Get Your Finance Degree Recognized in Spain
Finance and Banking is NOT a regulated profession in Spain: the official recognition of your degree is the declaration of equivalency (equivalencia) to bachelor's level. Complete case — apostille, sworn translation, 790-107 fee and online filing — for €176.
What legally applies to your degree
Degrees in Finance, Banking or Financial Engineering are recognized in Spain via the declaration of equivalency to bachelor's level in the field of Social and Legal Sciences. It is the Ministry's procedure for non-regulated degrees: it officially certifies that your education corresponds to a Spanish university bachelor's.
The Spanish and international private financial sector hires on experience and certifications (CFA, FRM, EFPA) more than on degree recognition — but the equivalency is the key to public financial employment (Bank of Spain, CNMV, tax authority), official finance master's programmes and any formal process requiring a certified university degree. Settling it costs less than a certification and never expires.
- Official 790-107 fee
- €166.50
- Legal deadline for a decision
- 6 months
- Fully online procedure
- 100%
Which documents your file requires
The Document Agent checks every piece against the requirements of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities before filing — a file that goes in right the first time is the best defense against extra months of corrections.
- Proof of identity and nationality (passport or Spanish NIE)
- Official degree certificate, legalized with the Apostille of The Hague (waived for EU/EEA/Switzerland)
- Academic transcript showing programme length, courses taken and workload or credits, stamped and signed by your university
- Sworn translation (traducción jurada) into Spanish of the degree and the transcript
- Proof of payment of the 790-107 fee
Official fee: €166.50 (form 790-107)
The procedure fee is €166.50, code 107, paid with form 790-107. It is the same for both homologación (official recognition) and the declaration of equivalency. Beware: the 790-079 fee quoted on many websites applies to NON-university studies — paying it by mistake freezes your case.
If you pay from outside Spain, the transfer goes to the Ministry's account (IBAN ES16 9000 0001 2002 5310 8022, BIC ESPBESMMXXX) and bank charges are on you: if less than €166.50 arrives, the case stalls. We verify the exact amount before filing.
The fee is non-refundable if the application is rejected, lapses or is denied — one more reason to file the case right the first time.
And the visa? We've got you covered too
Recognizing your degree is half the journey. When it's time for the visa — work, study or residence — the Visa Agent guides you and we manage it with trusted partners specialized in each destination, with your academic file already resolved. Immigration requirements depend on the receiving country.
Official sources
Everything on this page is based on current official regulations. Check the primary sources yourself:
You provide the documents. We do the rest.
We assemble your file
We gather your degree certificate, the academic transcript with courses and credits, and your ID document. Our Document Agent checks that every piece meets the format required by the Ministry's online portal.
Apostille and sworn translation
We coordinate the Apostille of The Hague in your home country and the sworn translation (traducción jurada) into Spanish of your degree and transcript. EU/EEA/Swiss citizens are exempt from the apostille.
Online filing
We file your application through the Ministry's electronic portal, pay the 790-107 fee (€166.50) and register the case. The entire procedure is handled online — no in-person appointments.
Follow-up until resolution
Our Regulator Agent monitors the status of your case and we respond to any request for corrections. The legal deadline for a decision is 6 months.
Start your recognition
- Upfront feasibility analysis of your file
- Apostille / legalization and sworn translation coordination
- Complete preparation and filing of your application
- File tracking until resolution
- Response to requirements and corrections
- Visa guidance with trusted partners
Official government fees (in Spain, €166.50 under form 790-107) are paid separately to the competent authority. Timelines depend on the receiving country.
Secure payment with Stripe. Right after paying you complete your profile and get straight into your Booka dashboard — the same account works in the mobile app.
Working in finance and banking in Spain: who hires and on what terms
Financial employment in Spain concentrates in Madrid and, with a different profile, in Barcelona and Bilbao. Hiring comes from retail banking and its risk and regulatory functions — the fastest-growing area after a decade of supervisory pressure — asset managers and wealth advisory firms, private equity and corporate finance at boutiques and large firms, fintechs, and the shared financial services centres multinationals have set up in Spain to serve Europe: that last route is today one of the most accessible entry points for a foreign degree, because language and training are valued above formal recognition.
The typical employer is not a bank: it is a mid-sized institution, an asset manager, a fintech or a services centre, with fast selection processes and high turnover in the early years. Progression from analyst to associate to manager is tightly structured, and sector certifications (CFA, FRM, EFPA) weigh more on salary than any additional academic degree.
On pay, the general public reference is the INE Annual Structure of Earnings Survey (2024): €29,540.26 average annual earnings and a €24,497.17 median across employees, with the 2026 minimum wage setting the legal floor at €1,221 a month over fourteen payments; financial and insurance activities sit consistently above the general average. The variable component — an annual bonus tied to targets — can be a significant share of the package and appears in no public statistic, so negotiate it in writing.
Market figures on this page are indicative and come from public sources cited in the text. They are not an offer, a guarantee or an earnings forecast. Booka manages credential recognition and professional registration — we are not a recruitment agency.
Which Spanish degree does your finance or banking degree correspond to?
The equivalency is declared at bachelor's level in the Social and Legal Sciences field. The Spanish reference degrees are the Bachelor's in Finance and Accounting, the Bachelor's in Finance, Banking and Insurance offered by several universities, and failing those the Economics or Business Administration degrees with a financial specialization.
One point surprises many applicants: if your degree is called Financial Engineering, it does not enter through the regulated engineering route. The Annex to Royal Decree 889/2022 does not list it, and the correct procedure remains the equivalency to bachelor's level. The name does not determine the procedure; what determines it is whether the profession is regulated in Spain.
What your finance degree is called at home
Colombia commonly issues Finanzas y Relaciones Internacionales, Administración Financiera and Ingeniería Financiera. Peru has Economía y Finanzas and Administración y Finanzas. Mexico issues Licenciatura en Finanzas, Licenciatura en Banca y Finanzas or actuarial degrees with a financial focus, with a cédula profesional. Venezuela issues Licenciado en Ciencias Fiscales or Administración with a finance specialization, and Argentina Licenciatura en Administración with a financial orientation or Licenciatura en Finanzas.
All these names follow the same procedure and the same €166.50 fee: the decision is issued at bachelor's level, not against the label on your diploma.
How far the equivalency goes in the financial sector
With no regulated profession involved, the case does not examine content: there is no aptitude test and no additional coursework, and the real risk is documentary — transcripts without contact hours, badly issued apostilles or translations that do not meet the sworn-translation requirement.
The equivalency DOES let you compete for public financial bodies and supervisors, access official master's programmes and doctoral study, and certify bachelor's level in administrative and immigration procedures.
And here is the limit that matters in this sector: the equivalency does NOT qualify you to advise or inform clients about financial products. That activity depends on the knowledge and competence requirements MiFID II imposes on institutions' staff, evidenced through certifications recognized by the CNMV, and on the firm you work for being registered. Nor does it qualify you for statutory audit, reserved to ROAC registrants. Plainly: the equivalency is your academic credential, not your professional licence.
After the equivalency: MiFID certifications, CFA and public employment
If your career points towards advising on or distributing financial products, the next step is not another university degree but a certification recognized by the CNMV for MiFID II purposes — the credential institutions require before letting you speak to a client. If you are heading for analysis or portfolio management, the international standard is the CFA, and for private banking the EFPA.
In the public arena, the equivalency opens calls from the Bank of Spain, the CNMV and the economic and financial corps of the administration, with pay set by subgroup in the State Budget Act. And academically, it is the admission requirement for official master's programmes in quantitative finance and banking, the usual retraining route towards risk and modelling profiles.
Manage your process from the app — with 10% off
Download the Booka app to track your file, upload documents and chat with your advisor from your phone. Use code BLOG10 for 10% off your process.
Frequently asked questions
Do certifications like the CFA replace the equivalency?
They serve different purposes: professional certifications prove skills to private employers; the equivalency proves your academic level to the Spanish administration. For public-sector exams, official master's programmes or immigration procedures requiring a university degree, only the equivalency counts.
My degree is in Financial Engineering — is it still an equivalency?
Yes. Even though it contains the word "engineering", it does not correspond to any of the regulated engineering disciplines in the Annex of Royal Decree 889/2022, so the procedure is the bachelor's equivalency. The name of the programme does not determine the procedure; whether the profession is regulated in Spain does.
How much do financial professionals earn in Spain?
The available public statistic is the INE (Annual Structure of Earnings Survey 2024): €29,540.26 average annual earnings and a €24,497.17 median across employees, with financial and insurance activities above that average. The variable bonus, which in this sector can be a meaningful part of the package, appears in no official statistic: ask for it in writing with its targets before signing.
Do I need recognition to be hired by a bank?
Not for the selection process: private banking hires on experience, languages and certifications. What you will need, depending on the role, is the knowledge certification MiFID II requires to advise or inform clients — a requirement distinct from degree recognition.
Is the equivalency useful for working at the Bank of Spain or the CNMV?
It is what lets you apply: their selection processes require a certified university qualification, and for a foreign degree the declaration of equivalency is the official way to evidence it. Beyond that, entry depends on passing a competitive and lengthy process.
How long does the procedure take in Spain?
The legal deadline for a decision is 6 months from the moment the file is complete (Royal Decree 889/2022). Applicants' experience suggests longer real timelines depending on caseload; the Ministry publishes no official averages. A well-prepared file with no requests for corrections is the best way to avoid extra months.
Do I need the Apostille of The Hague and a sworn translation?
Yes, with limited exceptions. Your degree must be legalized with the Apostille of The Hague from your home country (EU, EEA and Swiss citizens are exempt), and both the degree and the academic transcript require a sworn translation (traducción jurada) into Spanish. We coordinate both as part of the service.
Can I start the process from my home country, without being in Spain?
Yes. The procedure runs entirely online through the Ministry's electronic portal, and the fee can be paid by international transfer. You never need to be in Spain or attend any in-person appointment.
What exactly does Booka do, and what do I do?
You hand us your documents; we do the rest: we verify the file at source with our Verifier Agent, coordinate the apostille and sworn translation, file the online application, pay the fee and track the case through to resolution, answering any request from the Ministry.
Other degrees we recognize in Spain
Your degree, recognized in Spain
Finance and Banking · full management for €176. You hand us the documents; we handle the file, the fees and the tracking until resolution.
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