All steps to get new Spain Digital Nomad Visa explained

With remote work becoming increasingly popular, Spain has become one of the countries to offer a digital nomad visa. In 2023, Spain launched this special visa as part of the new Startup Act to encourage entrepreneurship and foreign investment whilst attracting workers and professionals from foreign countries to come and live while working remotely from Spain.

So far, around 300 foreign nationals have been granted the visa. Some experts point out that this relatively low number of foreign nationals could be attributed to paperwork issues.

Spain Digital Nomad Visa: making it easy

For who is it for?

For all remote professionals, freelancers, and self-employed workers who are not in the European Economic Area or are non-EU citizens. Recently, citizens from the US, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada have also been granted eligibility for this visa. Additionally, partners, dependent children, or relatives in the ascending line of the worker can also obtain the visa.

For how long can I stay in Spain with the nomad visa?

To start off, you can stay for up to 12 months, with the possibility to extend it for up to 5 years. You can request a renewal after living there for 6 months.

Can I get Spanish residency with it? 

You won’t get Spanish residency straight away, but after 5 years of living in Spain continuously with the digital nomad visa, you might be able to apply for permanent residence. After 10 years of residence you could become eligible for Spanish citizenship.

Requirements for the Spain digital nomad visa

To be eligible for this visa, you must fulfill the following requirements: 

• Provide proof of specific expertise in your field of work. Having a university degree, a professional certificate, or evidence of three years of work.
• Have a minimum monthly income of €2,160 per month for a single adult, €2,970 per month for a family of two, €3,240 per month for a family of three and €3,510 per month for a family of four. This can be demonstrated with bank statements, payslips, or contracts.
• Obtain full health insurance for you and any family members that accompany you for the whole stay in Spain.
• Have clean criminal record (with Apostille and copy)
• Show a stable contract (one that lasts for the whole duration of their stay in Spain), permission from their company to work in Spain, and proof that their company has been in business for at least one year. If you are a freelance you can make up to 20% of your income from Spanish clients.
• Not have lived in Spain for the last five years.
• Fill a copy of the National Visa Application Form (one for each person who are going to stay in the country)
• Have a valid passport with one-year validity and two blank pages and two passport photos.
• Prove the familial relationship to other applicants (marriage certificate, birth certificate)
• Have proof of residence in Spain.
• Pay the visa fee in the local currency.

You can check all the specifics for each document and specific case here. Remember, you will most likely need to have your documents translated into Spanish for them to be accepted. It must be translated by a sworn translator.

How to apply for the digital nomad visa in Spain

There are two ways of applying for the digital nomad visa:

• At the Spanish embassy in your country.
• In Spain. You can enter as a visa-free tourist and apply for the digital nomad visa before your 90-day visa-free period expires.

In both places you can get a NIE (national identity number) and a NIF (tax number required to open a bank account). You will need them for your stay in Spain. It tends to be easier to get both once you are in Spain.

You can expect the visa application process to be resolved between 15-45 days.

How to pay taxes while living in Spain

You will most likely become a tax resident in Spain (if you choose to stay for more than 183 days in a year, although sometimes you can be considered as a tax resident even if you stay for less), but will be eligible to pay a reduced tax rate of 24% on income up to €600,000 for the first four years of your stay. If your income is above this number, you will be subjected to a 48% rate.

Since Spain has double taxation agreements with 90 other countries, you will not need to pay tax on your international income twice.