Digital Nomad Visa in Spain

What the route actually is

Official sources talk about international teleworkers, not a loosely defined lifestyle visa. The activity must be capable of being performed exclusively at a distance. Roles that need on-site production supervision, local HR management or in-person sales visits are generally outside the route.

Two connected instruments matter:

• Visa: applied for at the Spanish consular office responsible for where you live. Official guidance presents it as authorising residence and remote work in Spain for up to one year (or less if the work period is shorter).
• Residence authorisation: applied for in Spain through the UGE-CE electronic procedure when you are already in a regular situation, or when converting from the telework visa. Law 14/2013 sets a maximum validity of three years unless a shorter work period is requested, with renewal possible in two-year periods if the conditions still hold.

Who it may suit

It may be worth exploring if you are a third-country national over 18 and your main work is remote for employers or clients outside Spain.

• Employees: you work for a foreign employer that authorises remote work from Spain. Official FAQs state that employment in Spain is limited to that foreign employer.
• Self-employed / professionals: you show a professional (mercantile) relationship with foreign companies of at least three months. You may also work for Spanish companies on a professional basis only, provided that Spanish work is not more than 20% of your total professional activity.

Who should consider another route

• If you plan to work for a Spanish employer under a local employment contract, look at the ordinary work or other Ley 14/2013 routes that match that structure.
• If the foreign company has a Spanish branch and the arrangement is an intra-company transfer, official FAQs point to the ICT route rather than international telework.
• If you want to live in Spain without working, look at the non-lucrative route — it is not a remote-work authorisation.
• If you are an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen, or covered by the EU-family regime, different residence rules normally apply.

Financial means

National guidance ties the means test to Spain's minimum interprofessional wage (SMI), not to a permanently fixed euro figure published in the immigration articles themselves. Official portals describe the benchmark as:

Applicant	National benchmark
Main teleworker	200% of monthly SMI
First accompanying family member	Additional 75% of monthly SMI
Each further family member	Additional 25% of monthly SMI

SMI amounts are updated by the Spanish government. Convert the current monthly SMI yourself from official sources when you prepare the file. Evidence can include contracts, firm job offers, professional contracts or other means that prove ownership, lawfulness and availability of the funds.

Qualification or experience

You generally need either a graduate or postgraduate qualification from a recognised university, vocational training or business school, or at least three years of professional experience in analogous functions relevant to the remote role. Regulated professions may require homologation of the title.

Company and relationship evidence

Typical official expectations include:

• A labour or professional relationship of at least three months with the foreign company or companies at the date of application
• Evidence that the foreign company has existed for at least one year (for example a commercial-register certificate or equivalent)
• A company letter describing the role, main functions, express confirmation that the work can be done by telematic means, and the conditions of remote work (including salary in euros for employees)

Health insurance and Social Security

You need public cover through Social Security registration or private health insurance with an insurer authorised to operate in Spain. Official FAQs reject travel insurance, reimbursement-only policies, and policies with waiting periods or co-payments for this purpose.

Social Security is a core condition of the route:

• Employees: the foreign employer normally needs to register in Spain as a non-resident entity without a workplace in Spain and affiliate the worker to the General Regime, unless an applicable international Social Security agreement lets the home-country system cover you for telework in Spain with the correct certificate.
• Self-employed: affiliation to RETA is required. Official FAQs state that importing cover under a bilateral agreement is not available as a substitute for RETA in the self-employed case.

Common documents

Checklists vary between consulates and the UGE-CE, but national materials commonly include:

• National visa form and/or the MI-T residence application model, as applicable
• Valid passport meeting current validity and blank-page rules
• Company and relationship evidence described above
• Proof of sufficient means linked to work income
• Qualification or three-year experience evidence
• Criminal-record certificates for Spain and countries of residence for the period required by current rules, plus the responsible declaration covering the longer look-back period
• Health-insurance evidence where Social Security cover is not yet in place
• Responsible declaration on Social Security compliance
• Proof of payment of the applicable visa fee and/or tasa 790-038 for the residence authorisation
• Family-relationship documents for accompanying relatives

Foreign public documents generally need sworn Spanish translation and apostille or diplomatic legalisation unless an applicable agreement says otherwise.

Where and how to apply

From outside Spain: apply for the international telework visa at the Spanish consulate with jurisdiction over your place of residence. Official FAQs state you cannot apply directly from abroad for the UGE residence authorisation alone.

From inside Spain: if you are already in a regular situation, or within sixty calendar days before the telework visa expires, you can file the residence authorisation electronically with the UGE-CE through the Inclusion Ministry sede.

1. Confirm that your work is exclusively telematic for foreign companies (with the 20% Spanish professional cap only if self-employed).
2. Open the current UGE documentation note, joint instruction and consular checklist for your district.
3. Build Social Security and insurance evidence before locking a move date.
4. Submit through the channel that matches your location (consulate or UGE sede).
5. After approval, complete NIE/TIE and registration steps that apply to your authorisation.

Bringing family members

Spouse or analogous partner, dependent children and dependent ascendants who accompany or join the holder may apply jointly or later. Official FAQs state that family authorisations under this Ley 14/2013 framework authorise residence and work without the telework restrictions that apply to the main holder.

Additional financial means apply for each family member. Confirm relationship evidence with the consulate or UGE checklist you are using.

Renewal and longer-term planning

Renewal is a new assessment of the same underlying conditions, not an automatic extension. Keep employer letters, contracts, means evidence and Social Security compliance current before the card expires.

Common mistakes

• Assuming any remote job automatically qualifies without proving exclusive telematic performance
• Mixing this route with non-lucrative residence or treating NLV as prior lawful remote work
• Using an outdated SMI figure or inventing a euro threshold from a blog
• Ignoring Social Security registration or relying on travel insurance
• Applying from abroad for the UGE residence file instead of the consular visa
• Employees taking Spanish local employment that the FAQs say is outside the route
• Self-employed applicants exceeding the 20% Spanish professional-activity cap
• Missing apostille, legalisation or sworn-translation requirements

Real questions people ask

Is this the same as the non-lucrative visa?

No. Non-lucrative residence is built around living in Spain without labour or professional activity. International telework is a work-authorised remote route for foreign companies.

Can I work for Spanish clients?

Employees: official FAQs limit Spanish work to the foreign employer that supports the application. Self-employed: Spanish professional work may be possible up to 20% of total professional activity, while keeping the foreign professional relationship that justified the authorisation.

How much money do I need?

Use 200% of the current monthly SMI for the main applicant, plus 75% for the first family member and 25% for each further member. Check the current SMI publication when you assemble evidence.

Can I apply while already in Spain as a tourist?

You must be in a regular situation that the current rules accept for a UGE filing. Do not assume a short-stay visit can be converted without checking the lawful basis for your stay and the UGE acceptance criteria.

Do family members get work rights?

Official FAQs say yes for accompanying family authorisations under this framework, without the telework-only limit that applies to the main holder. Still verify the individual resolution and TIE annotations.

Next steps

1. Confirm that exclusive remote work for foreign companies matches how you actually earn.
2. Read the current UGE FAQs, documentation note and Ley 14/2013 articles 74 bis to 74 quinquies.
3. Decide consular visa versus in-Spain UGE filing based on where you are.
4. Map Social Security (employer registration, A1/cover certificate, or RETA) before you book irreversible travel.
5. Use the procedural guides for checklists, then verify every item against the authority that will decide your file.

Checked September 2026 · Not legal, tax or Social Security advice. Requirements, SMI amounts, fees and consular or UGE instructions can change. Always verify with the Spanish authorities and the office handling your application before filing.