Spain's Digital Nomad Visa in 2026: Requirements, Income and How Long You Can Stay

The legal basis: Spain's Startups Law

Spain's digital nomad visa was created by Law 28/2022, known as the Ley de Startups (Startups Law), published in the Boletín Oficial del Estado in December 2022 and in force since January 2023. It is a specific residence authorization for international teleworkers — people who work remotely for an employer or clients based outside Spain — and it sits alongside, not instead of, Spain's older non-lucrative and work visas. It is not a tourist permit with a nicer name; it is a proper residence authorization with its own income test, its own renewal rules and its own tax options.

The income threshold in 2026

The visa's income requirement is pegged to Spain's annual minimum wage (SMI), so the euro figure moves every year. For 2026, the widely reported threshold for a single applicant is around 2,849 EUR per month, based on 200% of the current SMI. Family members increase the requirement: commonly cited add-ons are roughly 916 EUR for the first dependent and about 305 EUR for each additional one. Because this number changes annually and different sources round it slightly differently depending on when the SMI was last updated, confirm the exact current figure with the Spanish consulate or an immigration lawyer before you calculate your own eligibility — do not rely on a number you saw a year ago.

The remote-work rule that catches people off guard

The visa is built for people whose income comes from outside Spain. In practice this means no more than roughly 20% of your professional income can come from Spanish clients or a Spanish employer; the rest — the large majority — has to come from abroad. Applicants also typically need to show at least three months of an existing working relationship with their employer or main clients before applying, and if you are an employee rather than a freelancer, the employing company generally needs to show it has been operating for a certain period already. This is the detail that most disqualifies people who assume 'I work remotely' is enough on its own.

How long the permit actually lasts

There are two entry points, and they produce different initial durations. Applying from your home country through a Spanish consulate gets you an initial visa valid for up to one year. Applying from inside Spain, if you are already legally present, gets you a residence authorization valid for up to three years instead. From there, the permit can be renewed, and the combined maximum most sources describe is up to five years of residence under this specific route before you would need to move to a different status (such as long-term residence). None of this makes the visa 'permanent' at any point before that — it is, by design, a temporary residence authorization, which matters a great deal for the car tax question covered in the next article in this series.

The tax election that quietly matters later

Digital nomad visa holders can generally opt into a special tax regime, often compared to the Beckham Law regime used by relocating employees, under which Spanish-source income is taxed at a flat rate (commonly cited as 24% up to a threshold) and, crucially, worldwide income earned outside Spain is not taxed in Spain at all. Choosing this option effectively has you filing and being treated, for income tax purposes, closer to a non-resident than an ordinary Spanish tax resident, even though you are physically living in Spain under a resident permit. Alternatively, you can decline this election and be taxed as an ordinary Spanish tax resident on worldwide income under standard IRPF rules. This is not a minor administrative footnote — it shapes how convincingly you can later argue, to a completely different authority, that you have transferred your 'habitual residence' to Spain for the purposes of importing a car tax-free. More on that in the next article.

Quick eligibility checklist

• Remote work for a non-Spanish employer or clients, with Spanish-source income capped at roughly 20% of the total.
• Monthly income at or above the current threshold (around 2,849 EUR for a single applicant in 2026, subject to annual change).
• A clean criminal record for the last five years, in Spain and your country of residence.
• Private health insurance covering Spain, or access to Spanish public healthcare via a bilateral agreement.
• A university degree, professional certification, or at least three years of relevant work experience.
• Proof of at least three months' existing relationship with your employer or main clients.

Frequently asked questions

Does holding the digital nomad visa automatically make me a Spanish tax resident?

Not automatically in every practical sense — it depends on how many days you actually spend in Spain and which tax election you make. Spending more than 183 days a year in Spain generally triggers tax residence under ordinary IRPF rules regardless of visa type, but the special non-resident-style election available to nomad visa holders is specifically designed to change how that residence is taxed, not whether you are physically resident.

Can my partner and children come with me on this visa?

Yes, family reunification is built into the route, with the income requirement increasing per additional family member as noted above. Each family member generally receives their own residence card tied to the main applicant's permit.