Spain digital nomad visa requirements in 2026

What the Spain digital nomad visa is and how it differs from the permit

The official name is residencia por teletrabajo de carácter internacional, residence for international remote work. It was created by Law 28/2022 of 21 December 2022, known as the Startup Law (Ley de startups). The law added articles 74 bis to 74 quinquies to Law 14/2013 on support for entrepreneurs, and since 2023 a citizen of any non-EU country can live in Spain legally while working remotely for companies based abroad.

There are two doors into the programme, and the one you choose sets the length of your status. A visa issued by a consulate lets you live in Spain for up to one year. A residence permit requested from inside Spain is granted for up to three years and then renewed for two. The visa is not a mandatory first step: anyone who can enter Spain legally, for example as a tourist, may apply straight for the three-year permit.

While the permit application is pending, your legal stay is extended automatically: article 76 of Law 14/2013 says so in plain words. A visa holder who wants to stay beyond the first year applies for the permit within the last 60 calendar days of the visa.

The programme is only for non-EU nationals. Citizens of the EU, the European Economic Area and Switzerland live in Spain under free movement rules and do not need this visa.

How much income you need for the Spain digital nomad visa in 2026

The key number is tied to the SMI (salario mínimo interprofesional), Spain's national minimum wage. Applicants must show income of at least 200% of the SMI. Royal Decree 126/2026 of 18 February 2026 (Real Decreto, a government regulation) raised the SMI by 3.1%, from €1,184 to €1,221 a month paid 14 times a year, or €17,094 a year. The nomad threshold rose with it.

Then comes the arithmetic that is easy to get wrong. Based on the annual figure, 200% of the SMI is €34,188 a year, or €2,849 a month. Based on the monthly rate, it is 2 x €1,221 = €2,442. Barcelona City Council's guide for digital nomads gives both bases: €1,221 paid 14 times and €1,424.50 spread over 12 months. Consulates differ too: the Buenos Aires consulate's checklist, for example, used the monthly rate. The safe plan is to prepare for the higher one: €2,849 a month.

The first family member adds 75% of the SMI to the threshold, and each additional member adds 25%.

Worked example. A family of four with one working adult needs to show about €55,600 a year, roughly €4,630 a month. For comparison, Portugal asks a single applicant for €3,680 a month and Greece for €3,500 a month after tax.

How income is proven. A one-off bank balance is not enough. Consulates ask for bank statements and payslips for recent months (the consulate in Santiago de Chile, for example, asks for six), plus an employment contract or client contracts. The money has to be lawful, yours and available: consular checklists spell this out. Savings can be shown on top, but regular income from remote work is the backbone of the file.

The SMI is reviewed every year. If it goes up again, so does the threshold, so check the figure at the time you apply rather than relying on last year's guides.

Who qualifies: work and experience requirements

Not everyone who works on a laptop gets in. Articles 74 bis and 74 ter of Law 14/2013 set five conditions, and each one is checked against documents.

• Remote work for companies outside Spain only. The work must be done exclusively through computer and telecommunication tools. An employee may only work for foreign companies; a Spanish employer is ruled out entirely.
• Freelancers: no more than 20% Spanish clients. A self-employed applicant may work for companies in Spain as long as that stays within 20% of their total professional activity.
• At least three months with the company. The employment contract or client contracts must have been running for at least three months on the day you apply.
• A company at least one year old. The employer or client must have been genuinely and continuously active for at least a year. A company set up just for the visa will not pass.
• A degree or three years of experience. A degree from a reputable university, vocational college or business school works, or three years of experience in similar roles. Regulated professions, such as doctors or lawyers, need their qualification recognised in Spain (a procedure called homologación).

Employees also need a letter from the employer allowing them to work remotely from Spain specifically. Freelancers show contracts that set out the terms of their remote work. The programme is not meant for people their company is transferring to its Spanish office: the same law has a separate intra-company transfer permit for that.

General requirements under article 62: being 18 or older; not being in Spain irregularly; a clean criminal record certificate from every country you lived in over the last two years, plus your own declaration of no criminal record for the last five years; and health insurance from an insurer licensed in Spain. Travel insurance does not count. Some consulates, such as the one in Santiago de Chile, explicitly require a policy with no waiting period and no co-payments (carencia and copago), meaning full cover from day one.

What documents you need for the Spain digital nomad visa

The file is almost identical for the visa and the permit; the difference is where you submit it. A typical list based on Spanish consular checklists:

1. the national visa application form with a photo, or the online UGE application for the permit;
2. a passport, usually valid for at least one more year;
3. an apostilled criminal record certificate from each country of residence in the last two years, plus a declaration covering five years;
4. health insurance from an insurer authorised to operate in Spain;
5. a company certificate showing your length of service, or client contracts, covering at least three months;
6. the employer's letter allowing remote work from Spain;
7. a company register extract proving the business has been active for at least a year;
8. an apostilled degree or proof of three years of experience;
9. proof of income: bank statements, payslips, contracts;
10. social security documents, covered in the next section;
11. for family members, apostilled marriage and birth certificates;
12. the fee payment receipt.

Every foreign document must be in Spanish. Consulates accept translations by a traductor jurado, a sworn translator appointed by Spain's Foreign Ministry, or translations certified by a consulate. An apostille, the international stamp that confirms a document is genuine, is added in the country that issued the document, before translation.

The NIE (número de identidad de extranjero) is a foreigner's personal number used for tax, banking and contracts. When you apply through a consulate, it is usually issued alongside the visa. We can handle this paperwork through our translations and apostille service.

Do digital nomads pay social security in Spain

Yes, and this is the requirement the ads mention least. Every applicant signs a commitment to comply with Spanish social security rules before starting work. In practice there are three routes, and you need to pick one before you apply.

The second route is the expensive one. The foreign company has to register in the Spanish system and pay contributions like a Spanish employer, and not every company is willing to do that. So check before you apply whether your employer's country has a social security agreement with Spain. Agreements exist, for example, with the United States (in force since 1988) and Russia (since 1996).

One useful detail: for the first six months the law lets you register with Spanish social security using your passport, even before your NIE is ready.

Spain digital nomad visa tax: what you actually pay

The visa does not exempt you from tax. In most cases it makes you a Spanish tax resident. You are resident if you spend more than 183 days in Spain in a calendar year, if Spain is the main centre of your business interests, or if your spouse and minor children live in Spain. Residents pay IRPF (impuesto sobre la renta de las personas físicas), Spain's personal income tax, on worldwide income at rates from 19% to 47%, and the top rate is higher in some regions. We explain how the days are counted in our article on tax residency and the 183-day rule.

The Beckham regime for employees. Article 93 of the IRPF law lets newcomers pay tax under the rules for non-residents (IRNR, impuesto sobre la renta de no residentes, the non-resident income tax). It is nicknamed the Beckham law after the footballer, one of the first to use it. Since 2023 the Startup Law has expressly included remote workers on the nomad visa.

Worked example from our guide to taxes in Spain. A €100,000 salary taxed under the standard scale gives IRPF of about €32,100; under the Beckham regime it is €24,000. On middle incomes the picture flips: the regime taxes the full amount with no allowances, so on €40,000 it costs €9,600, against about €7,745 under the standard scale. For a single worker without children the break-even point is around €58,000 a year, before counting the benefit on foreign passive income.

Freelancers rarely get 24%. The self-employed only qualify for the Beckham regime if their activity is recognised as innovative, usually through a favourable report from ENISA, the state company that assesses startups. A typical freelance nomad registers as an autónomo (a self-employed person, Spain's sole trader status) and pays IRPF on the standard scale on net income after expenses and contributions. If clients are abroad and nobody withholds tax at source, a 20% advance payment on net income is due every quarter on form Modelo 130.

The 15% myth. People often search whether nomads pay 15% or 24%. The 15% is the corporate tax rate for certified startups (empresas emergentes) in their first profitable year and the three years after. It has nothing to do with a nomad's personal income tax.

Residents taxed under the standard regime have one more duty: the Modelo 720 return on foreign assets, if accounts, securities or property abroad in any one category are worth more than €50,000.

Can you bring your family on the Spain digital nomad visa

Yes, and the list goes beyond a spouse and children. Together with the nomad or later, the following may apply: a spouse or registered partner, children under 18, adult children who depend on you financially and have not started their own family, and dependent parents. When applications are filed together, they are decided together, as article 62 of Law 14/2013 requires.

Each family member raises the income threshold: the first by 75% of the SMI, each additional one by 25%, with the amounts shown in the table above. Relatives go through the same general checks: health insurance, criminal record certificates for adults, and apostilled and translated proof of the family link.

There is a family bonus on the tax side too. Since 2023 the Beckham regime extends to a spouse and children under 25 if their income is lower than the main applicant's. For a household with one high earner this is a real saving, but check the conditions before the move, not after.

Does the Spain digital nomad visa lead to permanent residency and citizenship

Years on the nomad visa and permit count as ordinary legal residence, so they count towards both permanent residency and a passport. But the road is long: for most foreigners, Spanish citizenship is only possible after 10 years.

The long-term residence rules are set out in the new immigration regulation approved by Royal Decree 1155/2024. Where absences are for work, up to 18 months in total over five years is allowed, still with no single absence longer than six months. For a nomad who loves to travel this is the main constraint: a couple of long winters in Asia can reset the clock.

For a passport, article 22 of the Civil Code requires 10 years of continuous legal residence immediately before the application, good civic conduct and integration. Integration is tested by two Instituto Cervantes exams: DELE A2 (diploma de español como lengua extranjera, basic Spanish) and CCSE (conocimientos constitucionales y socioculturales, knowledge of the constitution and society). Nationals of Spanish-speaking countries only sit the CCSE.

Under article 23 of the Civil Code, naturalised citizens must declare that they renounce their previous nationality. Nationals of Latin American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal are exempt. Everyone else should factor this in early.

Spain, Portugal, Italy or Greece: which nomad visa is better

On the income bar, Spain is cheaper than Portugal and Greece but dearer than Italy. Where it wins is a three-year first permit and a 24% tax rate for employees for six years.

Italy looks cheaper on paper, but it only takes highly qualified workers and asks for at least six months of experience in the work you will do remotely. Portugal asks for €831 a month more than Spain and, since 19 May 2026, has stretched the path to a passport to 10 years, level with Spain. Greece offers a passport sooner, after 7 years, but asks for €3,500 a month after tax. For 11 programmes side by side, including non-European ones, see our overview of digital nomad visas in 2026.

Which Spanish visa suits a remote worker best

The nomad visa is not the only way to live in Spain, but it is the only one that expressly allows remote work for foreign companies. The other options solve different problems.

The IPREM (indicador público de renta de efectos múltiples) is a public reference index used to set benefits and immigration thresholds. In 2026 it stands at €600 a month. The non-lucrative permit has a lower bar, but using it for remote work is risky: the nomad visa was created precisely for remote workers.

Does nationality matter: Filipinos, Latin Americans, Indians, Russians

The law does not restrict the programme by nationality, but your passport changes the economics. The biggest difference is at the end of the road, in citizenship.

• Filipinos and Latin Americans. Nationals of the Philippines, Latin American countries, Andorra, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal can apply for Spanish citizenship after 2 years of legal residence instead of 10, and do not have to renounce their original nationality. For them the nomad permit is one of the shortest routes to an EU passport. Nationals of Spanish-speaking countries are also exempt from the DELE language exam.
• Indians, Pakistanis and others applying from home. The visa is filed at the Spanish consulate for the country where you legally live, so an Indian national resident in the UAE applies in the UAE. Criminal record certificates are needed from every country of residence in the last two years, apostilled or legalised and translated into Spanish.
• US citizens. The visa fee differs for some nationalities, so check your consulate's fee schedule. The US-Spain social security agreement, in force since 1988, may let an American employer keep you in the US system with a certificate of coverage. Whether your case fits the agreement's rules for workers sent abroad is worth checking with the employer before you apply.
• Russian citizens. The Spanish consulate in Moscow has published an application procedure for this visa, with a copy of the internal passport on the checklist. The practical hurdles are proving lawful income despite sanctions-related limits on transfers, and tax: by Decree No. 585 of 8 August 2023, Russia suspended the main articles of its 1998 tax treaty with Spain, which raises the risk of double taxation on a Russian salary.

If you own a company abroad, remember that Spain has its own controlled foreign company rules: profits of your own company in a low-tax country can be taxed in your hands once you are a Spanish tax resident.

Pitfalls, and who the Spain digital nomad visa is not for

It is not for you if:

• your main employer or client is in Spain: employees cannot work for a Spanish employer, and freelancers are capped at 20% Spanish work;
• you have neither a degree nor three years of experience in your field;
• your employer is less than a year old, or you have worked with it for less than three months;
• your income is irregular and falls short of the threshold on average;
• you are a freelancer counting on the 24% rate: the Beckham regime is most likely out of reach;
• you want to spend a couple of months a year in Spain: your permanent residency clock breaks with any absence longer than six months in a row.

Pitfalls for those who do qualify:

• Six months for the Beckham regime. Modelo 149 must be filed within six months of starting work. Missing it by a single day closes the regime for that move.
• Social security. Without a certificate of cover from your home country, your employer faces about 30% on top of your salary in Spain.
• Insurance with co-payments. A consulate may reject a policy with an excess or a waiting period.
• Your region matters. Half of the income tax is regional, so the same salary is taxed differently in Madrid and in Catalonia.
• Renewal is not automatic. On renewal the authorities check that the conditions still hold: work, income, insurance, contributions. Moving to a Spanish employer removes the basis for the status.
• Freelancing means bookkeeping. Registering as an autónomo brings monthly contributions, quarterly tax advances and returns, even if every client is abroad.

How we help

We start with a check: whether your work fits articles 74 bis and 74 ter, what income threshold applies to your family, which social security route is realistic for your employer, and whether the Beckham regime actually saves you money. If Spain is the wrong fit, we say so straight away and suggest alternatives.

Then we assemble and review the file, arrange translations and apostilles, and prepare the consular or UGE application. Once you have the status, we help with the move through our relocation service and with opening a personal bank account in Spain. For the country overview, see Spain; for every remote work programme, see digital nomad visas.

What the Spain digital nomad visa gives you

How to get the Spain digital nomad visa: step by step

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