Spain's digital nomad visa was created by the 2022 Startup Law (Ley de Startups) and began issuing in early 2023. It lets non-EU nationals reside in Spain while working remotely for foreign companies or a diversified portfolio of foreign clients, with a clear path to a multi-year residence permit and — uniquely among European nomad visas — a favorable 24% flat tax regime for qualifying applicants under the Beckham Law.
Spain is one of the only large-economy EU countries whose nomad visa explicitly permits up to 20% of income from Spanish clients, making it meaningfully more flexible than Portugal's D8 or Greece's equivalent. Combined with the country's cost-of-living variance (Madrid is expensive, Valencia and Seville are not) and a broad international community, Spain has become one of the most-researched options in the nomad-visa universe.
At a glance
- Minimum income: 200% of the Spanish minimum interprofessional wage (SMI), ~€2,849/month in 2026 (~€34,188/year)
- Duration: 12-month national visa, then a 3-year residence permit, renewable for 2 more years
- Processing time: 15–45 days at UGE (from inside Spain), 30–60 days at most consulates
- Family allowed: Yes — spouse, children, dependent parents/adult children
- Path to citizenship: 10 years of legal residence (2 for Latin American nationals)
- Tax residency trigger: 183 days in a calendar year, or economic/personal center-of-interest test
- Spanish-client cap: Up to 20% of gross income may come from Spanish entities
Two application paths
Spain uniquely offers two routes, and they behave differently:
- Consular route (outside Spain): Apply at a Spanish consulate in your country of legal residence. Issues a 12-month visa; you then convert to a 3-year residence permit after arrival.
- In-country route (UGE): Enter Spain as a tourist (Schengen 90-day) and apply directly at the Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos for a 3-year residence permit in a single step. Processing is faster (often 15–20 business days) and silence-positive — if UGE does not respond in 20 working days, the application is deemed approved by law.
Most recent applicants prefer the in-country UGE route for speed and the positive-silence backstop. Consular processing varies widely: Madrid's UGE is fast; a consulate in a secondary city can run 60+ days.
Before choosing either path, verify the detailed Spain DNV requirements: income consistency, foreign-employer age, degree or professional-experience proof, health insurance, and the 20% Spanish-client cap decide whether the application is viable. The nomad visa eligibility checker compares Spain's €2,849/month floor against your current income and family size against the other 12 active programs in our planning toolkit before you commit to the consular slot.