Spain Digital Nomad Visa: Social Security, Family and Consulates

Spain's international teleworker residence lets non-EU nationals live in Spain while working remotely for companies based outside the country. You can apply for a one-year visa at the Spanish consulate where you legally reside, or, if you are already legally in Spain, apply to the UGE for a permit of up to three years. In 2026 the main applicant needs at least EUR 2,849 a month, and the requirement applicants most often underestimate is Social Security coverage, not income.

Facts checked: September 2026. Rules change — verify on the official sources linked in the text before you apply.

Two routes: consulate visa or application inside Spain

The route was created by Law 28/2022 (the "Startups Law"), which added articles 74 bis to 74 quinquies to Law 14/2013. It covers third-country nationals who work remotely, exclusively through digital means, for companies located outside Spain. There are two ways in.

1. Visa at a Spanish consulate abroad

If you do not live in Spain, you apply for the international telework visa at the Spanish consulate covering your place of legal residence. Under article 74 quater of Law 14/2013, the visa is valid for a maximum of one year (less if your work period is shorter) and is sufficient on its own to live and work remotely in Spain. The consulate's legal deadline to decide is 10 days, which can be extended if documents or an interview are requested, according to the Consulate General of Spain in London. Within 60 calendar days before the visa expires, you can apply for the residence permit from inside Spain.

2. Residence permit through the UGE

If you are already in Spain legally, for example as a visa-free visitor, you can apply online to the Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos (UGE). Article 74 quinquies sets a maximum validity of three years, unless a shorter work period is requested, with renewals for two-year periods while the conditions are still met. Article 76 gives the UGE 20 days from electronic submission to decide; if it does not, the application is treated as approved by positive administrative silence. Filing also extends your current legal stay until a decision is issued (Law 14/2013, art. 76).

After approval, if the permit is longer than six months, you still need to request a physical foreigner identity card (TIE). Positive silence does not issue the card for you.

EU, EEA and Swiss citizens do not use this route at all. They register as residents and request the EU citizen registration certificate within three months of entry (Policía Nacional).

Who qualifies: employee or professional

Article 74 bis of Law 14/2013 separates two profiles:

• Employees may work only for companies located outside Spain.
• Professionals (self-employed) may also work for a company in Spain, as long as that work does not exceed 20% of their total professional activity. The law measures activity, not a simple percentage of bank deposits.

Article 74 ter adds the core conditions, which the consulates repeat in their checklists:

• the company you work for has had real, continuous activity for at least one year;
• your employment or contractor relationship with it has existed for at least the last three months;
• documents confirm the work can be done remotely (for employees, an explicit authorization from the employer);
• you hold a university degree, vocational qualification or business school degree, or can prove at least three years of professional experience.

Article 62 adds the general conditions: legal stay, age 18+, a clean criminal record for the last two years of residence, health insurance from an insurer authorized in Spain, and the fee.

Income threshold for 2026, alone and with family

The requirement is 200% of the Spanish minimum wage (SMI) for the main applicant, plus 75% of the SMI for the first family member and 25% for each additional one, as listed by the Consulate General of Spain in Los Angeles. For 2026, Royal Decree 126/2026 sets the SMI at EUR 1,221 a month, with an annual minimum of EUR 17,094 (14 payments). The UGE applies these percentages to the annual SMI:

Source for the calculation: RD 126/2026 and the UGE requirements for international teleworkers. The amounts are gross, before tax and contributions. Any legal means of proof is accepted, such as an employment contract or a commercial contract, but you must show the funds are yours, lawful and available. Some consulate pages phrase the rule as "monthly 200% of the SMI", so confirm the exact figure your consulate applies before you finalize bank statements.

Social Security: the requirement that decides most files

Private health insurance does not replace Social Security. Before starting work in Spain you must be covered by an applicable Social Security system, and you sign a responsible declaration committing to it. The consulate checklist describes three options.

Employee of a foreign company: Spanish registration

The default option for employees is proof that the foreign employer has applied to register with Spanish Social Security, plus proof of the employee's affiliation. The foreign company then pays Spanish contributions. Many employers decline, which is a frequent reason remote employees cannot use the route.

Self-employed: registration in RETA

Professionals register in the special scheme for self-employed workers (RETA) and pay contributions based on their expected net income. For 2026, Order PJC/297/2026 sets the monthly contribution bases from EUR 653.59 (lowest bracket) up to a maximum of EUR 5,101.20. The actual contribution is a percentage of the base.

Keeping your home-country coverage: certificate of coverage

Registration in Spain can be replaced by "importing" coverage from your home system, but only where an international Social Security agreement with Spain exists and the home institution issues a certificate of applicable legislation for teleworkers. The consulate notes explicitly that only some countries issue this certificate. When such a certificate applies, it also replaces the private health insurance requirement (Consulate General of Spain in Los Angeles).

According to Spanish Social Security, Spain has bilateral agreements with, among others, the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, Korea, China, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Morocco. India is not on that list. For the United Kingdom, coordination runs through post-Brexit arrangements: HMRC issues a certificate of coverage (PDA1) for employees or self-employed people working temporarily in an EU country for up to two years (GOV.UK), and the London consulate lists forms CA3822 (employees) and CA3837 (self-employed) as accepted evidence. An agreement alone does not mean you qualify: ask your home institution in writing whether it will certify a remote worker living in Spain.

If you are insured in another EU country, ask that institution whether it can issue a portable document A1 for work in Spain, and confirm with the consulate or UGE that it will be accepted.

Bringing your spouse, children and parents

Under article 62.4 of Law 14/2013, family members can apply together with the main applicant, at the same time, or later. Eligible relatives, as listed by the consulate, are:

• spouse or partner (registered, or unregistered with proof of the relationship);
• minor children, and adult children who depend financially on the applicant and have not formed their own family unit;
• dependent parents.

Each family member files their own application and fee; adults also need a criminal record certificate. Relationship documents (marriage or birth certificates, partnership registration) must be legalized or apostilled and, where needed, officially translated into Spanish. When family applications are filed at the same time as the main one, they are decided at the same time.

Which consulate handles your application

A consulate only accepts applicants who legally reside in its district. Tourist status is not enough: the Los Angeles consulate states that B1/B2 visa holders must apply in their country of legal residence, and honorary consulates cannot process visas.

• United States: Spain has several consulates-general, each covering specific states. For example, Los Angeles covers Southern California, Arizona, Colorado and Utah, and the fee is paid by money order. Check your state's consulate on the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs site.
• United Kingdom: the London consulate receives applications through the BLS Spain Visa Application Centre, 20 St Andrew Street, London. The fee is paid in local currency and changes with exchange rates.
• Canada, Australia, India, Turkey and others: use the checklist of the consulate covering your region; formats and appointment systems differ.

Criminal record certificates generally should not be older than six months, and foreign documents must be apostilled or legalized (London consulate).

Taxes: a brief note on the Beckham regime

Living in Spain on this permit usually makes you a Spanish tax resident. Article 93 of the Personal Income Tax Law expressly lets employees holding the international telework visa opt for a special regime: the year of arrival plus five more years, taxed at 24% on qualifying employment income up to EUR 600,000 and 47% above that, provided you were not a Spanish tax resident in the previous five years. The option is exercised with Modelo 149 within six months of the start of activity shown in your Spanish Social Security registration or in the document keeping your home coverage (RD 439/2007, art. 116). Self-employed professionals are taxed under the ordinary rules; get tax advice before choosing between employee and contractor status.

What it costs

Who this is for — and who it is not for

A good fit if you:

• work for a foreign company that agrees to register in Spanish Social Security, or come from a country whose institution issues a teleworker certificate of coverage;
• are a freelancer with most of your clients outside Spain and ready to register as self-employed;
• earn above the threshold for your whole household and can document it for at least three months.

Not a good fit if you:

• live mostly on passive income, savings or pensions — a non-work residence route fits better; compare it with Portugal's D7 and D8 routes;
• work for a newly founded company (under one year of activity) or started the contract less than three months ago;
• plan to work mainly for Spanish clients;
• hold EU, EEA or Swiss citizenship (you register instead).

Common mistakes and reasons for refusal

• No valid Social Security option. An employer letter saying "we allow remote work" is not enough; the file needs Spanish registration, RETA, or an accepted certificate of coverage.
• Assuming an agreement covers you. Several countries have an agreement with Spain but do not issue certificates for remote workers living there.
• Income calculated for one person only. Families often forget the 75% and 25% add-ons.
• Company or contract too new. One year of company activity and three months of relationship are hard minimums.
• Documents without apostille or translation, or a criminal record certificate older than six months.
• Applying at the wrong consulate, or applying while in the country on a tourist visa.
• Letting conditions lapse. Renewal requires the original conditions, including Social Security, to still be met.
• Missing the Modelo 149 deadline if you intended to use the Beckham regime.

Filing on your own is legally possible. The cost of an error is usually a refusal, a new fee and lost months, which hurts most when a lease or school places depend on the date.