VAMOS Digital Nomad Visa Spain 2026: Requirements & Cost
Live in Spain while working remotely for a foreign employer or clients. Here is the full 2026 income table, the UGE-versus-consulate decision, the document checklist, timeline, and our fixed legal fee, from a Malaga-based abogada colegiada.
- Abogada colegiada
- Since 2009
- English + Spanish
- Malaga office
Working remotely, already in Spain or planning the move?
We check your eligibility, decide whether the UGE or a consulate route fits you better, build your file, and carry you through to your TIE card in Malaga, for one fixed fee.
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The Digital Nomad Visa lets you live in Spain while working remotely for a foreign employer or clients, if you can show recurring income of about 2,763 EUR per month for the main applicant in 2026, plus about 1,036 EUR for the first family member and 345 EUR for each additional one. You can apply from inside Spain through the UGE in about 2 to 4 weeks, or from your home consulate in 4 to 8 weeks. Our fixed fee is 900 EUR for the main applicant plus 200 EUR per family member.
What the Digital Nomad Visa is, and who it fits
The Digital Nomad Visa, created by Spain’s 2022 startup law (Ley 28/2022), is the residency route for people who keep working for an employer or clients based outside Spain while living here. Unlike the non-lucrative visa, it does not ask you to stop working, it asks you to prove your work happens for someone outside Spain. That single distinction is the whole logic of the permit, and it is also where most confusion starts.
It fits remote employees with a foreign employment contract, freelancers and consultants invoicing clients abroad, and founders of a US LLC who continue running that business remotely from Spain. Some later choose to open a Spanish company as the business grows; see our Corporate Services guide for when that switch makes sense. It also fits couples where one partner works remotely and the other does not, since the visa covers the whole family under the main applicant’s file.
It does not fit people whose income is mostly Spanish, people looking to be hired locally, or anyone hoping to use it as a shortcut into the Spanish job market. If your real plan is local employment, the work visa is the correct route, not this one.
Rule of thumb: if the people paying you are outside Spain, the digital nomad visa is usually the right door. If the people paying you are inside Spain, it almost certainly is not.
2026 income requirements
The income test is pegged to 200% of Spain’s SMI, the national minimum wage, for the main applicant, with smaller add-ons per family member. In 2026 that works out as follows.
| Applicant | Requirement | Approx. 2026 monthly figure |
|---|---|---|
| Main applicant | 200% of SMI | €2,763/month |
| First family member | Additional percentage of SMI | +€1,036/month |
| Each additional family member | Additional percentage of SMI | +€345/month |
Income can come from a single foreign employer, several foreign clients, or a mix of both, as long as it is documented with contracts, invoices, and bank statements covering the last few months. Up to 20% of total professional income is allowed to come from Spanish clients or companies without losing eligibility, a common misconception is that any Spanish income disqualifies you outright, which is not the case within that limit.
What each household size has to show
Applications are refused on arithmetic more often than on principle, so here is the same rule already applied to the household sizes we file most. Each row adds the first family member at +€1,036 per month and every further member at +€345 per month, on top of the main applicant’s figure.
| Household | Monthly income to show | The same figure per year |
|---|---|---|
| Main applicant alone | €2,763/month | €33,156/year |
| Couple (main applicant + partner) | €3,799/month | €45,588/year |
| Couple + 1 child | €4,144/month | €49,728/year |
| Couple + 2 children | €4,489/month | €53,868/year |
| Each further family member | +€345/month | +€4,140/year |
Because the threshold is a percentage of the SMI, the euro figure moves every time the minimum wage is revised. The figures above are the ones verified for this page in July 2026. Other 2026 sources commonly cite a main-applicant benchmark closer to 2,849 EUR per month, derived from an SMI of about 1,424.50 EUR. We check the figure against the SMI in force on the day you file, and we always build the file with a margin above the minimum rather than exactly on it.
A single applicant shows about 2,763 EUR per month, a couple about 3,799 EUR, and a couple with two children about 4,489 EUR, which is 53,868 EUR across a year. Up to 20% of that income may come from Spanish clients; the rest has to come from outside Spain, documented with contracts, invoices and bank statements.
UGE route vs consulate route
There are two different doors into the same permit, and choosing the right one saves weeks.
UGE (Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estrategicos)
The UGE is a centralised, Madrid-based immigration unit created to fast-track investment, entrepreneurship, and highly-skilled cases, including digital nomad visas. If you are already legally in Spain, for example on a tourist stay, you can file directly with the UGE without leaving the country. The legal maximum decision time is 20 business days, and silence after 10 business days counts as a favourable resolution, which makes this route genuinely fast when the file is complete.
Consulate route
If you are still abroad, you apply at the Spanish consulate covering your place of residence, following the standard national visa process. It typically takes 4 to 8 weeks for a decision, then you travel to Spain and convert the visa into a TIE card once here. This route suits people who prefer to arrive already authorised rather than travelling on a tourist stay and filing once in the country.
Neither route is objectively better: the right choice depends on where you are standing when you are ready to file, and we help you decide that on the free call before any paperwork starts.
Document checklist
- Valid passport with at least one year of remaining validity
- University degree, or at least three years of demonstrable professional experience in your field
- Proof your employer or business has operated for at least one year
- Employment contract, or services contracts and invoices if you are a freelancer or business owner
- Proof of remote-work income meeting the 2026 thresholds above, typically the last 3 to 6 months
- Social security registration, certificate of coverage (A1 for EU-linked employers), or Spanish autonomo registration where applicable
- Private health insurance policy with full coverage in Spain, no copayments
- Criminal record certificate from every country lived in for the last 5 years, apostilled and translated
- Written declaration or employer authorisation confirming remote work is permitted
- For accompanying family: civil documents (marriage, birth certificates), apostilled and translated, plus their own health insurance
How to apply for the Digital Nomad Visa, step by step
If you file through the UGE from inside Spain, budget 2 to 4 weeks for the authorisation itself, then the usual 4 to 8 weeks for a TIE appointment and card in Malaga once approved. If you file at a consulate abroad, budget 4 to 8 weeks for the visa, then travel, then the same TIE stage once you arrive. Either way, expect a realistic total of 2 to 4 months from a complete file to a physical TIE card in hand.
Below is the same journey broken into the eight steps we actually run for clients, with who does what, how long it takes, and the mistake that most often costs people the file.
Step 1: Confirm the digital nomad visa is your route
Two tests decide everything that follows. Your income has to come from an employer or clients based outside Spain, with no more than 20% of your total professional income from Spanish companies, and you need either a university degree or at least three years of demonstrable professional experience in your field. Your employer, or your own business, also has to have been trading for at least a year.
Timing: one free consultation. Common mistake: treating Spanish clients as harmless. They are allowed up to 20% of total income and disqualifying above it.
Step 2: Work out your exact income target
Take your household size to the table above and fix the monthly and annual figure you need to evidence. This is the number your contracts, invoices and bank statements have to support consistently, not a peak month. Where income is variable, we average it across the last 3 to 6 months and present the evidence in that form.
Timing: same day. Common mistake: proving the main applicant’s threshold and forgetting that each family member raises it.
Step 3: Choose your door, UGE or consulate
If you are already legally in Spain, for example on a tourist stay, you can file with the UGE from inside the country and the initial permit is granted for 3 years. If you are still abroad, you apply at the Spanish consulate covering your place of residence and the initial grant is a 1-year visa that you convert once you are here. The route also sets your speed: the UGE has a legal maximum of 20 business days with silence after 10 business days counting as a favourable resolution, while consulates typically take 4 to 8 weeks.
Timing: decided on the free call, before any document is ordered. Common mistake: starting the consulate paperwork while already in Spain, or the reverse, and losing weeks rebuilding the file for the other route.
Step 4: Build and legalise the document file
This is the stage you control and the one that decides your calendar, because criminal record certificates and apostilles are issued by other countries on their own schedule. You need the passport, the degree or professional experience evidence, proof of at least a year of employer or business trading history, the employment or services contract, income evidence for the last 3 to 6 months, social security registration or a certificate of coverage, private health insurance covering Spain fully with no copayments, and a criminal record certificate from every country you have lived in over the last 5 years, apostilled and sworn-translated. Family members add their own apostilled civil documents and their own insurance.
Timing: the variable stage; start the criminal record certificates first, since they are the slowest and they expire. Common mistake: a services contract drafted so that it reads like local employment rather than remote work for a foreign client.
Step 5: Set up filing access and pay the government fee
UGE files are submitted electronically, which in practice means a digital certificate from the FNMT or a Cl@ve login and the Ministry’s immigration filing portal, commonly referenced as expinterweb.inclusion.gob.es or Mercurio. Consulate files instead need an appointment booked with the consulate that covers your address. Either way the government tasa is paid before or at filing: on the fee note further down this page the UGE and visa tasas run roughly €73 to €120 depending on the route.
Timing: consulates commonly quote a wait of around two to four weeks for a national visa appointment, so book it before the file is finished. Common mistake: waiting until every document is in hand before booking, then losing a month to the appointment queue.
Step 6: File the application
We submit the file as your representative, either electronically to the UGE or through the consulate with the national visa application form, biometrics and the paid tasa receipt. Family members are filed alongside the main applicant, not afterwards, so the household is decided in one resolution.
Timing: one working day once the file is complete. Common mistake: filing family members separately and ending up with mismatched permit dates.
Step 7: Decision, then entry into Spain
Through the UGE the legal maximum is 20 business days, silence after 10 business days counts as a favourable resolution, and complete files commonly clear in 2 to 4 weeks. Through a consulate, budget 4 to 8 weeks for the decision, then collect the visa and travel. Any request for further documents from the authority is answered within the deadline it sets; missing that deadline, not the original gap, is what usually turns a fixable file into a refusal.
Timing: 2 to 4 weeks (UGE) or 4 to 8 weeks (consulate). Common mistake: being uncontactable during the decision window.
Step 8: Empadronamiento, TIE appointment and card in Malaga
Once you are in Spain you register your address at the town hall (empadronamiento), then request the TIE, the physical foreigner identity card, at the Oficina de Extranjeros or comisaria covering your actual address, Malaga included, regardless of where the file was processed. That means a cita previa, fingerprinting and the card tax, currently €16.08 to €19.30. The card application itself is the standard EX-17 form. We book the cita previa, prepare the fingerprinting file and go with you if you want us there.
Timing: 4 to 8 weeks from appointment to card in hand in Malaga. Common mistake: underestimating Malaga’s cita previa competition and leaving the booking until after arrival.
The same eight steps as a timeline
| Stage | Who acts | Typical time |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility check and route decision | You and us | One free call |
| Documents, apostilles, sworn translations | You, on our checklist | The variable stage, set by foreign issuers |
| Consulate appointment (consulate route) | You | Commonly around 2 to 4 weeks to get a slot |
| UGE decision (filed inside Spain) | UGE | Legal maximum 20 business days, favourable silence after 10, in practice 2 to 4 weeks |
| Consular decision (filed abroad) | Consulate | 4 to 8 weeks |
| Entry, empadronamiento, TIE cita and card | You and us, in Malaga | 4 to 8 weeks |
| Realistic total, complete file to TIE in hand | 2 to 4 months |
Eight steps: confirm the route, fix your income target, choose UGE or consulate, build and legalise the file, set up filing access and pay the tasa, file, get the decision and enter Spain, then empadronamiento and the TIE in Malaga. Filed from inside Spain the decision has a 20-business-day legal maximum; from a consulate budget 4 to 8 weeks. Realistic total, 2 to 4 months.
The initial permit runs for 3 years if granted through the UGE, or 1 year if granted through a consulate visa that you later convert once in Spain. It renews in two-year blocks after that, and after five years of continuous legal residence you become eligible for permanent residency.
Applying from the UK, Canada, Australia or the US
The income test, the 20% Spanish-income limit and the document list are the same whichever passport you hold. What changes is the chain that produces those documents and the office that receives them.
Applying from the United States
Your file goes to the Spanish consular office with jurisdiction over your place of legal residence, not the nearest one geographically. Spain runs eight consulates general, in Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco and San Juan de Puerto Rico, plus the Consular Section of the Embassy in Washington DC, which covers DC, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina. Each office has a defined district and filing at the wrong one costs you the queue. Districts follow state lines in most of the country, but California is divided by county between the Los Angeles and San Francisco consulates general, so check the county list before you book. Louisiana files through Houston, because the Spanish office in that state is an honorary consulate and cannot take a visa application.
The apostille chain is the part Americans consistently underestimate. The criminal record document is an FBI background check, a federal report rather than a state one, apostilled by the US Department of State. Birth and marriage certificates run a separate track: they are state-issued, so their apostille comes from the competent authority in the issuing state. That is the Secretary of State in most states, the Office of the Lieutenant Governor in Alaska, Hawaii and Utah, and a separate designated office in Washington DC and Puerto Rico, so check the issuing jurisdiction before you send anything. Requesting the underlying document, then its apostille, then the sworn translation is three sequential steps that commonly take four to ten weeks combined, and consulates generally want the certificate to be no older than three to six months at filing. The wider American picture, including tax, is on our Spain legal services for Americans page.
Applying from the United Kingdom
Since the end of free movement a British applicant sits in the same immigration position as any other non-EU national, so the digital nomad visa is an ordinary consular filing. Spain maintains consulates general in London, Manchester and Edinburgh, each with jurisdiction based on your registered UK address rather than on which office is easiest to reach, and the file is lodged through the BLS International visa centre acting for that consulate, with appointments booked only on the BLS website.
The criminal record document is an ACRO Police Certificate from the ACRO Criminal Records Office, not a Disclosure and Barring Service check, which then needs an apostille from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and a sworn Spanish translation before Spain will recognise it. Birth and marriage certificates come from the General Register Office, or the devolved equivalent in Scotland or Northern Ireland, then take an FCDO apostille and a certified Spanish translation, three sequential steps that commonly run four to eight weeks together and longer during FCDO peak periods. Consulates commonly want the certificate to be no older than three to six months at filing. Health cover is worth settling early too: the S1 route belongs to UK state pensioners, so digital nomad applicants normally need a private policy with no co-payments instead. See our Spain legal services for UK citizens page for the rest of the British position.
Applying from Canada
Canada is covered by three offices, and the split is narrower than most applicants assume. The Consulate General in Toronto covers Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario outside the National Capital Region, Saskatchewan and the northern territories. The Consulate General in Montreal covers Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec outside Gatineau, and Newfoundland and Labrador. The Embassy in Ottawa covers only Ottawa, Gatineau and the immediate National Capital Region. Toronto and Montreal book appointments by email, with Toronto requiring a specific subject-line format or the request can go unprocessed, while the Embassy in Ottawa books through its own online appointment system and takes the scanned file by email afterwards. None of the three uses a BLS or VFS visa centre.
Since Canada joined the Hague Apostille Convention on 11 January 2024 the document chain runs on two tracks rather than one. The RCMP-level criminal record check is federal and is apostilled by Global Affairs Canada, currently around 25 business days plus mailing each way. Budget the real uncertainty for the RCMP check itself, which can run from a few days to about 120 business days if your fingerprints need manual review. Birth certificates, marriage certificates and notarized documents are provincial, and which office apostilles them depends on where they were issued or notarized. Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Saskatchewan have their own apostille offices. Everywhere else, including Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and the three territories, those documents go to Global Affairs Canada. Every apostilled document then needs a sworn Spanish translation by a MAEC-registered traductor jurado, not a Canadian court-certified translator. Sending a document to the wrong authority gets it bounced back and costs weeks. Our Spain legal services for Canadians page maps the whole chain.
Applying from Australia
Three Spanish posts take visa files in Australia, and jurisdiction follows your registered address rather than distance. The Consulate General in Sydney covers New South Wales, Queensland and the Northern Territory. The Consulate General in Melbourne covers Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania. The Consular Section of the Embassy in Canberra covers the Australian Capital Territory and Queanbeyan. Filing with the wrong one causes delays or a rejection on jurisdiction grounds.
The criminal record document is an Australian Federal Police (AFP) National Police Check, a federal certificate rather than a state one, and it must be the name and fingerprint version rather than the cheaper name-only check. Fingerprints are taken at a police station and AFP quotes roughly 15 to 30 business days for that check. The certificate then needs an apostille from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia’s designated authority under the Hague Apostille Convention. DFAT turnaround moves on its own schedule and can run considerably longer than applicants expect during seasonal peaks, while most consulates want the finished document to be no older than three months at filing, so start the AFP check the same week you decide to move rather than the month before you file. Birth and marriage certificates follow the related path of state or territory registry, then DFAT apostille, then certified Spanish translation. Medicare has no reciprocal healthcare agreement with Spain, so a private policy with no co-payments is required in the same way it is for American and Canadian applicants. See our Spain legal services for Australians page for the full Australian route.
| Applying from | Criminal record certificate | Apostilled by | Consulate network |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | FBI background check, federal | US Department of State; state-issued documents by the competent authority in that state, usually the Secretary of State | Eight consulates general plus the Embassy consular section in Washington DC, each with a defined district based on your state of legal residence |
| United Kingdom | ACRO Police Certificate, issued by the ACRO Criminal Records Office | Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office | London, Manchester and Edinburgh, by registered address, filed through BLS International |
| Canada | RCMP-level check, federal | Global Affairs Canada; provincial documents by your province in AB, BC, ON, QC and SK, and by Global Affairs Canada for the other provinces and territories | Toronto and Montreal by email, the Embassy in Ottawa by online booking |
| Australia | AFP National Police Check, federal, name and fingerprint check | Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade | Sydney and Melbourne, plus the Embassy consular section in Canberra for ACT and Queanbeyan, by registered address |
The digital nomad visa requirements do not change with your nationality, but the paperwork route does. Americans file an FBI check apostilled by the US Department of State at the Spanish consulate general covering their state, or at the Embassy consular section in Washington DC. Britons file an ACRO Police Certificate apostilled by the FCDO through London, Manchester or Edinburgh. Canadians split a federal RCMP check apostilled by Global Affairs Canada from provincial documents apostilled by their province where one has its own apostille office, or by Global Affairs Canada where it does not, booking Toronto or Montreal by email and Ottawa through the Embassy’s online appointment system. Australians file an AFP check apostilled by DFAT through Sydney or Melbourne, or through the Embassy consular section in Canberra if they live in the ACT or Queanbeyan. If you are already legally in Spain, the UGE route skips the consulate question entirely.
From first permit to permanent residency and citizenship
The digital nomad visa is not a dead end. It is the first rung of a ladder that ends in permanent residency and, for some nationalities much sooner than others, in Spanish nationality. Provided your residence stays continuous and legal, the years you spend on this permit count on both clocks.
| Stage | What you hold | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Filed from inside Spain (UGE) | Initial digital nomad permit | 3 years |
| Filed at a consulate | Initial visa, converted once in Spain | 1 year |
| First renewal | Renewed digital nomad permit | 2 years |
| Second renewal | Renewed digital nomad permit | 2 years |
| Year 5 | Permanent residency (larga duracion) | Long-term status |
| Citizenship | Spanish nationality by residence | See the note below |
Either starting point reaches the same place: 3 years plus a 2-year renewal, or 1 year plus two 2-year renewals, both land on five years of continuous legal residence, which is the point at which you can apply for permanent residency. Each renewal asks you to prove the same things again, so the income evidence and the foreign-client rule matter for years, not just at the first filing. Our renewal fee is published at €300.
Nationality is a separate application with its own clock. The commonly cited general benchmark is ten years of legal residence, reduced to two years for nationals of Latin American countries including Brazil, and for applicants from the Philippines and Equatorial Guinea, as well as applicants of Sephardic origin. If that shorter track applies to you, the digital nomad visa becomes a genuinely fast route to a Spanish passport, and it is worth planning the residence record from day one. Our Spanish citizenship requirements page covers the language and civics exams, the documents and the current waits.
The permit runs 3 years if filed with the UGE or 1 year through a consulate, then renews in 2-year blocks. Five years of continuous legal residence opens permanent residency. Citizenship by residence is commonly cited at ten years, cut to two for Latin American, Brazilian, Filipino and Equatorial Guinean nationals and applicants of Sephardic origin.
Digital Nomad Visa vs Non-Lucrative Visa
These two routes get confused constantly because both let you live in Spain without local employment. The difference is whether you keep working.
| Digital Nomad Visa | Non-Lucrative Visa | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Remote employees and freelancers working for foreign clients | Retirees, savings-based movers, non-working spouses |
| Can you work? | Yes, that is the entire basis of the visa | No local work; only minor, incidental foreign remote work |
| Main income test | Verified remote work income (SMI-linked monthly threshold) | Savings, pension, or investment income (IPREM based) |
| Tax option | Beckham-style flat rate may apply if eligible | Standard progressive tax once resident; Beckham Law not applicable |
| Best fit | Your income depends on continuing to work remotely | You do not need to work to live on this income |
See our Non-Lucrative Visa Spain 2026 guide if that description sounds closer to yours.
What a Digital Nomad Visa application actually costs
Our professional fee is fixed and published. Everything else is paid at cost to the authority or provider that charges it, so you can see the whole picture before you commit to anything.
| Cost | Paid to | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Our fee, main applicant | VAMOS Spain Legal Services | €900 |
| Our fee, each additional family member | VAMOS Spain Legal Services | +€200 each |
| Our fee, renewal (2-year cycle) | VAMOS Spain Legal Services | €300 |
| Government tasa, UGE or consulate visa | Spanish administration | roughly €73 to €120 |
| TIE card fee | Spanish administration | €16.08 to €19.30 |
| Criminal record certificate, apostille, sworn translation | Issuing authorities and sworn translators | At cost, varies by country and by number of documents |
| Private health insurance | Your insurer | At cost, must cover Spain in full with no copayments |
Professional fees exclude 21% VAT. Third-party costs move with your nationality and your household size, mostly because criminal record certificates, apostilles and sworn translations are charged per document and per person, so a family of three carries several times the paperwork bill of a single applicant. We quote the full third-party breakdown on the free call, before anything is ordered or booked.
Budget €900 for our fee as a single applicant, plus €200 for each family member, plus a government tasa of roughly €73 to €120 and a TIE card fee of €16.08 to €19.30. Criminal record certificates, apostilles, sworn translations and health insurance are paid at cost. Professional fees exclude 21% VAT.
Tax and the Beckham Law
Once you become a Spanish tax resident, typically after 183 days in a calendar year, standard progressive rates apply to your worldwide income. Digital nomad visa holders, however, may be able to opt into the Beckham Law, a flat 24% rate on Spanish-sourced income up to 600,000 EUR, instead of ordinary progressive taxation. Eligibility depends mainly on not having been a Spanish tax resident during the previous five years, and the election window is strict, generally 6 months from your social security registration. Missing that window closes the option, so we flag it on day one rather than after the deadline. See our full Beckham Law Spain guide for the detail, and our Tax Residency (183-day rule) page for the residency side of the question.
The Malaga angle
Whether you file through the UGE in Madrid or at a consulate abroad, the parts that happen in Malaga are entry, TIE card, and empadronamiento. Malaga’s cita previa system for Extranjeria appointments is genuinely competitive, and we manage that booking, prepare your fingerprinting file, and accompany you if you want us there.
Malaga has become one of Spain’s busiest hubs for remote workers, with a growing coworking and coliving scene alongside the city’s existing English-speaking community. If you are still deciding where to settle, our Moving to Malaga guide and Immigration Lawyer Malaga pages cover the practical side of the move alongside the legal file.
If your digital nomad visa is refused
Most refusals we see are documentary, not substantive, which is why so many of them can be repaired. The recurring patterns are these.
- Income evidence that does not hold together. Contracts, invoices and bank statements that disagree with each other, or an average that falls under the threshold for your household size once family members are counted.
- A contract that reads like local employment. A services contract drafted so that it looks like work for a Spanish employer rather than remote work for a foreign one is the single most common substantive problem on this permit.
- Too much Spanish income. More than 20% of total professional income coming from Spanish companies or clients removes eligibility outright.
- Missing trading history. No evidence that the employer or your own business has been operating for at least a year.
- Criminal record certificate defects. Not apostilled, not sworn-translated, out of date, or not covering every country you have lived in during the last 5 years.
- Insurance that does not qualify. A policy with copayments, or one that does not give full coverage in Spain for the whole period.
You have two formal routes after a refusal. A recurso de reposicion, the administrative appeal, must be filed within one month of notification. A contencioso-administrativo court appeal must be filed within two months, and you can go there directly. There is also a third option that is often the fastest: correct the defect and refile, which usually beats appealing when the problem is a document rather than a finding about your eligibility. We tell you which of the three fits your refusal letter before you spend money on any of them. Our visa denial appeal service covers the procedure in full.
Refusals usually trace back to unclear income documentation, a services contract that reads like local employment, more than 20% Spanish income, or apostille and insurance defects. You can file a recurso de reposicion within one month, or a contencioso-administrativo appeal within two months. When the problem is a document, correcting it and refiling is often faster than appealing.
Digital Nomad Visa fees, fixed and published
One flat professional fee per file. Government fees, apostilles, sworn translations, and the TIE card tax are paid separately, at cost, directly to the relevant authority or provider.
| Service | What’s included | Fixed fee |
|---|---|---|
| DNV application, main applicantEligibility check through TIE guidance | Eligibility and income review, UGE-versus-consulate decision, full document checklist, filing, entry and TIE guidance in Malaga | €900 |
| DNV application, additional family memberFiled alongside the main applicant | Income review, document review, filing support for each spouse, partner, or dependent added to the file | +€200 each |
| DNV renewal (2-year cycle)After the initial permit expires | Document refresh, updated income verification, renewal filing and TIE renewal | €300 |
Government fees are separate and small: the UGE and visa tasas run roughly €73-€120 depending on the route, and the TIE card fee is currently €16.08-€19.30. Apostilles, sworn translations, and health insurance premiums are paid to their respective providers. We quote the full third-party cost breakdown on your free call before anything is booked. All amounts are starting prices and vary with the circumstances of each case. Professional fees exclude 21% VAT. Government fees and third-party costs (sworn translations, notary, medical certificates, insurance) are billed separately.
Three steps, start to finish
Free consultation
We check whether your remote income meets the 2026 DNV thresholds and decide whether the UGE or consulate route fits you better.
Fixed quote + document list
You get one flat fee and a checklist built for your specific route, so nothing is missing when you file.
We file and track to approval
We submit your file, guide your arrival, and carry you through to your TIE card in Malaga, keeping you posted in English or Spanish.
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Why clients choose VAMOS
| VAMOS | National platforms | Typical gestoria |
|---|---|---|
| A named abogada handles your file | Anonymous caseworkers | Forms only, no legal advice |
| Every fee published before you call | Quote after a paid consult | Hourly, open-ended |
| English and Spanish, in-house | Translated support tickets | Spanish only |
| Office in Malaga, next to the extranjeria queue | Barcelona or Madrid, remote | Local but property-first |
Digital Nomad Visa questions, answered
What is the income requirement for the digital nomad visa in Spain in 2026?
The main applicant must show recurring income of about 2,763 EUR per month, which is 200% of Spain’s minimum wage (SMI). The first accompanying family member adds about 1,036 EUR per month, and each additional family member adds about 345 EUR per month. Income can come from one foreign employer, several foreign clients, or a mix.
What is the difference between applying through the UGE and applying at a consulate?
The UGE, the Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estrategicos, is a centralised Madrid-based office that lets you apply from inside Spain if you already entered legally, for example as a tourist, with a legal 10-business-day silence-is-consent deadline. The consulate route means applying from your home country before travelling, on the standard national visa timeline. Both lead to the same permit; which one fits you depends on where you are when you are ready to file.
Can I work for Spanish clients on a digital nomad visa?
Yes, within a limit. Under Ley 28/2022, up to 20% of your total professional income can come from Spanish companies or clients. The other 80% or more must come from clients or an employer based outside Spain. Cross that line and you are no longer eligible for the digital nomad visa.
How long is the digital nomad visa valid, and can I renew it?
The initial permit is granted for one year if applied for at a consulate, or three years if applied for from inside Spain through the UGE. It renews for two-year periods after that, and after five years of continuous legal residence you can apply for permanent residency.
Does the Beckham Law flat tax apply to digital nomad visa holders?
It can. Digital nomad visa holders who meet the Beckham Law criteria, most importantly not having been a Spanish tax resident in the preceding five years, may opt into the special expat tax regime, paying a flat 24% on Spanish-sourced income up to 600,000 EUR instead of ordinary progressive rates. The election has a strict 6-month deadline from social security registration, so timing matters.
Can my family come with me on a digital nomad visa?
Yes. A spouse or partner and dependent children can apply alongside the main applicant, each adding their own income requirement and their own set of apostilled, translated civil documents.
What documents do I need for the digital nomad visa?
A university degree or at least three years of relevant professional experience, proof of at least one year’s trading history for your employer or business, an employment or freelance services contract, proof of remote-work income meeting the threshold, a social security registration or certificate of coverage, private health insurance, and a clean criminal record certificate, apostilled and translated.
How long does the digital nomad visa take to process?
The UGE route has a legal maximum of 20 business days with silence-is-consent after 10, so many files clear in 2 to 4 weeks. The consulate route typically takes 4 to 8 weeks for the visa itself, plus the TIE stage once you are in Spain, so budget 2 to 4 months overall depending on the route and your consulate.
What is the difference between the digital nomad visa and the non-lucrative visa?
The digital nomad visa is for people who work remotely for a foreign employer or clients and want that income to be legal in Spain. The non-lucrative visa is for people who can live on savings, a pension, or investment income and will not work at all. If you need to keep working to support yourself, the digital nomad visa is the correct route, not the NLV.
Do I need a company in Spain to apply for the digital nomad visa?
No. Most applicants keep their existing foreign employment contract or client relationships and register as autonomo in Spain purely for social security and tax purposes. You do not need to incorporate a Spanish company to qualify.
Can I get my TIE card in Malaga if I applied through the UGE in Madrid?
Yes. The UGE handles the initial authorisation centrally, but once it is approved you request your TIE card at the Oficina de Extranjeros or comisaria covering your actual address in Spain, Malaga included, regardless of where the file was processed.
What happens if my digital nomad visa application is refused?
You can file a recurso de reposicion, an administrative appeal, within one month of notification, or go directly to a contencioso-administrativo court appeal within two months. Most refusals we see trace back to unclear income documentation or a services contract that reads more like local employment than remote foreign work, both of which are usually fixable before you refile.
How do I apply for the digital nomad visa in Spain, step by step?
Eight steps: confirm the visa fits your situation, fix your household income target, choose the UGE route from inside Spain or the consulate route from abroad, build and legalise the document file, set up filing access and pay the government tasa, file the application, receive the decision and enter Spain, then complete empadronamiento and collect your TIE card in Malaga.
How much income does a couple need for the Spain digital nomad visa?
A couple shows about 3,799 EUR per month, which is 45,588 EUR across a year: the main applicant’s 2,763 EUR plus 1,036 EUR for the first family member. A couple with one child needs about 4,144 EUR per month, and a couple with two children about 4,489 EUR per month, or 53,868 EUR per year.
How much does the Spain digital nomad visa cost in total?
Our fixed fee is 900 EUR for the main applicant plus 200 EUR for each family member, and 300 EUR at renewal. Government tasas run roughly 73 to 120 EUR depending on route, and the TIE card fee is 16.08 to 19.30 EUR. Criminal record certificates, apostilles, sworn translations and insurance are paid at cost. Professional fees exclude 21% VAT.
Can the digital nomad visa lead to permanent residency and Spanish citizenship?
Yes. The initial permit runs 3 years through the UGE or 1 year through a consulate, then renews in 2-year blocks. Five years of continuous legal residence opens permanent residency. Citizenship by residence is commonly cited at ten years, reduced to two for Latin American, Brazilian, Filipino and Equatorial Guinean nationals and applicants of Sephardic origin.
Why do Spanish digital nomad visa applications get refused?
The recurring causes are income evidence that does not hold together across contracts, invoices and bank statements, a services contract that reads like local employment, more than 20% of income from Spanish clients, missing proof of a year of trading history, and criminal record or insurance defects. You can appeal within one month, or correct the document and refile.
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