Entry requirements for Spain from Mexico or Argentina

What you can be asked for at the border

• A passport that's still valid at least three months after the day you plan to leave the Schengen area and was issued within the 10 years before the day you enter.
• A return or onward ticket in your name, non-transferable and with a fixed date.
• For tourism, a booked package trip or proof of where you're staying, or a letter of invitation from your host. The letter only proves where you'll stay: it doesn't replace the rest.
• Enough money for your stay, in the amount Spanish rules set (below).

How much money must you be able to show?

Spanish rules require 10% of the national minimum wage per person per day of your stay, and at least 90% of the minimum wage per person, however short the trip (Order PRE/1282/2007). As the minimum wage changes, so does the figure, every year.

The latest figure published by the Spanish Consulate in Mexico is for 2025: €118 per person per day, and at least €1,065 whatever the length of the trip.

You show it with cash, traveler's checks or credit cards together with an up-to-date account statement. Letters from your bank and statements downloaded from the internet aren't accepted.

The 90 days count across all of Schengen

The rule covers the 29 Schengen countries at once: days in France, Italy or Spain all count toward the same 90. And you can be refused entry if in the last 6 months you've already spent more than 3 in Spain or the Schengen area, in one trip or several.

If you're refused entry

You can be refused if you don't meet the conditions, and that decision can be appealed. Also, even if you meet them, if you were previously expelled from a Schengen country, are banned from entering or are a risk to public health or public order.

ETIAS and the new border checks

Argentina is among the more than 60 countries whose citizens will have to apply online for an ETIAS travel authorization, which isn't a visa. According to the Spanish Consulate in Buenos Aires, in February 2026 it wasn't in force yet and had no start date. What does already apply is the EES: at the border they scan your passport, take your photo and, if you don't need a visa, four fingerprints; in exchange, your passport is no longer stamped.

If you want to stay longer than 90 days

You need a visa before you travel. Once in Spain, you can only extend your stay if the Foreigners' Office or the Police station where you are authorizes it, for exceptional circumstances.

What to do, step by step

1. Check both dates on your passport before you buy your flight.
2. Buy your return ticket with a fixed date and keep your accommodation booking or letter of invitation.
3. Work out how much money you can be asked for, for the days you'll stay, and carry it in a form the border accepts.
4. Note your entries to and exits from the Schengen area so you don't go over 90 days.