Spain’s new 2023 Digital Nomad visa is designed to attract digital nomads and remote workers to the country. The visa allows individuals to live and work in Spain for up to five years. Benefits of this visa include the ability to live and work in Spain while maintaining the freedom to travel and explore the country, and the ability to take advantage of the country’s relatively low cost of living.
Additionally, Spain is known for its culture, history, and beautiful landscapes, making it an attractive destination for digital nomads. Indeed, as the typical 9-5 model went out of the window, many countries are eager to attract a young, healthy, and educated workforce, without putting a strain on domestic social services. Lots of countries have set up digital nomad / remote worker visas for young talents. Spain is one of the latest one to offer this type of visa.
Are you eligible?
This visa is targeting non-EU citizens who have not been in Spain in the last 5 years. Indeed, if you already are an EU citizen, you can freely travel, work and/or live in any EU country. There are still some administrative formalities to conduct, but it is your right to settle. Thus, foreign employees from Non-European Economic Area countries, particularly those who are working remotely as freelancers or entrepreneurs are the primary target. It can also benefit Remote Workers for foreign companies.
It is worth noting that UK citizens are eligible to this visa, as the United Kingdom is no longer part of the EEA since Brexit.
More specifically, what are the details?
The ‘Spanish Visa for Remote Workers’ has been created for foreign employees from Non-European Economic Area (EEA Countries). Thus, this visa is a viable option for UK citizens. People with EU passports or arriving from Schengen countries can already work remotely in the country for under 6 months of the year without needing to register officially.
You can apply for this visa as long as you’re employed by any non-Spanish companies or have an income of less than 20% of it earned from Spanish companies.
The visa lasts for up to five years (one-year initially, followed by two-year renewals), which is great and avoids the trouble of looking for a new place every year. Moreover, the visa extends to the family of the main applicant.
Tax breaks for the employee (DNV applicant) apply allowing digital nomads to pay a flat tax rate of only 24% on the first €600,000 of gross annual earnings over a five-year period, instead of the traditional incremental tax tier scale.
Which documents are needed?
Identity
The required documents are aligned with the objective of the visa. Beyond the basics of proving your identity, you also need to demonstrate that you are a good citizen by providing background checks. The easiest is to request your criminal record in the countries you have previously lived. Moreover, you should not have resided in Spain during the previous 5 years.
Qualification
You need to prove you have formal academic qualifications i.e. a university degree, business school or professional qualification.
Proof of income and professional experience
You need to demonstrate that you are earning a monthly income of between €1,000 – €3,000 (range of ~US$1,100 to ~US$3,200), and you have worked for at least 3 years. You can produce your salary slips, work contracts or any other documents supporting your application. Moreover, you should also present a CV and cover letter along with your application form and health insurance.
Private Health Insurance
Indeed, this visa allows you to work remotely and reside in the country, but doesn’t allow you to benefit from social services including public healthcare. You need to demonstrate that you are covered, and SafetyWing travel medical insurance should meet this criteria.
What’s next?
It is fantastic that the world is progressively opening up more for Digital Nomads! Moreover, it is reassuring to remove the grey area surrounding the legal status of a digital nomad by allowing him/her to live and work remotely from Spain. However, the Digital Nomad Visa was very recently approved just before Christmas on December 23rd 2022, with an effective date on January 1st 2023. As it is still very fresh, application forms and procedures haven’t been ironed yet, and are still difficult to obtain. Set up your Google Alerts to stay updated on the latest application details.
If you are interested to understant how the tax system works in Spain, we recommend you to check our post about How to tackle Spain’s tax system for early retirees.
Why would you (not) consider this visa? Which criteria are you using to evaluate this type of digital nomad visa? As new information keeps being updated, please share your insights about the process and documents, for the benefit of other digital nomads. Thank you, and Happy Fire Cracking!
Extra sources
Spain Visa – https://www.spainvisa.eu/spain-visa-digital-nomads/ Mondaq – https://www.mondaq.com/work-visas/1214332/spain-proposes-visa-for-digital-nomads
Legal Notes – https://www.spanishpropertyinsight.com/2022/12/29/spains-digital-nomad-visa-approved/ Update to Visa laws and critique [in Spanish] (2023) – https://www.rtve.es/noticias/20230103/visado-nomadas-digitales-espana/2411770.shtml?fbclid=IwAR2KDBybL1nKIuw4_wlOexPAAUs-ONu9LpK9zEJMmlkz8FJcUb7AYsynVtY
Featured image: unsplash.com
Disclaimer
Please note the information provided in this post is of general interest only and is not to be construed or intended as a substitute for professional legal advice.
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