Spain residence permits: six main routes to legal status

Six main routes to legal residence in Spain for non-EU nationals: the Digital Nomad permit, studies, Highly Qualified Professionals, entrepreneurs, family reunification and the supporting procedures (NIE, TIE, renewals and more). Updated October 2026.

For routes that start at a consulate, you apply at the Spanish consulate covering your place of legal residence. That is usually your home country, or a third country where you hold a residence permit. Some routes can be filed online from Spain if you are already there legally. Nationals of the UK and of most Latin American countries can visit Spain visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period. That visa-free stay counts as being in Spain legally for some of the procedures below, but not all of them.

UK citizens: if you were living in Spain before 1 January 2021, your rights are protected under the Withdrawal Agreement and you hold, or can obtain, a specific TIE as a beneficiary of that agreement. If you moved, or plan to move, after that date, you are treated as a non-EU national and the routes below apply to you in full.

1. Digital Nomad Visa: residence for remote workers

This is one of the most popular ways for remote workers to live in Spain legally. It suits employees of foreign companies, freelancers and business owners who work remotely for companies or clients outside Spain. In Spanish law this category is called teletrabajo de carácter internacional (Law 14/2013, as amended by Law 28/2022).

Who it suits

• you have an employment contract with a company based outside Spain;
• you provide services to foreign clients as a freelancer or self-employed professional;
• you own a business outside Spain and run it remotely;
• you work in IT, marketing, consulting, design, finance, education, analytics or another field that can be done remotely;
• you want to move with your family.

Key requirements

• remote work or professional activity done mainly by electronic means;
• a real and stable income;
• qualifications: a university degree or vocational/business-school qualification, or at least three years of relevant professional experience;
• the company you work with must have been actively operating for at least one year;
• an existing working relationship of at least three months with that company or with your clients;
• a clean criminal record and health insurance;
• sufficient funds for you and your family members.

Employees may work only for companies located outside Spain. Freelancers may also work for Spanish clients, as long as that work does not exceed 20% of their total professional activity.

Finances: the usual benchmark is 200% of Spain's minimum wage (SMI) for the main applicant, plus 75% of the SMI for the first family member and 25% for each additional one. For 2026 the SMI is set at €1,221 per month (paid in 14 instalments, €17,094 per year). The required amounts are recalculated using the SMI in force when you apply, so check the current figure before you file.

Documents

• national visa application form or residence application, passport, photos;
• criminal record certificate and health insurance;
• proof of income, employment contract or contracts with clients;
• employer's letter authorising remote work;
• company documents: registration, registry extract, proof of activity;
• degree or proof of at least three years' experience, CV;
• documents for family members;
• sworn translations and apostilles where required.

Where to apply

• Through a Spanish consulate if you are outside Spain. You receive a visa valid for up to one year, and you can later switch to a residence permit from inside Spain.
• Online from Spain if you are already there legally. This includes a visa-free stay, as long as it has not expired. The residence permit is granted for up to three years and can be renewed for two-year periods.

Your spouse or partner, children and other dependent family members can apply with you.

Common mistakes

• the income exists but is poorly documented;
• the employer has not issued a proper authorisation for remote work;
• the company is too new or its activity is not well evidenced;
• the freelancer cannot show stable clients, or too large a share of the work is for Spanish clients;
• the qualifications do not match the stated role;
• the insurance, criminal record certificate or translations are not in the right form.

2. Student visa and long-term stay for studies

This route is for studies lasting more than 90 days, such as university degrees, master's and doctoral programmes, vocational training, exchange programmes, internships and volunteering. In the Spanish system this is called estancia de larga duración por estudios, a long-term stay for study purposes. Students get legal status in Spain, a TIE card for longer programmes and, later on, the option to switch to a residence and work permit.

Eligible programmes

• full-time higher education leading to a recognised qualification: grado, máster, doctorado;
• higher and intermediate vocational training (FP) and other recognised professional programmes;
• post-compulsory secondary education and student mobility programmes;
• language courses in Spanish (or a co-official language) at official language schools or centres accredited by the Instituto Cervantes;
• volunteering, conversation-assistant programmes, preparatory courses for specialised medical training.

Important for Latin Americans: a Spanish language course does not qualify for a study stay if Spanish is your native language or an official language of your country of nationality. If you are from a Spanish-speaking country, look at university, master's or vocational programmes instead.

The school must be officially recognised, and the programme must meet the requirements for length, format and workload. Programmes of up to 90 days fall under short-stay (Schengen) rules.

Finances: 100% of IPREM for each month of stay, plus 75% of IPREM for the first family member and 50% for each additional one. IPREM has stayed at €600 per month since 2023 and is unchanged for 2026, which makes the main applicant's amount about €600 per month. The figure is checked against the IPREM in force on the day you apply.

Documents

• application form, passport, photos;
• letter of admission, study plan, proof of fee payment;
• proof of funds and health insurance;
• criminal record certificate and medical certificate (for programmes over 180 days);
• previous education documents, motivation letter;
• proof of accommodation, if the consulate asks for it;
• family documents, translations and apostilles.

Work: students in higher education can work automatically, as long as the work is compatible with their studies. Other students need a separate authorisation. As a general rule, work is limited to 30 hours a week.

Where to apply: at the Spanish consulate in your country of residence, or in a third country where you hold a residence permit. Applying from inside Spain while you are there legally, including a visa-free stay, is only possible for higher-education programmes. You must be an adult and apply at least two months before your current legal stay ends. For a 90-day visa-free stay, that means applying within roughly the first month.

After your studies you can switch to a residence and work permit, a job-search or business-project permit, or another legal route. It is best to plan your strategy before you choose a programme.

3. Highly Qualified Professional: residence for skilled specialists

This option is for foreign professionals who have a job offer in Spain for a managerial, technical or specialised position. These cases follow a dedicated fast-track route for attracting talent, handled by the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit (UGE), and are usually filed online.

Who it suits

IT specialists, engineers, senior managers, heads of department, financial and business analysts, R&D specialists, doctors, researchers, technical experts and professionals with rare skills.

The key condition

You need an employer in Spain. The employer has to show a genuine need to hire, along with the contract terms, the position, the salary and why you fit the role. The authorities check the level of the position, whether the salary and duties match, the candidate's education and experience, whether the company is genuine and able to hire, and whether the contract is in order.

Documents

• Candidate: passport, CV, degrees, proof of experience, certificates and portfolio, criminal record certificate (where required), family documents.
• Employer: employment contract or offer, job description, company documents, proof of activity, tax and corporate documents, justification for the hire.

Once the online application is approved, the candidate either gets a visa at the consulate (in their country of residence or a third country where they hold residence) or applies for the card in Spain, depending on where they are. Family members can apply at the same time or join later.

Common mistakes

• the position does not look highly qualified;
• the salary does not match the level of the role;
• the candidate's experience is not documented;
• the employer has not prepared a complete corporate file;
• the contract is too vague, or family documents are not legalised.

4. Entrepreneur residence: for innovative businesses

This route is for foreign nationals who want to launch or grow an innovative project in Spain that is of economic interest to the country. You do not get residence simply for registering a company. What counts is innovation, growth potential, economic value and a realistic business plan.

Who it suits

• a tech start-up or an innovative product;
• a project with international scope and high added value;
• moving part of an existing business activity to Spain;
• founders with experience, a team, an MVP, clients or investment potential.

What is assessed

Innovation, market and scalability, the business model, the founder's experience, job creation, benefits for the Spanish economy, the investment strategy, how realistic the financial plan is, and competitive advantages.

Documents

• passport, application form, CV;
• business plan, product description, financial model;
• proof of the founder's experience and of funding;
• company documents (if the company already exists), partner and client documents;
• criminal record certificate, insurance, family documents.

The business plan is the central document. It needs to show why the project is viable, how it differs from an ordinary small business, and why its growth benefits Spain.

Where to apply: through a consulate (in your country of residence or a third country where you hold residence), or online from Spain if you are there legally. The initial permit is valid for three years and can be renewed for two-year periods.

Common mistakes

• an ordinary local business with no innovative element;
• a business plan without financial projections or a revenue model;
• no proof of the founder's experience;
• the project looks like a way to get residence rather than a real business;
• no evidence of funding or of a market.

5. Family reunification

This route lets you bring close relatives to Spain if you already have legal status in Spain, or if you are a Spanish or EU citizen. The rules depend on who is sponsoring.

• A foreign resident can sponsor a spouse or partner, children (including the spouse's or partner's children), legally represented persons and, if they meet the dependency and age conditions, parents. As a rule, parents must be over 65; exceptions apply on humanitarian grounds.
• A Spanish citizen falls under a separate scheme covering spouses, partners, children, parents and other relatives. That scheme is explained in our article on additional residence routes.

What is checked

The sponsor's legal status, the family relationship, housing, sufficient income, no threat to public order, civil-status documents, translations and apostilles, and whether the relationship is genuine. As a reference, a foreign resident sponsor needs a stable income of at least 150% of IPREM for a household of two, plus 50% of IPREM for each additional member.

Documents

• passports, marriage and birth certificates, partnership documents;
• civil-status certificates, proof of dependency for parents or adult children;
• proof of the sponsor's income, rental contract or property documents, housing report (informe de vivienda);
• criminal record certificate and medical certificate in some cases;
• translations and legalisation.

Procedure: normally the permit is first approved in Spain. The relative then gets a visa at the Spanish consulate in their country of residence (or a third country where they hold residence) and travels to Spain. The procedure for relatives of Spanish citizens can be different.

Common mistakes

• choosing the wrong scheme;
• not proving that the relationship is genuine;
• insufficient income;
• civil-registry documents without an apostille or translation;
• no proof of dependency, or inconsistent data across documents;
• filing with the wrong authority.

6. Other procedures: from NIE and TIE to long-term residence

Many procedures are not about the first visa at all. You need them to keep your status, switch from one permit to another, or complete the paperwork after approval.

• Non-lucrative residence (residencia no lucrativa): a permit that does not allow work, for people living on savings, a pension, rental income or dividends. Benchmark: 400% of IPREM per month for the main applicant and 100% of IPREM for each family member, plus private health insurance. With IPREM at €600, that comes to €2,400 and €600 a month respectively. You apply through a consulate, not from inside Spain as a visitor.
• Arraigo: residence on exceptional grounds for people who are already in Spain. Since the 2025 reform the types are social, sociolaboral, socioformativo, familiar and segunda oportunidad. Most require two years of continuous presence in Spain. You cannot apply from abroad.
• Work permits: employment (cuenta ajena), self-employment (cuenta propia), researchers, highly qualified professionals, seasonal work and intra-company transfers.
• Long-term residence: after five years of continuous legal residence, a stable status that lets you live and work in Spain on terms close to those of citizens.
• Spanish nationality: the general requirement is ten years of legal residence. For nationals by origin of Ibero-American countries (as well as Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal), the requirement is two years of legal, continuous residence. UK nationals follow the general ten-year rule.
• NIE: the foreigner identification number used for taxes, banking, contracts, property and business.
• TIE: the foreigner identity card issued after a long-stay visa or residence permit is approved. It confirms your status and shows your NIE.
• Renewals and changes of status: a student can switch to a work permit, a non-lucrative permit can be changed to another type, a digital nomad permit can be renewed, and temporary residence can lead to long-term residence.

The Golden Visa has been abolished. Since 3 April 2025 Spain no longer issues investor visas, including those based on buying property.

How Via Globally can help

• find the right residence route for your income, work, business or family situation;
• check your documents, finances and the risk of refusal before you apply;
• prepare the complete file, translations, forms and cover letters;
• support you through the consulate or online application from Spain, and then with your TIE, renewals and changes of status.

Via Globally is a private visa agency, not a government body. We work online and in Moscow and Barcelona. The final decision is always made by the Spanish authorities.

Free consultation: WhatsApp +34 691 527 216 · viaglobally.com