Proving funds and income
You will know how much to show, in which form, and how to avoid the mistakes that make financial evidence fail.
Spanish authorities want proof that you can support yourself and your household without working illegally or relying on public help. This topic takes you from the amount you must show to the documents that prove it, and tells you what to do if the consulate asks for more or refuses.
Pick the article that fits your situation
How much money you must show for Spanish residence
Spain sets the money you must show as a percentage of two public indexes, different for each route and updated every year. The routes compared are the non-lucrative, remote-work, student, family and business routes, for non-EU applicants.
Savings or income: what each route actually accepts
The non-lucrative visa lets you use savings, income or both. The remote-work visa is an income test only.
Bank statements and source of funds: what consulates accept
How to prepare bank statements and a balance certificate that a Spanish consulate or immigration office will accept: how recent they must be, which need an apostille or translation, and what to do when you file from inside Spain.
Using pension and passive income to qualify
How to prove a pension, rental income or investment income when you apply for residence in Spain. For retirees and others living on passive income.
Proving remote or self-employed income
How to document foreign employment or freelance income for the Spanish remote-work visa (the digital nomad visa), and how the income test is measured. For remote employees and freelancers who need to know which records to gather and how long a track record to show.
Showing money held in foreign currency or foreign accounts
How to show savings held abroad or in another currency when you apply for a Spanish visa. Keep using your foreign account: you do not need a Spanish bank account to file.
Can a parent, sponsor or gift count as your funds?
Money from a parent or sponsor counts on the student and non-lucrative visas, as ongoing support or as a gift paid into your account. It does not count on the remote-work and entrepreneur visas.
Joint accounts, spouses and family: who must own the money
How family members raise the funds you must show, and when a joint account or your partner's money counts toward the household total. For couples and families applying for a funds-based visa, the non-lucrative or the remote-work visa.
Can investment accounts, crypto or property count as funds?
Only cash in a bank account counts toward the amount you must show. Investments, crypto and property count after you turn them into cash and hold it in your bank account.
Large deposits and keeping your funds in place after filing
How to keep your money steady around a funds-based residence application, how to explain a large deposit, and what to do if the consulate asks for more documents or refuses. For non-lucrative and other funds-based applicants.
About this topic
Choosing a route, tax residency, opening a bank account in Spain and visa health insurance are handled in other topics.
Key rules
- Non-lucrative amount: The main applicant for the non-lucrative visa must show 400% of IPREM per year, which is 28,800 euros at the 2025 IPREM, with 100% of IPREM per year added for each dependant.
- Remote-work income: The remote-work visa requires income of at least 200% of the monthly minimum wage, which is 2,849 euros a month in 2026.
Proving funds and income: the whole process, step by step
- Work out the amount you must show. The amount in force on your filing date applies, and the figures are revised each January: How much money you must show for Spanish residence.
- Decide between savings, income or both: Savings or income: what each route actually accepts.
- Check whose money it is and how it is held. Joint accounts and family members: Joint accounts, spouses and family: who must own the money. A parent, sponsor or gift: Can a parent, sponsor or gift count as your funds?. Accounts abroad: Showing money held in foreign currency or foreign accounts. Investments, crypto and property: Can investment accounts, crypto or property count as funds?.
- Collect your income records. Remote employees need at least 3 months with the foreign employer and freelancers at least 1 year of activity: Proving remote or self-employed income. Pension, rent and investment income: Using pension and passive income to qualify.
- Order the bank certificate last, so the 30-day window still covers the steps after it: the certificate, then the signature before a notary, then the apostille, then the sworn translation, then filing. The rules by document are in Bank statements and source of funds: what consulates accept; download the statements for the last 3 to 6 months at the same time.
- File the application, at the consulate or, if you already live in Spain, at the immigration office, and pay the consular fee of 80 EUR for each applicant filing at a consulate.
- Keep your funds in place until the decision and explain any large recent deposit. If the consulate asks for more documents, answer within 10 working days; if it refuses, appeal within one month or file again with the problem fixed: Large deposits and keeping your funds in place after filing.
- Prove your means again at renewal. For the non-lucrative permit, show the same level as the initial grant, higher with dependants, and show you spent more than six months a year in Spain; later renewals are for two years. For the remote-work visa, the first permit lasts up to 3 years and renews in 2-year periods, and you show again that you still work remotely and still meet the income level.
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What to read next
More in Applications and evidence
Where and how to file
You will know which door your application goes through, whether you can start inside Spain, and what happens when you file.
Building your evidence file
You will know what a complete file looks like and how to catch problems before submitting.
Timing and sequencing
You will know what to do in which order, how long things take, and how to avoid documents expiring or a visa window being missed.
Also in Immigration and residency
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Always verify important information with the relevant official authority or a qualified adviser before acting. This website uses large language models together with various public data sources, official government documents and other established sources. Due to the amount of data on this website, some information might be wrong. Information may also be incomplete or outdated.