Barcelona International Welcome Desk is a reality

The Barcelona City Council opens the Barcelona International Welcome Desk, a new office located in the Media TIC building in the 22@ innovation district, aimed at international talent who want to come and live in Barcelona or who have just moved to the city. It is a strategic municipal initiative that brings together in a coordinated way the services of City Promotion, Barcelona Activa and the Department of Information and Citizen Attention. The new office, the first of its kind in Spain, will offer information, advice, and the possibility of carrying out various useful procedures on arrival in the city.

Barcelona Global, in its commitment to make Barcelona one of the best cities in the world for talent and economic activity, initiated this proposal and has been working very hard to push for its implementation. This office, therefore, is a very relevant ‘Make it happen’ and we celebrate that Barcelona City Council has made it possible.

The international talent living and working in Barcelona let us know, through the survey Barcelona Global International Talent Monitor carried out every two years, that the administrative procedures are one of the main problems they encounter when they land in Barcelona. In fact, the rating worsened in each edition, reaching as low as 2.7 out of 7 in 2021, the second worst valued aspect.

"If we want to host large digital hubs, to welcome thousands of students or to attract the best researchers we need to make it easy for talent to come, live and work in Barcelona", highlighted this Monday the President of Barcelona Global, Aurora Catà, during the presentation of the office with the Barcelona City Council.

Barcelona International Welcome Desk is a clear example of public-private collaboration: the office was created as a municipal service and will have the collaboration and involvement of agents such as the Delegation of the Spanish Government, Barcelona Global and the 22@Network association, as well as civil society associations and those from the business ecosystem to give voice to the demands and needs of companies and professionals in the city.

But there is still a long way to go. The city of talent that we aspire to needs this office to streamline the formalities, especially the most complicated ones, the NIE and the TIE, and a tax system that allows us to be open to the arrival of professionals, investors, and international entrepreneurs, as well as affordable and accessible international schools, a wider use of English and a society open to talent.