The digital nomad visa
TL;DR
- Spain’s digital nomad visa (DNV) is the residence route for remote workers employed by — or invoicing — companies outside Spain, created by the Ley de Startups.
- Income threshold: by the letter of the rules 200% of SMI = €2,442/month; consular practice often computes from the annual SMI = €2,849/month. Safe figure: at least €2,849/month.
- On an employment contract you may work only for companies outside Spain; the 20% Spanish-income allowance applies only to self-employed (contrato mercantil) applicants.
- Applied for inside Spain, the first authorisation runs up to 3 years; through a consulate you get a visa of up to 1 year first.
- The UGE-CE must decide within 20 days, and silence counts as approval.
Facts verified 10 August 2026 against the BOE (Ley 14/2013, consolidated; RD 126/2026), inclusion.gob.es (UGE-CE FAQ) and exteriores.gob.es
The digital nomad visa — formally the visa and permit for teletrabajadores de carácter internacional — was created by the Ley de Startups (Ley 28/2022), which wrote it into Ley 14/2013 as articles 74 bis and following. It is the one route in visas and residency in Spain designed for people whose income is active but foreign: employees of non-Spanish companies and freelancers with non-Spanish clients. Its trademarks are speed — files are decided by the UGE-CE within 20 days — and a three-year initial permit if you apply from inside Spain.
Updated 10 August 2026
Key facts
| Legal basis | Ley 14/2013, arts. 74 bis–76 (added by the Ley de Startups) |
|---|---|
| Income threshold | 200% of SMI — €2,442/mo by the letter; €2,849/mo in consular practice |
| Family members | +75% of SMI (€915.75/mo) for the first; +25% (€305.25/mo) each additional |
| Spanish income | Employees: none allowed. Self-employed: up to 20% of total |
| Track record | Employer/client company active ≥ 1 year; your relationship ≥ 3 months |
| First permit | Authorisation up to 3 years (inside Spain); visa up to 1 year (consulate) |
| Decision | UGE-CE, 20 days, positive administrative silence; fee €73.26 |
The income threshold: a fork, not a number
By the letter of the UGE-CE rules the threshold is a monthly amount representing 200% of the SMI (Spain’s minimum wage). With the SMI at €1,221/month for 2026 (RD 126/2026), that is €2,442 per month. But the SMI is paid in 14 instalments — €17,094 per year — and part of the consular network and many case officers compute 200% of the annual SMI instead: €34,188/year, or €2,849 per month.
Both readings are in live use, and applications sitting between €2,442 and €2,849 are approved at some desks and refused at others. The practical fix: show at least €2,849 per month and the fork stops mattering.
Family members raise the bar: +75% of SMI (€915.75/month) for the first dependant and +25% of SMI (€305.25/month) for each one after that.
Who qualifies
Three tests, all set in Ley 14/2013:
- A real, established company on the other side. The foreign employer or client must have been carrying out "actividad real y continuada" for at least one year (art. 74 ter).
- An existing relationship. Your employment or professional relationship with that company must be at least three months old on the application date (art. 74 ter).
- Qualification or experience. A degree from a university, business school or vocational programme — or at least three years of professional experience in your field (art. 74 bis.2).
The work itself must be performable "exclusively through the use of computer, telematic and telecommunication means and systems".
The foreign employer clause and the 20% cap
This is where most summaries get the law wrong, so split it by status:
- Employees (contrato laboral): you may work "solo… para empresas radicadas fuera del territorio nacional" — only for companies based outside Spain (Ley 14/2013, art. 74 bis.1). An employment contract with a Spanish company is not allowed on this permit. Not 20% of one — none.
- Self-employed professionals (contrato mercantil): you may take Spanish clients, provided their share does not exceed 20% of your total professional activity (art. 74 bis.1).
The widely repeated "everyone may earn 20% in Spain" collapses these two rules into one — an error that surfaces at renewal.
Two application routes — and why "3 years" only applies to one
From inside Spain. Anyone in Spain "de forma regular" — which includes a lawful tourist entry — can apply directly to the UGE-CE (Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos) for the residence authorisation (art. 74 quinquies). This is the route that yields the three-year initial permit, renewable in two-year blocks. The application fee is €73.26.
Through a consulate. From abroad you apply for the visa, which is issued for a maximum of one year (art. 74 quater). To stay longer you then request the three-year authorisation from inside Spain, within a 60-day window before the visa expires.
Either way the UGE-CE must resolve within 20 days, and if it does not, the application "se entenderá estimada por silencio administrativo" — approved by silence (art. 76). That deadline, not any agency’s "express service", is what makes the DNV fast.
Who the DNV is not for
- People with passive income only. Pensions, rent and dividends do not meet the remote-work test — that profile belongs on the non-lucrative visa, which in exchange does not permit work of any kind, including remote work for a foreign employer.
- Anyone with a Spanish employment contract, or planning one — see the clause above.
- EU, EEA and Swiss citizens. They need no visa at all: their route is EU citizen registration, a €12 certificate, not a permit.
⚠ Scams to avoid
- "Guaranteed approval" packages. The only guarantee in the law is the 20-day deadline with positive silence — the outcome itself is never guaranteed, by anyone.
- "The 20% rule lets you take a part-time Spanish job". False. On an employment contract, Spanish employers are excluded entirely; the 20% allowance exists only for self-employed applicants invoicing under a contrato mercantil.
- "€2,442/month is all you ever need". Applications at the bare-letter figure are refused at desks computing from the annual SMI; a seller quoting the low number without the fork is optimising your file for rejection.
FAQ
What income do I need for the digital nomad visa in 2026?
By the letter, €2,442/month (200% of the monthly SMI); parts of the consular network compute €2,849/month from the annual SMI. Show at least €2,849/month to be safe, plus €915.75 for the first family member and €305.25 for each additional one.
Can I work for Spanish clients on the DNV?
Only if you are self-employed under a contrato mercantil, and only up to 20% of your total activity. As an employee you may work solely for companies based outside Spain.
How long does the decision take?
The UGE-CE has 20 days; if no decision is issued, the application is approved by positive administrative silence (Ley 14/2013, art. 76).
Can I apply while in Spain as a tourist?
Yes. Anyone lawfully present in Spain — including on a tourist entry — can file the residence authorisation with the UGE-CE and receive the initial permit of up to three years. From abroad, you start with a consular visa of up to one year.
Sources:
Ley 14/2013, arts. 74 bis, 74 ter, 74 quater, 74 quinquies and 76 — consolidated text (BOE); RD 126/2026 (SMI 2026, BOE-A-2026-3815); UGE-CE FAQ on teletrabajadores de carácter internacional (inclusion.gob.es); Spanish consular requirements (exteriores.gob.es), retrieved 10 August 2026.
Reviewed by the Happy Residence S.L. team. Every figure on this page is checked against the official source on the date shown above; SMI-linked thresholds are re-verified after each annual SMI decree.
We are an administrative assistance service, not a public administration.