Spain has three European land borders, two come under the Schengen zone (France & Portugal) and as such, passport checks are not made on crossing. The third is with Andorra, one of Europe's micro-states, located along the French border. Crossing into Spain from Andorra will sometimes mean a long wait while Spanish immigration and customs teams search your person and/or vehicle, due to Andorra being regarded as a "tax haven".

There are two enclaves of Spain in Northern Africa, Ceuta and Melilla. Both have heavily guarded borders with Morocco. The border crossing can be restricted to EU nationals only at certain times of the year, as can ferry crossings from Tangier to the Spanish mainland. Be prepared for queues of up to 2 hours entering Ceuta or Melilla from Morocco, and extensive immigration & customs checks.

Passports to enter Spain are required for people of all nationalities, passengers arriving by air are required to give details to the Spanish authorities in advance of landing (this is usually done when booking a flight or at check-in). As a safety precaution, always carry a photocopy of your passport with you or some form of government issue photographic ID in case police undertake a random spot check.

If you are a non-EU national, you need to obtain an entry visa, unless the country of your origin has a reciprocal agreement with Spain. www.VisaorNot.com is a very convenient site to check whether you do in fact need a visa.

Spain is part of the Schengen Agreement, which means that a visa issued by one Schengen country is valid for all member countries. With a Schengen visa, you may enter one country and travel freely throughout the Schengen zone. If you plan to visit several Schengen countries, you should apply for a visa at the Embassy or Consulate of the country, which is your first point of entry.

At present, there are 17 Schengen countries, all in Europe. The 17 Schengen countries are: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Greece, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. All these countries except Norway and Iceland are European Union members. For more information about Schengen visa, go to this website.