All About Visas

As this day ends I look over at my passport on my desk and think about how long and confusing this process has been.  I applied for a 180+ day visa for Spain since I will be studying there for a full academic year. This means that I had to acquire the following items: an application form, a passport (which I already had), passport photo, Acceptance Letter from the Universidad de Leon, International Health Insurance, Evidence of Funds, an Apostilled FBI Background Check, an Apostilled Medical Check, and finally the $160 money order.  Some of these items were easy to obtain: passport, application, and acceptance letter, photos, evidence of funds letter.  However the others took a little more leg work which I would like to write about here in case any readers are going through the same situation and are looking for a helping hand in the deep dark world of Spanish visa bureaucracy.

There are many, MANY options out there for international health insurance for study-abroaders. After many hours of searching I went with HCC Medical Insurance Services. They offered me the mandatory repatriation of remains without throwing in additional expenses that I would never use, such as prenatal care. For me this was the cheapest option that still gave me the coverage required by the Spanish government.

The FBI background check took the most work of any of these requirements. In mid-March I went to a police station near my university to get 2 fingerprint cards done. I then sent the cards and the application off to the FBI. 6 weeks later I received the absence of record paper that I needed, however this must have the Apostille of the Haugh to be used in Spain. Firstly, the document must be notorized, easy enough, then it must be sent back to the federal government for the Apostille. I finally got the Apostilled document back the first week of June.

The medical check followed a similar route. I put off making a Dr appointment too long so i ended up going to an walk in urgent care-ish facility and again got the notarization . This Apostille had to come from the state of Missouri, but the process is identical. I also received this back in the first week of June. This cost me $8 and the national apostille cost a little more, 10 or 11.

So, once all these documents had arrived and been safely stowed in my folder labeled "THINGS FOR VISA" it was time to make my appointment and buy my train ticket. Living in Missouri means that I fall under jurisdiction of the Spanish Consulate in Chicago and had to appear in person at least once to submit this visa. Being stubborn and not wanting to take more than 1 day off work, nor pay for a flight or hotel room I decided to start that long June 27th morning with a 430am train to Chicago and end it with a 530 pm train home. Make sure to have a USPS  express mail envelope bought and addressed when you arrive, I learned this the hard way when i had to run to the post office and back to buy one before the Consulate closed. Other than the envelope shenanigans my visa appointment went very smoothly.

Then, I waited, and panicked, and researched, and panicked some more. The women who took my documents told me that everything would arrive in 4 weeks, however some people I knew got theirs back in 2 weeks. Well, today, 27 days later my approved visa arrived in the mail (I may or may not have cheered or danced). Adding to the good news, Real Madrid is coming to St Louis for an exhibition game in August!

I still have one step left to this business though. Within 1 month of arrive in Spain I have to apply for my student residency card. Though, after surviving the visa process this final step does not seem too involved.

Well, as I sit here 4 months after starting this process I can say that I have never been prouder of a piece of paper in my life! As the Spanish say, vale la pena :)

I anticipate a lull in posts for a while since all I will be doing is working before I leave, however I will definitely post about my packing process. As the girl who went to Europe for a month out of a duffel bag and a purse it should be an entertaining time :)

Hello World

This will be the very of many blog posts about my preparation for and experience in Leon, Spain. My flight is booked, classes have been registered for, visa arrived in the mail TODAY, and soon enough I will leave my lifeguarding life in St Louis to enjoy the beauty of the Iberian Peninsula. Hopefully by the time I go home in June I will have hit every region in Spain and a few in Portugal. For now I am rejoicing that my visa has arrived and trying to be as calm as possible the next 36 days before departing!