The long-awaited Spanish visa for digital nomads is now available.
Non-EU nationals have the opportunity to reside and work in Spain for a maximum of five years with a remote work visa.
It is a component of the new Startup Act, which was approved by parliament in November 2022 and intends to encourage entrepreneurship and advance the nation’s innovation landscape.
Other European countries, like Italy, Greece, Croatia, and Portugal, have benefited from the development of remote employment in recent years by adopting various digital nomad programmes.
When Economic Affairs Minister Nadia Calvio stated that Spain wanted to “attract and retain foreign and national talents by helping remote workers and digital nomads set up in Spain,” she hinted at the possibility of a visa.
Who may apply for a digital nomad visa in Spain?
Non-EU nationals who work remotely for non-Spanish businesses are eligible for Spain’s digital nomad visa. The maximum percentage of applicants’ income that comes from Spanish companies is 20%.
The visa is open to both remote employees employed by a single company outside of Spain and self-employed freelancers with several clients.
The applicants must be citizens of a country outside the European Economic Area. They cannot have lived in Spain within the five years before applying, nor may they be doing so at the time of their application.
They must demonstrate that they had a working relationship with their clients or business for more than three months prior to applying, and the business they are employed by must have been in operation for at least a year.
They must be able to show that they have an employment contract or, if freelancing, that they have been consistently hired by a business outside of Spain. They must also be able to show that their job can be performed remotely.
