deal with administrative
issues in more detail. Read this document! Read the leaflets, which are referred to - adopt a
professional attitude to the management of the grant: It is your Fellowship! It is you who
contributed the biggest part to getting selected!
3.1.4 Meet the administrator and talk about your grant.
It is always easier to deal with people you know - this works both ways: for you as well as for
the person responsible for your grant. Meet the persons, introduce yourself, if possible with your
supervisor or someone from the laboratory who knows how the bureaucracy works. The
Spanish bureaucracy is sometimes so complicated and slow that administrative staff may be
very busy (or boring) doing always the same repetitive job and they may not be very
enthusiastic resolving additional problems. Be patient, smile, but be sure you are well informed
in each step.
Here, you should get down to all the nitty-gritty, i.e. all the details, which determine your rights,
your status and - most importantly - the money. It is a good idea to ask your supervisor to join
the meeting, which helps to strengthen the academic side and can actually be very helpful for
you to argue your case.
3.1.5 If you are asked to sign the contract immediately at the
meeting: Do not!
Most professional university administrations do not use such kind of salesmen style anyway, but
you have to be prepared. It makes sense to read through the contract, sleep it over, and ask
questions (either to the administrator, the supervisor, another Marie Curie Fellow or someone in
the Spanish Group of the Marie Curie Fellowship Association). Even better, if you can compare
it with any other fellow that signed one before. Contracts are often written in a very formal
language, which can be difficult to understand for non-native speakers, so it is not embarrassing
to ask questions at all!
3.2 The Contract
This section aims at providing you with some hints, which you should consider before signing
the contract. Not all of the issues covered here are necessarily stated in the contract itself, some
might be dealt with more informally in the meeting between you and the administrator. It is
important to emphasise, again, that our guidance is in no way legally binding and a suggestion
only. In addition to the contract itself, the legally binding and relevant documents are the
contract between the European Community and your host institution and its Annex II, i.e. the
general conditions applying to any Marie Curie Fellowship Grant. It has become good practice
to attach copies of the latter two documents to your contract; if this is not the case in your host
institution, do ask for it.
3.2.1 The basic features of a grant contract
A typical contract should state clearly the obligations on the side of the host institute and on the
side of the fellow as well as a detailed budget plan. The detailed budget plan should state all
deductions performed by the host institution from the amount allocated to the fellow. The plan
should itemise the various contributions and the ways they are calculated.
Each host institution has its own standard contracts which are difficult to change. On the other
hand, the Commission can only accept such a contract, if a number of formal requirements are
met. It is usually sufficient to amend an existing local contract with an agreement which
contains the items of the following checklist:
(1) A reference to the contract between Commission and host institution.
(2) An affirmation including the General Conditions given in Annex II and III in the contract.
(3) The status of the fellow (e.g.). The contract should state the status of the Marie Curie
Fellow: i.e. doctorate student (category 20), employee as Doctor researcher (category 30),
Reincorporated Doctor (category R) or visitor (category 40). Make sure that you are classified
as a doctorate student if you are a category 20 fellow!
(4) A statement saying that the fellow is in full time and exclusive employment.
(5) A statement about intellectual property rights.
(6) The total amount of the grant and the monthly amount allocated to the fellow distinguishing
between scale and mobility allowance.
The contract must contain a reference to the amounts received by the Host Institution, their
allocation and their arrangements for payment. "Any deduction made from the amount paid by
the Commission will have to be identified and justified (amount and legal basis);" (Annex II,
Article 8.2 b). In particular, payments should normally be monthly with the travel allowance
paid as a single payment with the first monthly instalment (Annex II, Article 7).
Under the Spanish trade union agreement the salary is distributed in 12 monthly amount
allocated to the fellow plus 3 supplementary instalments (extra salary payments) to be made in
June, September and December. As the amount allocated by the EU is fixed, the administrator
of the host institution will divide the total amount by 15 monthly payments. The resultant
quantity is the net amount of money to receive. However, the remainder three payments will be
given to you in a proportional basis depending of the time worked. This procedure may bring to
you some complications if the administrator do not explain to you the procedure. Anyway, you
should make sure that at the end of the year you have received the total amount allocated by the
EU to your salary. If you are not sure, please ask to the administrator to include a new clause in
the contract stating that at the end of the contract they will make a balance and pay to you the
amount not received before if it were the case.
It is convenient to attach to the contract an annex with the details of the gross salary, net salary,
tax deductions, social security payments, etc. It may help a lot to clarify the complex system of
taxation in Spain. An example is given below.
(7) Statement about the unique travel allowance, to be paid with the first monthly payment.
(8) Statement of holidays period (30 days for year of contract already passed, or the proportional
to the time of the contract passed)
(9) Statement of the dates of starting and ending the contract.
(10) Signatures of the fellow and of the legal representative of the host institute.
To avoid any unnecessary misunderstanding, it is highly preferable that a written agreement be
reached well before the beginning of the fellowship.
There should be a clear and explicit agreement about the distribution of the flat rate paid directly
to the Host Institution by the European Commission. This has been a contested issue, so make
sure you know exactly how much money is allocated for general overheads (paid to the
university), indirect costs paid to your department/research centre/research group,
tuition/college fees, money for general travel and subsidence, equipment and consumables.
Although a few institutions do not provide any money for equipment, consumables, and general
travel and subsistence, it has become standard and recommended practice to devote funds for
such purposes. If the host institution fails to provide you with a written statement about the
distribution of the flat rate paid to the institution, please contact the National Contact Point and
inform the Spanish Group of the Marie Curie Fellowship Association.
The employer (university, research institute or company) must by law send a copy of your
contract to the "Instituto Nacional de Empleo" (INEM) office closer to your address.
Troubleshooting
Should any problem in the management of your Fellowship occur, you should ideally try to
find a solution first by talking it over with the administrator of your host institution. If a solution
can not be found, or if you want further help and advice, please do not hesitate to contact the
following bodies listed below:
 Spanish National Contact Point (NCP). The role of the NCP is to provide
information and advise prospective fellows and to fellows in Spain as well as their
host institutions on the administration of the Fellowships. The NCP maintains close
contact with the European Commission and other Spanish government institutions.
 Spanish Group of the Marie Curie Fellowship Association (MCFA). The MCFA
is the European organisation of Marie Curie Fellows and as such deals with current
and past fellows rather than prospective applicants. We therefore have a lot of
experience to draw upon! It would also be helpful if you could inform the MCFA of
your current problems. This will help us to provide a better service to future fellows.
More information on the MCFA Spanish Group and how to contact us can be found
on our web pages at http://listserv.rediris.es/archives/mcfa_spain.html
 European Commission. Before you go down the route of contacting the
Commission, we suggest that you discuss your enquiry with the Spanish NCP. As
you can probably imagine, the people in Brussels are very busy, so the chances of
your enquiry 'hitting' the right person within the Commission with the right priority
are very low. The Spanish NCP can supply details of who to contact in the
Commission, if the issue can't be dealt with locally.
3.2.2 The calculation of the grant allocation by the Spanish law
The calculations of the net salary are based on the relative positioning of the grant with respect
to the national salary system. In this section are included some details to be stated in the abovementioned annex to the contract if it were the case. In any case, the gross amount allocated to
the fellow by the EU should be stated in it.
For Category 20
A Marie Curie Fellowship is considered as taxable income in Spain. As mentioned above
Category 20 grant holders are considered in Spain as students. It means that neither the host
institution nor the grant holder must pay for social security. It is understood that they are
covered by the contribution of their respective families, however it is the responsibility of the
grant holder to find a private health care assurance company providing medical assistance if
needed when the earlier condition is not meet. Usually the host institutions have agreements
with companies at reasonable prices. The company of assurance may cover other members of
the family if it were the case. Generally they do not cover payment for medicines but you can
agree with the company this or other service you require paying extra money for that. However
Category 20 are taxed in accordance whit the normal Spanish tax-system. This means that some
amount of money will be deducted from your salary as "Impuesto sobre la Renta de las
Personas Físicas" (I.R.P.F.) (Taxation depends whether you are single or married, with or
without children, taking care of a disabled person, etc.).
For Category 30/R/40
The Marie Curie fellowship contract falls into the category of the "Contrato de duración
determinada" specifically in "Contrato por Obra o Servivio Determinado" you can find much
more general information about this type of contract and many other under the Spanish law at
http://www.inem.es
Under the Spanish law (Orden del Ministerio de Trabajo y Seguridad Social de 27.1.97) a
32,78% of the total amount allocated to the grant holder is paid by the host institution to the
social security as employer contribution. The gross salary is calculated by subtracting this
amount to the gross amount allocated to the grant holder by the EU to the grant holder.
The gross salary is the taxable amount of money. You should make sure that the mobility
allowance is not included into the salary, otherwise you will have to pay taxes for it. Taxation
depends whether you are single or married. You can choose to do the declaration of incomes
(Declaración de la Renta) together with your partner (wife, husband, girl- or boyfriend if you
are living together for more than one year, etc.), with or without children, taking care of a
disabled person, etc.
In Spain the financial year correspond with the natural year. This is important because taxation
is based on the salary received during the year (e.g. if your grant starts in April, your taxes
should be calculated from April to December on the one hand and from January to March on the
other hand). Different scales of taxation will be applied for each period. The host institution will
retain some money as taxes (I.R.P.F.) but in June you should make the Statement of Incomes (or
Declaración de la Renta, explained below) for the previous year -from January to December-.
This "Declaración de la renta" may result positive, in which case you should pay more money
as taxes, or negative, which means that the Hacienda Provincial Delegation will return to you
the surplus money the host institution retained from your salary.
Over the gross salary a fixed 6,4%, which is the employee contribution to the social security,
will be deducted. You should notice that this amount is taxable. Besides this fixed percentage of
the gross salary another percentage is deducted as taxes (the I.R.P.F.). The administrator of the
host institution use to apply a balanced percentage so when you make your "Declaración de la
Renta" in June you should pay, or the "Hacienda" should return to you, small amounts of
money. You have the right to ask for a minimum retention of your taxes (up to a 2% of the gross
salary) to your administrator, but then you will have to pay a lot of money in June after your
"Declaración de la Renta".
The net monthly salary is then calculated by dividing the gross salary by the time of the
Fellowship in months, plus the supplementary instalments (e.g. if 12 months are considered, the
gross salary should be divided by 15 = 12 months + 3 supplementary instalments), then the
above-mentioned percentage of the I.R.P.F. plus the 6,4% of employee contribution to the social
security is deducted.
You should also know that the host institution signs a contract with the European Commission
asking for the 75% of the total amount allocated to the host institution for your contract (Annex
III.A). It means that the money will arrive to the host institution after this request signed by the
grant holder once you have already started the project. Usually the host institution enables an
internal account to your project advancing the money so you can receive your salary and start
laboratory experiments if it were the case. However, in some small institutions have been some
problems at this point, so it is convenient to make sure that you will receive your salary after the
first month at work, otherwise you can find unexpected finance problems.
3.2.3 Holidays
The Holiday Act states that every employee is entitled to 1 month holiday within one year. The
right to leave depends on the number of days worked, in a direct proportion. As the research
fellowships from the EU are for fixed periods where the remuneration is inclusive, the sum paid
must be assumed to include paid holiday, in fact the supplementary instalments are conducted
with this philosophy.
4. General Conditions for the Community Provisions
on Social Security
General Conditions for the Community Provisions on Social Security:
Extracted from the leaflet "The Community Provisions on Social Security" prepared by the
Unit for Social Security for Migrant Workers, European Commission, Brussels, 1995. You can
find more information at
http://europa.eu.int/citizen
http://europa.eu.int/scadplus
The Community provisions do not replace the different national social security systems by a
single European system. The Community provisions provide rather for a simple co-ordination
of these systems. Every Member State is free to decide: who is to be insured under its
legislation; which benefits are granted and under what conditions; how these benefits are
calculated; and what contributions should be paid. The Community provisions establish
common rules and principles, which have to be observed by all national authorities, social
security institutions, courts and tribunals when applying national laws. The person who has
exerted his or her right to move within the European Union and the European Economic Area
may not be placed in a worse position than a person who has always resided and worked in one
single Member State.
Basic Principles
 The migrant worker is subject to the legislation of only one Member State.
 (S)he is insured in the country where (s)he exercises his professional activity, even if (s)he still
lives in another EC country.
 (s)he has the same rights and obligations as nationals of that country.
4.1 Social Security in Spain
EU citizens should obtain their E-111 from before coming to Spain. This form allows the access
to any Social Security service in Spain or any other EU country while contributing to the Social
Security in the home country.
Because the Marie Curie Fellow lives and works in Spain, (s)he benefits from the Spanish
National Health Service and the Social Security. If the Fellow is employed, as soon as the
employment contract is signed, (s)he joins the Spanish Social Security. (S)he pays normal
National Insurance (N.I.) contributions which are deducted directly from the gross salary. The
fellow must go to the nearest Department of Social Security, with an employment certificate and
a passport (or identity card), to be registered where a code with a card "Tarjeta de Afiliación a
la Seguridad Social (TASS)" will be given to you. The host institution will provide the
documents needed. However, the Fellow can also pay voluntary contributions in his own
country at the same time, in order to get pension and other benefits from this country.
You can find the nearest Department of Social Security at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Ministerio de trabajo y asuntos
sociales", then "información general", then "direcciones provinciales", and then click on the
map. You will be able to find there any office in the country.
You can also find the office in your home country with agreements in social security matters
with the Spanish government in case you would like to make any consultation at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Ministerio de trabajo y asuntos
sociales", then "información general", then "oficinas en el extranjero", then "situación de las
oficinas de enlace de paises extranjeros con los que se ha suscrito convenio de seguridad
social"
More general information about the TASS can be found at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Ministerio de trabajo y asuntos
sociales".
More information about the Spanish Social Security scheme and general rules can be found at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "¿Quienes somos?"
About how to proceed with affiliation and inscription at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "Inscripción y afiliación"
About payments to the social security at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "cotización", and then "Regimen General de la Seguridad Social"
About Social Security benefits at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "prestaciones"
In this section you would be able to find national health system benefits, maternity, retirement,
family matters etc.,
Reminder: the Marie Curie contract falls into the category of the General Regime (Régimen
General) of the Spanish Social Security Scheme.
If the Fellow is a student, (s)he will not have to pay N.I. contributions unless (s)he is a fulltime student, is paid by an employer at the same time.
Family members of research fellows are ensured rights as family members, and the definition of
a family member is defined according to the scope of application of the benefits they can claim.
4.2 Health services
4.2.1 Health and Insurance
The Spanish Health Care system has been shaped by all the public health structures and
services, which are formed by the State Administration Health Care Services and those of the
Autonomous Communities. Each Autonomous Community forms a Health Care Service
integrated by all the centres, services and establishments of the Community, the "Diputacion",
the City Hall and other intercommunity Territorial Administrations.
The planning for each Community Health Care Service is based on geographical limits, the
Health Care field and the basic structures of the health care system, which are responsible for
the united management of the centres and establishments of the different Health Care Services
of the Autonomous Communities within their territorial limits and for the health care services
and the programmes developed by them.
The aim of the Health services of the social security is to give medical and pharmaceutical
benefits needed to everyone. The organism entitled of these services is the "Instituto Nacional
de la Salud" (INSALUD) or the autonomic transferred organism in the autonomic regions of
Spain.
More information about who can benefit from these services can be found at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "prestaciones", then "asistencia sanitaria", then "Régimen General", and then
"beneficiarios".
And about the coverage of these services at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "prestaciones", then "asistencia sanitaria", then "Régimen General", then
"Contingencias protegidas".
Any query about health care system can be obtained from the closer information points that can
be found at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "prestaciones", then "asistencia sanitaria", then "Régimen General", then
"Contingencias protegidas".
and clicking at the same address at "Índice de servicios", then "Secretaría Estado Seguridad
Social", then "prestaciones", then "asistencia sanitaria", then "Régimen General", then
"Documentos que deben acompañar a la solicitud", then "Centros de Atención e Información de
la Seguridad Social"
Dentists are not included in the Health system except for tooth extractions at the Health centres.
In order to receive sickness benefit, the workers suffering some accident or sickness maintain
the right of health care during the whole process, even they contract is finished after starting the
process.
4.2.2 Hospitals and Physicians
As a rule, there is a free choice of general practitioner within the Health centres. To prove the
right to receive medical treatment at a Health centre, it is necessary to show a Health Insurance
Card stating one's address and personal identification number. Urgent treatment at a casualty
ward will always be available even if one cannot show a medical card. Family members, i.e. a
spouse or cohabitant and children under 18 years, enjoy the same rights. This means that a
research fellow after arrival in Spain the health centre in order to choose his/her doctor.
4.2.2
Maternity Insurance
To receive maternity benefits one can either have a legal contract, paying National Insurance, or
at least having paid 180 days during the last 5 years. You can find more information at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "prestaciones", then "maternidad", then "Régimen general"
4.3
Unemployment
There are basic rules: in contrast to other benefits, this applies only if the person completed a
certain period under the legislation of the country in which the benefits are claimed,
immediately before becoming unemployed. Therefore, a person cannot claim unemployment
benefit in a country if (s)he was not ensured in that same country immediately before (s)he
became unemployed.
After the end of the contract, the Fellow can benefit from unemployment benefit based on the
National Insurance contribution during the last 180 days (there are some maximum and
minimum). It is possible obtain longer unemployment benefits if you can provide prove of
earlier employment with the E303 form of your home country or other European countries. If
you use this benefits you must take into account that you should declare this incomes in the
"Declaración de la renta" as well. You should give to the INEM office a proof of your legal
unemployment state. The university or research centre will provide you with the documents
needed, but you should request and bring them to the INEM office within 15 days after the end
of the contract.
Before you leave the country once ended the contract you should ask for the E303 form at your
INEM office in order to be able to receive unemployment and pensions benefits for the National
Insurance paid by the time of the contract. More information about export of social security
benefits can be found at
http://www.inem.es clicking at "prestaciones", then "exportación de prestaciones"
The E303 document allows the liaison to be made with the other country. With this Form, the
new host country will examine from the point of view of its legislation how to assess the
Fellow's allowance.
Unemployment; Fellows who leave Spain after the termination of their fellowship can transfer
the accumulated contributions to the social system at home. In this case, the policy of the home
country will decide the amount of unemployment benefits and length of entitlement. It is
important to be able to prove all contributions paid to the Spanish security system. In a form
E303 in its specific Spanish version all the relevant information will be coded so that it is
possible to transfer into the home country.
4.4
Retirement and Pension Schemes
There are general rules about old-age pension:
 Waiting periods: If the period during which the person has been insured in a country is not
long enough to qualify for a pension in this country, account will be taken of any periods of
insurance which (s)he completed in other countries.
 Residence or stay abroad: The old-age pension will be paid to the person regardless of where
(s)he stays or resides within the European Union or the European Economic Area without any
reduction, modification or suspension. This applies not only to former migrant workers but to
all pensioners residing in another State.
General information about Retirement and Pension Schemes can be found at:
http://www.inem.es clicking at "prestaciones", then "jubilación", then "Régimen general"
When the Fellow goes back permanently to his own country (or another EC country), (s)he
should first inform the local Directorate of Social Security office, a few weeks in advance of the
intended date of departure.
Whatever the situation, his/her work period in Spain will be taken into account at the time of the
retirement. If (s)he receives both a Spanish and a home country pension, it will be the latter
which will pay his/her pension. In the case when (s)he receives a Spanish pension and will
eventually obtain another EU pension at a later date, when the pension from every EC country
becomes payable, the health care liabilities will be reviewed. If the situation has been modified,
the health care costs will then be the responsibility of the other EC country.
Afterwards, each country will send details of his insurance record to the others. They then work
out how much to pay the newly retired European citizen. Concerning the different contributions
for the insurance and scheme, the country will pay the totality or just in part. Therefore, the
Fellow must keep a proof of his attendance as a worker in Spain, and ask the Form E 301 your
unemployment office.
4.4.1 Information on voluntary insurance or social contributions
It is possible to supplement the coverage one has through the universal health insurance system
by taking out an additional insurance with a private insurance company. In this case, extra costs
such as those incurred at the dentist, optician and chiropractor are reimbursed. Private pension
schemes exist to supplement the old-age pension, and it is possible to pay to such a system and
get a reduction in taxable income, except when paying the specific tax for researchers.
5 Tax System
5.1 General Rules of Taxation: income and council tax
General Rules of Taxation: The following guidelines have been issued in light of the
information obtained from local tax offices. They should be considered as general information
that could be different in each particular case and may change with time. Although extreme care
has been taken to collect and publish them, no responsibility is accepted for any inconvenience
or misunderstanding caused for its interpretation.
5.2 Introduction
The Spanish "Hacienda" charges tax on income arising in Spain, whether or not the person who
receives this income is a Spanish resident. Special rules apply in some circumstances and you
may benefit from a tax relief. The following paragraphs aim to give you general guidance on the
Spanish tax system. You should bear in mind that whether the guidance is appropriate in a
particular case will depend on all the facts of that case. However, this matter is subject to
change from year to year, and by the year 2000 the Spanish tax system will introduce major
changes.
If you have any queries on your tax position, you should contact your "Delegación de
Hacienda" office. Your employer/administrator will normally be able to tell you the address or
you can find it at
http://aeat.tsai.es clicking on "Contactar con la agencia tributaria", then click on "Direcciones,
teléfonos y E- Mail de Delegaciones y Administraciones", then click on the map.
More detailed information about the tax system, liability, income tax, etc. can be found at
http://aeat.tsai.es however it is a complex web page and possibly you would need some help to
extract the information you may need.
5.3 Tax liability: Who has to make the Declaration of I.R.P.F.
Those persons resident in the country during the tax year and having received taxable incomes
must submit a tax declaration. You will always be regarded as resident in Spain if you are
physically present in the country for more than 183 days during the tax year (the 12 months
starting with 1 January in one year and ending with 31 December in the following year).
However, if the taxable incomes are less than 1.200.000 pesetas of gross salary you may not be
obliged to submit the Declaration of I.R.P.F. (this amount was fixed for 1998 tax, however it
may change from year to year).
It is possible to be resident in both Spain and some other country (or countries) at the same time.
If you are resident in another country, this does not mean that you cannot also be resident in
Spain. If you are resident in both Spain and another country with which Spain has a double
taxation agreement, there may be special provisions in the agreement for treating you as a
resident of only one of the countries for the purposes of the tax payment. This will affect your
final tax position in Spain.
5.4 Income Tax
As stated above, some taxes are applied at the source and the employee should submit the
"Declaración de la renta" in June, with the purpose of balancing the taxes to be paid or
returned. To fill the form you should first acquire it at any "Estanco" (Tobacco shop) or
"Delegation of Hacienda". You can acquire also a diskette containing the software called
"PADRE" where you can introduce your data and then fill in the forms. Possibly you will need
some help if you are not familiar with the Spanish terms and their significance. Some colleague
may help you, but you can ask for help free of charge in the "Delegación Provincial de
Hacienda" where they can help you to fill in the forms. You can also hire some expert
professional advice at a moderate price, take into account that a "Declaración de la Renta" may
become very complex if you have some other incomes and relief.
Category 20:
If you are a Category 20 fellow, take care when you sign your contract that you are not
considered as an employee. However, it does not mean that you must be considered one to be
obliged to submit your "Declaración de la Renta"; if your gross salary is lower than 1.200.000
pts in 1999 tax year. It may be convenient, in any case to make some previous calculations and
check if the Spanish "Hacienda" must return to you some of the money retained as I.R.P.F. from
the source.
Category 30, 40, and Return fellowships:
Category 30 fellows are liable for tax (and National Insurance); the details depend on the nature
of the agreement between the host institution and the fellow. Where a fellow is employed, tax
should be deduced by the source. However, if the percentage of the I.R.P.F. deduced in by the
source is low, then, when the "Declaración de la Renta" is done, you should pay directly to the
"Hacienda" a larger amount of money. In the contrary case, i.e. the percentage retained as
I.R.P.F. was too large, then when the "Declaración de la Renta" is made, the Spanish
"Hacienda" will return to you the excess of money, retained earlier.
5.5 Tax Allowances and Relief
There are some changes in the "Declaración de la Renta" if you decide to submit it jointly with
your partner. As there are so many possibilities and definitions in the law, it is advisable that
you seek some expert assistance. There are certain tax allowances and relieves based on your
personal circumstances taht can be applied. Private medical assistance (dentist, glasses, etc.),
providing legal receipts, is a personal tax relief.
You can not claim deductions for expenses incurred in the performance of your employment
duties as is understood that your employer will carry with all these expenses.
(This document contains contributions from Fernando de Castro, Enrique Fernández, Javier
Gilabert, Christine Heller and Magdalena Rafecas)