If your visa expires and needs to be renewed while you are traveling abroad, the steps you should follow depend on the reasons for the trip, be it tourism, business, research or studies or for health reasons. The requirements to extend your legal stay may also vary depending on the country or region. You must comply with the conditions provided by regional offices, such as Points of Attention Regarding Foreigners or Police Departments.

For example, the visa obtained to enter the Schengen zone allows you to freely circulate within countries that conform to the European Union agreement. You may request the renewal of this visa “when the duration of the same is less than 90 days” and “may extend the stay, which in no case may be longer than 90 days, in a period of 180” as reported by the Spanish Police Department on their website.

Another example is the United States visa extension. In this case, your visa extension will be granted or denied depending on your nationality. Keep in mind that leaving and entering the country for short periods of time will not allow you to extend the length of your stay, which is limited to 90 days.

Special cases

If you entered the country with a student visa, you must take into account that in Spain, for example, the length of the permit is for the same period of time as the length of studies, with a year set as the longest period for staying legally. Once this period has expired, the permit must be renewed, so it is advisable to arrange the extension of the stay in advance.

There are special circumstances to request a visa extension. These include work-related requirements, family emergencies, and humanitarian or international protection. In any case, the applicant must know that the powers to grant these permits depend on state authorities, which by virtue of their own regulations limit the possibilities of the interested party.

What not to do              

The biggest mistake is to think that nothing will happen if you extend your stay longer than allowed on your visa. The periods of time allowed are strict and must be met, because if you stay longer than permitted your stay will automatically be considered irregular. In such a case, you are at risk of an indefeasible expulsion, which can also create complications if you want to return to the country in the future.

Always stick to the purpose of your trip. If you enter the country as a tourist but have found an opportunity to do business, it is advisable to return to your country of origin and enter the country again with the appropriate visa. Any activity performed outside of the permission granted may even be illegal.

Duguech & Dip Worldwide Legal Services supplies a complete range of personalized solutions in the immigration field by providing support and advice to businesses and individuals to remain fully compliant with local and international laws.  

Legal Notice: Since legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case, and laws are constantly changing, nothing on this article should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent legal counsel. The content on this article is offered only as information and does not constitute solicitation or provision of legal advice. You should always consult a suitably qualified lawyer regarding any specific legal problem or matter.

 © 2018 Duguech & Dip, S.L.P. – All rights reserved