Spain's Digital Nomad Visa

  • Freelancers and company owners working mainly for clients outside Spain, and remote employees whose employer is outside Spain.
  • If granted, it is three years when you apply from inside Spain — or a one-year visa first through the consulate, then two more on renewal.
  • As a resident you are no longer a visitor: the 90-days-in-180 limit stops applying to your time in Spain.

The first step is a free call — at least 30 minutes, no obligation. If we cannot help, we will say so.

The Digital Nomad Visa — the route built for people who already earn abroad

File in Spain and the authorities have twenty working days to decide. If they ask for more documents the clock stops until you reply.

Partner, children and financially dependent parents on one application

Family members granted a permit may work in Spain

You do not need a Spanish tenancy agreement to apply

Who qualifies for Spain's Digital Nomad Visa?

You are self-employed, your work can be done remotely, and it is mainly for clients outside Spain.
Laptop illustration representing online visa application process
You are employed, your employer is outside Spain, and the job can be done remotely.
Remote employees
You own a company outside Spain that runs without you on site, and you can manage it remotely.
 
Business owners
You earn from advertisers, sponsors or platforms based outside Spain.
Smartphone with social profile illustration for digital nomad lifestyle

The minimum income for the digital nomad visa in 2026

The threshold is 200% of the Spanish minimum wage and it rises with each family member. If your income falls a little short, savings may also count. There is no published figure for how large a shortfall they can cover, so bring your statements to the call and we will go through them with you.

For an individual

€2,849

For a couple

€3,918

For a family of three

€4,274

For each additional family member

+ €356

Not sure if you qualify?

Your income, your contracts and how long they have run decide most of it, and all three can be checked on a call. We will tell you where you stand — including if this route is the wrong one for you.

What we do — and where our part ends

Case Review in Detail

During the consultation we go through your case and say plainly where it looks weak. On Smart and Max, if the authorities ask for more documents, we prepare the response.

How we build the file

The rules are published. The way the office applies them is not, and it moves. We build your file to what the authorities have been asking for lately, not to last year’s version of the list.

If the answer is no

A refusal does not end the work. On Smart and Max we go through the written resolution, tell you what it turned on, and prepare the next step — an appeal where the grounds support one, or a fresh application.

Spain makes the decision

Every application is decided by the Spanish authorities, and no one can promise approval. Our part is to prepare and check your file against the rules and current practice before it is filed.

We are an immigration consultancy. Where a case needs regulated legal work, it is carried out by the independent Spanish lawyer (abogado) we work with — José Antonio Bascuñana Soriano, colegiado nº 1933, Colegio de Abogados de Orihuela.

We know this route from the applicant's side

Victoria applied for the digital nomad permit herself, when the route was new. What she learned going through it is what we check first in yours.

Victoria

Victoria — digital nomad applications, ClickToSpain

Customer Testimonials

How much of the paperwork do you want us to do?

Start if you will arrange translations and apostilles yourself. Smart if you want us to handle the paperwork. Max if you also want somebody with you in Spain.

In all three packages

Payment in three stages, the last after the decision

50%

Our work up to filing

Due when you have had your consultation, chosen a package and asked us to start.

25%

The application goes in

Due when your completed application has been filed — lodged with the authorities in Spain, or at the consulate that covers you.

25%

The decision comes back

Due when the authorities issue their decision on your application, whatever that decision says.

A quarter of the fee stays unpaid the whole time your file is with the authorities. It falls due when the authorities issue their decision — granted or refused. Scope and fee are both confirmed in the service agreement before work starts.

Not sure how much help you need?

Where this route can lead: permanent residence, then citizenship

Citizenship after 10 years of legal residence in Spain

Help with tax in Spain

Taxes in Spain for digital nomads

FAQ

No. The 90-day Schengen limit still applies to all visa-exempt UK nationals travelling to Spain for tourism. The Digital Nomad Visa is a separate residence authorisation that grants up to three years of legal stay (renewable to five) for remote workers who meet the income and activity criteria.

For the Digital Nomad Visa, savings are not a mandatory requirement if your income from service or employment contracts already covers the legal minimum (200% of Spanish SMI — €2,849 a month in 2026). Savings are used only to top up a shortfall. There is no published figure for how large a gap they can cover, so the closer your income sits to the threshold, the stronger the file. Other routes are stricter: the Non-Lucrative Visa explicitly requires proven savings of around €28,800–€31,752 in 2026 for the primary applicant (400% of IPREM), as it prohibits any economic activity.

Yes, provided you hold the correct authorisation. The Digital Nomad Visa allows UK-based freelancers and salaried employees to live in Spain while working for clients or employers outside Spain. If you are employed, your employer must be outside Spain. If you are self-employed, you may also work for a Spanish company, provided that work is no more than 20% of your total professional activity. Working remotely during an ordinary 90-day Schengen stay is tolerated for occasional tasks but is not a legal basis for ongoing employment or tax residency.

Yes — significantly. A UK-based salaried employee can usually apply for an A1 Certificate (HMRC form CA3822) under the UK–Spain Bilateral Social Security Agreement, keeping them on UK National Insurance for up to 24 months with no Spanish social-security contribution; the Beckham regime (flat 24% on Spanish-source employment income up to €600,000) is open to employees in principle, but access is not automatic — the application requires precise documentation of the employment relationship and strict filing deadlines, and rejections do occur. Directors, shareholders and anyone with significant influence over the employing company cannot use the employed track — the UGE treats them as self-employed for DNV purposes regardless of contract wording. Self-employed applicants (including the director/shareholder category above) must register as autónomo in Spain and pay Spanish social security — around €88/month under the tarifa plana for the first 12 months, settling at €230–€530/month based on actual earnings thereafter — and are excluded from Beckham in almost all cases (the regime is reserved for employees and a narrow band of innovative entrepreneurs or highly-qualified professionals). Where the structure is a choice, the employed track is usually more advantageous — lower ongoing contributions, access to Beckham if granted, and simpler withholding — so it is worth considering before committing to a freelance arrangement.

As of 2026 applicants must demonstrate monthly earnings of at least 200% of the Spanish minimum wage. The 2026 SMI is €17,094 a year, so the threshold is €34,188 a year — €2,849 a month. Add 75% of SMI for the first family member (about €1,068 a month) and 25% for each one after that (about €356 a month). Income must come from clients or contracts active for at least three months before the application.

Both routes exist. UK applicants typically file through the Spanish Consulate in London, Manchester or Edinburgh and receive a one-year visa. In its final 60 days you can apply in Spain for a three-year residence authorisation; once that is granted, you collect the TIE card that evidences it. Alternatively, you can enter Spain as a visitor and apply directly to the UGE for a three-year residence authorisation — this in-country route skips the consular stage and, in practice, is usually faster.

The main drawbacks are documentary — apostilled criminal record, sworn translations, proof of three-month client relationships, and private healthcare cover (£800–£1,500 per adult annually). After 183 days in Spain you become a tax resident, though the Beckham regime may apply a flat 24% up to €600,000. The 20% cap on Spanish-sourced income also limits anyone hoping to pivot into local work.

Spanish tax residency is triggered by the 183-day rule (spending more than half the calendar year in Spain) or by having your main economic interests (centro de intereses económicos) located there. Registering as autónomo does not in itself make you tax resident on day one, but it is strong evidence of economic ties and, in practice, brings most freelance DNV holders into tax residency promptly. Two timing points matter: residents become liable for Spanish worldwide income tax (IRPF) from the tax year they qualify; and anyone wanting the Beckham regime must apply within six months of their Spanish Social Security registration — miss this window and you default to the standard progressive rates (up to 47%) for the whole year.

Know where you stand before you spend a pound

The call is free and runs at least 30 minutes, with no obligation to go ahead.

Elias, Head of Relocation Department at ClickToSpain

Elías

Head of Relocation Department

    If we can’t help, we’ll say so on the call.

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    This is one of the few types of residence permit that allows you to take not only your wife/husband and minor children, but also your financially dependent children over the age of 18 and dependent parents. The legal test is genuine financial dependency, and in practice applications for parents under 65 are rarely accepted

    A self-employed applicant may also work for Spanish companies, provided that work is no more than 20% of their total professional activity. An employed applicant may work only for an employer based outside Spain. The applicant’s family members can work in Spain without restrictions.