Overview
Tropa y Marinería is the direct-entry route into the Spanish Armed Forces as a professional soldier or sailor (Army, Navy, Air and Space Force, Common Corps and the Royal Guard), run by the Ministry of Defence through its recruitment portal. One convocatoria is published each year, and it can contain several cycles of vacancies. The 2026 convocatoria (Resolution of 29 December 2025, published in the BOE on 8 January 2026) has two cycles; cycle 1 offers 4,527 posts, of which foreign applicants can compete for 320. Applicants choose posts by specialty, educational level, physical level, location and length of service.
Who can apply
Main requirements in the 2026 convocatoria:
Spanish nationality, or nationality of one of the countries listed in the convocatoria for foreign applicants. The ministry's page names Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Equatorial Guinea, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. Foreign applicants also need a valid residence card that allows work.
Age: at least 18 and not yet 29 on the day of joining the military training centre.
No criminal record.
At least the Graduado en Educación Secundaria Obligatoria (ESO) or an equivalent. Foreign qualifications must be recognised as equivalent to Spanish ones. Some posts, such as music, ask for more.
No tattoos or insertions that go against constitutional values or damage the image of the Armed Forces. There is no general minimum height.
Exam pattern
Selection has two phases.
Phase one: concurso and opposition
Concurso: your general, academic and military merits are scored under the scale in the convocatoria.
Opposition: an aptitude test, preferably taken on computer, with 15 questions for each of seven factors: verbal, numerical, spatial, mechanical, perceptual, memory and abstract reasoning. It gives one score used for every post you request.
Afterwards you sign the final request for posts and are told the score you hold for each one, combining the concurso and opposition marks.
Phase two: medical and physical tests
If the number of people assessed exceeds 2.5 times the posts offered, only a preselected group goes to phase two. It starts with a medical examination (pass or fail, using the medical exclusion table, and including a personality test), followed by the physical tests. The required marks depend on the post and on sex. The minimum marks listed on the ministry page are:
| Test | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Arm flexion-extensions | 9 repetitions | 5 repetitions |
| Isometric plank | 40 seconds | 40 seconds |
| Agility-speed circuit | 15.4 seconds or less | 17.1 seconds or less |
| 2,000 m continuous run | 11 min 54 s or less | 12 min 58 s or less |
The ministry says these physical tests are new from the 2026 convocatoria.
Important dates
Calendars for both cycles are in Appendix 1 of the 2026 convocatoria. As shown on the ministry page in 2026, appointment requests for cycle 2 opened on 1 June 2026, and the request window was closed when the page was read. Dates for later years are published with each year's convocatoria.
How to apply
Taking part starts when your request for an appointment (cita previa) for the tests is accepted. You make the request on the Ministry of Defence's electronic office, which requires a digital identification method, using Appendix 6 of the convocatoria. On the day of the tests you bring the original and a copy of your identity document, your qualification, certificates of any foreign missions of two months or more, and proof of merits. If you are under 18 you also need parental or guardian authorisation.
After the exam
Those who obtain a post join the military training centre for the post on the date in the calendar and later join their scale as troop or sailor personnel.
Preparation tips
Practise the four physical tests against the minimum marks above, and review the question types for the seven aptitude factors. Have your documents and merit certificates ready before the appointment.
What is the minimum qualification for Tropa y Marinería?
The Graduado en Educación Secundaria Obligatoria (ESO) or an equivalent. Some posts require more.
Is there an academic written exam?
There is no subject-knowledge exam. Phase one is a computer-based aptitude test of seven factors plus the scoring of your merits, and phase two is medical and physical.
How often does selection run?
One convocatoria a year, which can contain several cycles. The 2026 convocatoria has two cycles.