Spain Digital Nomad Visa: Requirements, Income and How to Apply

At a glance

Minimum income	About €2,849 a month (2026), before tax
First permit	1 year from a consulate, or 3 years if you apply from inside Spain
Renewable?	Yes, for 2 years at a time
Leads to permanent residency?	Yes, long-term residence after 5 years
Special tax regime	Beckham Law, generally for employees only
Freelancers and business owners?	Yes, as self-employed with mostly foreign clients

Who can apply

Spain’s digital nomad visa, officially the visa for international teleworking, is for non-EU citizens who want to live in Spain while working remotely for an employer or clients based outside the country. It covers two groups, and you apply as one or the other.

Employees of a foreign company can apply if you’ve worked for the company for at least three months. Immigration lawyers report that the office handling applications also expects the company to have been trading for at least a year. Your employer needs to confirm in writing that you can do your job remotely from Spain, along with your role and salary.

Freelancers and self-employed professionals can apply too, with contracts showing you work for clients outside Spain. You can take on Spanish clients, but that work can’t exceed 20% of your total professional activity. Again, the client relationships need to go back at least three months.

Business owners generally apply as self-employed, showing the contracts and invoices of their business. Applying as the owner or director of your own company and drawing a salary from it is a different matter. Spain hasn’t published a rule on it, and immigration lawyers report that the office handling these applications looks closely at directors and has discouraged that approach. This set-up isn’t accepted everywhere, and how you structure it has tax and legal consequences in more than one country. Get professional advice on structuring and tax before you rely on it for a visa application.

Whichever group you’re in, you also need:

• A university or business school degree, or at least 3 years of experience in your current field
• A clean criminal record. Consulates ask for certificates from the countries you’ve lived in recently, typically the past two years, plus a declaration covering the past five
• Health insurance from an insurer authorized in Spain that covers everything the public system does, with no copayments or waiting periods
• A passport valid for at least another year

Minimum income requirement

You need to show income of at least 200% of Spain’s minimum wage, the SMI (salario mínimo interprofesional). For 2026, Royal Decree 126/2026 set the SMI at €1,221 a month over 14 payments, or €17,094 a year. Spread over 12 months, that’s €1,424.50, so the income requirement works out at about €2,849 a month, or €34,188 a year, before tax.

The figure changes every year with the SMI, and the 2026 rise was applied backdated to January. Any threshold you read from 2024 or 2025 is out of date.

The income has to come from the work relationship you’re applying on, not from savings, rentals or investments. Expect to prove it with payslips or invoices, your contracts, and bank statements showing the money arriving, usually covering the last three months or more. Bank documents with no stamp or signature, or figures that don’t match your payslips or invoices, are a common reason for a request for more documents.

Not earning €2,849 a month yet? That’s where most people reading this page are. The Portable Income Launchpad is a six-week program for experienced professionals turning their expertise into remote income that meets a visa threshold like this one.

Bringing your family

You can include your spouse or partner, your children, and dependent parents who are part of your household. Each one raises the income you need to show:

• The first family member adds 75% of the SMI, about €1,068 a month
• Each additional family member adds 25%, about €356 a month

So a couple needs roughly €3,917 a month, and a couple with two children roughly €4,629. A few guides calculate the add-ons from the 14-payment monthly SMI instead, which gives lower figures (about €916 and €305), so check the current amounts with your consulate or lawyer before you apply.

Family members need apostilled and translated marriage or birth certificates. Adult children have to show they depend on you financially, and parents that they’re in your care.

How long it lasts and renewal

How long your first permit lasts depends on where you apply:

• From a consulate abroad: you get a visa valid for up to 1 year. Before it expires, you apply in Spain for a residence authorization, valid for 3 years.
• From inside Spain: if you’re there legally, for example as a visa-free visitor, you can apply directly for the 3-year residence authorization.

After that, you renew for 2 years at a time, as long as you still meet the income and remote-work conditions. Renewals now ask for evidence that you’ve been living in Spain as a resident, including your Spanish tax return for the previous year and proof that your social security position is in order.

Tax: special regimes and when you become tax resident

If you spend more than 183 days a year in Spain, you become a Spanish tax resident, and Spain taxes your worldwide income at its normal progressive rates. On this visa, most people pass that mark in their first year.

Spain’s special regime for inbound workers, known as the Beckham Law, can lower that bill. Instead of the progressive rates, you pay a flat 24% on employment income up to €600,000 a year, and most foreign income is left out of Spanish tax. It lasts for the year you arrive plus the next five. You need not to have been a Spanish tax resident in the previous five years, and you have to apply within six months of starting work in Spain. It isn’t automatic.

The catch is who qualifies. Article 93 of Spain’s income tax law names digital nomad visa holders who are employees. Self-employed holders only qualify through narrower routes, such as a business officially certified as an entrepreneurial activity or highly qualified work for Spanish startups. If you’re freelancing, plan your budget on Spain’s normal rates.

Social security is a separate question. Employees from countries with a social security agreement with Spain, such as the US and UK, can usually stay in their home system with a certificate of coverage. Otherwise you register in Spain, and self-employed holders register as autónomos.

This is general information, not tax advice. Talk to a tax adviser who works with both countries before you move.

Does it lead to permanent residency or citizenship?

Yes. Time on the digital nomad visa counts as legal residence, so it can lead to both.

After 5 years of legal, continuous residence, you can apply for long-term residence, Spain’s version of permanent residency. Continuous means no single absence longer than six months, and no more than ten months away in total over the five years.

Spanish citizenship by residence usually takes 10 years. Nationals of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal qualify after 2 years. You’ll also need to pass a test on Spain’s constitution and culture (CCSE) and, unless you’re from a Spanish-speaking country, a Spanish language exam (DELE A2). Spain generally expects you to give up your previous nationality, except for nationals of the countries listed above.

How to apply

From your home country

1. Book an appointment at the Spanish consulate that covers where you legally live.
2. Get a Spanish foreigner’s number (NIE) first if your consulate asks for it.
3. Gather your documents: the national visa application form, a photo, your passport, proof of income and work relationship, your degree or proof of experience, criminal record certificates, health insurance and, for family members, relationship certificates. Official documents need an apostille and a sworn translation into Spanish.
4. Submit in person and pay the fee, which is around €80 but varies by nationality.
5. Wait for the decision. The legal deadline is 10 working days, though in practice it often takes several weeks.
6. Collect your visa within a month of approval, travel to Spain, and apply for your residence authorization before the visa expires.

From inside Spain

1. Enter Spain legally, for example as a visa-free visitor within your 90 days.
2. Apply online to the UGE-CE (Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos), the government unit that handles these applications, with the same documents.
3. Wait for the decision. The UGE-CE has 20 working days to respond, and if it doesn’t, the application counts as approved (positive administrative silence).
4. Once approved, register at your local town hall and book a fingerprint appointment for your residence card (TIE).

Restrictions and common reasons for refusal

The visa lets you work remotely for foreign employers or clients. It doesn’t let you take a job with a Spanish employer, and as a freelancer you can’t earn more than 20% of your activity from Spanish clients. Report any change to your work situation, such as a new employer, to the authorities within 30 days.

Immigration lawyers point to the same mistakes again and again:

• Income that doesn’t come from the work relationship you’re applying on
• No proof that the foreign company is a genuine, established business, which lawyers say means at least a year of trading
• Bank documents that are unstamped, unsigned, or don’t match payslips and invoices
• A job description that doesn’t make clear the role is fully remote
• Mixing up the employee and self-employed routes in the documents
• Health insurance with copayments or waiting periods, or travel insurance instead of full cover
• Documents without an apostille or sworn translation

Scrutiny increased in 2026, after cases of fabricated contracts, so expect your documents to be read closely.

Is this visa right for you?

Spain’s digital nomad visa suits remote employees and established freelancers who earn comfortably above €2,849 a month and want a long-term base in the EU. It’s one of the few European options that can be applied for from inside the country, which gets you a 3-year permit from the start, and it puts you on a clear path to permanent residency after five years. Employees get the most out of it, because the Beckham Law can cut their tax bill sharply.

If you’re self-employed, compare it with Portugal or Italy, since Spain’s normal tax rates will apply to you. If your income comes from savings or investments rather than work, Spain’s non-lucrative visa is the better fit. If you’re still building your income, Italy’s lower threshold of around €2,066 a month may be within reach sooner.

FAQ

How much money do you need for Spain’s digital nomad visa? For 2026, about €2,849 a month (€34,188 a year) for a single applicant, before tax. Add about €1,068 a month for a spouse or partner, and about €356 for each additional family member.

Is it hard to get Spain’s digital nomad visa? The rules are clear, but the paperwork is detailed, and checks tightened in 2026. Most problems come from documents rather than eligibility: income that doesn’t match your contracts, missing apostilles, or unsuitable health insurance.

Can I apply from inside Spain? Yes, if you’re in Spain legally, for example as a visa-free visitor. You apply to the UGE-CE and, if approved, get a 3-year residence authorization straight away, rather than the 1-year visa from a consulate.

Can freelancers apply? Yes. You apply as self-employed, with contracts showing your clients are mainly outside Spain. Spanish clients can account for no more than 20% of your work.

Do I pay tax in Spain on this visa? Usually yes. Once you spend more than 183 days a year in Spain, you’re a tax resident. Employees may qualify for the Beckham Law’s flat 24% rate; self-employed holders generally don’t.

Does the income requirement change every year? Yes. It’s tied to Spain’s minimum wage, which usually rises once a year. At renewal, you’ll need to meet the threshold in force at that time.

If you don’t qualify: alternatives and similar visas

If your income comes from savings, pensions or investments rather than remote work, look at Spain’s non-lucrative visa, which doesn’t allow you to work but has no remote-work condition. Spain’s golden visa closed to new applicants in 2025.

For other digital nomad visas, compare all of them on our digital nomad visas page, or start with:

• Portugal’s digital nomad visa, with a similar threshold and its own route to permanent residency
• Italy’s digital nomad visa, with a lower income requirement
• Greece’s digital nomad visa, with a 2-year residence permit after the first year

Sources

• Consulate General of Spain in London: Digital Nomad Visa (official)
• Royal Decree 126/2026, minimum wage for 2026, BOE (official)
• Ministry of Inclusion: national long-term residence (official)
• Personal Income Tax Law, article 93 (special regime for inbound workers), BOE (official)
• Machelín Díaz Abogados: requirements and refusal reasons (law firm guide)

Educational information, not legal, immigration or tax advice. Rules change, so check the official sources before you apply.