2026 salary threshold: €41,356.36
Spain's June 2026 UGE-CE update sets the general EU Blue Card salary threshold at €41,356.36 gross per year. The reduced threshold is €33,085.09 when one of the statutory reduced-threshold cases applies.
The reduced threshold is not a general discount. It applies only in the cases provided by the legislation, including the specified shortage occupations and qualifying recent graduates under the legal conditions.
Qualification: degree or qualifying professional experience
Law 14/2013 requires the level of higher professional qualification specified for the Blue Card. The law allows this to be shown through the required higher-education qualification or, in the relevant cases, sufficiently long professional experience comparable to that qualification. For ICT professionals and managers, the legislation contains a specific experience rule.
If the job is a regulated profession, the required professional recognition or homologation must also be addressed.
The employment offer must meet the Blue Card test
The applicant must have a valid employment contract or firm offer for highly qualified employment for at least the statutory minimum period. Salary and employment conditions must comply with the applicable legal and collective-bargaining framework.
EU Blue Card or national PAC?
The national PAC and EU Blue Card are both contained in Law 14/2013, but they have different qualification rules and different EU-law implications. For 2026, UGE-CE publishes the same €41,356.36 general reference for the national PAC, but the national PAC does not have the reduced €33,085.09 threshold.
If salary is close to the threshold, or future mobility inside the EU matters, the route comparison should be done before the contract is finalised.
Common mistakes
- Using an old salary threshold.
- Applying the reduced threshold without checking whether the applicant actually falls within an eligible case.
- Assuming a senior job title automatically proves the required qualification.
- Ignoring professional recognition for a regulated occupation.
- Finalising compensation without checking what counts as the relevant gross annual salary for the immigration test.
What to send us for a first Blue Card screening
Tell us the role and functions, proposed gross annual salary, highest relevant qualification and when it was obtained, professional experience, hiring company, current country of the professional and target start date.
