Proving funds and incomeArticle 7 of 10 · 2 min read
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.
Key rules
- Gift: A one-off gift counts once it is in your account and the gift deed is in the file.
- Remote-work and entrepreneur visas: Only your own income counts.
Route by route
Student visa. Parental or sponsor funds are accepted. You show the student amount, which is 100% of IPREM per month of study plus 75% per family member who comes with you (How much money you must show for Spanish residence). The file holds the supporter's documents.
Non-lucrative visa. A parent's or sponsor's money counts in two ways. It counts as support when the supporter keeps the money and signs a notarised commitment to cover your costs, with the supporter's bank statements showing it. It counts as your own funds when it has been given to you as a gift and sits in your account.
Remote-work and entrepreneur visas. These rest on your own income or contracts. A sponsor's money does not substitute for it.
Family reunification. The application relies on the sponsor's income, because the sponsor is the family member already in Spain.
Loans and credit lines do not count on any route: Savings or income: what each route actually accepts.
A gift into your account
A one-off gift is money given to you for good, not a promise to pay your costs. It counts as your funds once it is in your account. The donor signs a gift deed (a donation document) stating the amount and that it is a gift, and the money follows the rule for large deposits: if it arrived in the 3 months before you file, add the deed and a short written explanation; if it is older, it needs no proof of origin. See Large deposits and keeping your funds in place after filing.
Ongoing sponsorship is different: the supporter keeps the money, so the file needs the commitment and the supporter's own statements and income evidence.
Documents you need
- Signed declaration or sponsorship letter from the person supporting you, stating they will cover your costs
- Copy of the supporter's ID or passport
- The supporter's bank statements and income evidence showing they can afford it
- Proof of your relationship to the supporter, such as a birth certificate for a parent
- For the non-lucrative visa, a notarised support commitment, apostilled if it comes from outside the EU
- For a gift, the gift deed signed by the donor
- A sworn translation of any of these not in Spanish
More in Proving funds and income
- How much money you must show for Spanish residence
- Savings or income: what each route actually accepts
- Bank statements and source of funds: what consulates accept
- Using pension and passive income to qualify
- Proving remote or self-employed income
- Showing money held in foreign currency or foreign accounts
- Joint accounts, spouses and family: who must own the money
- Can investment accounts, crypto or property count as funds?
- Large deposits and keeping your funds in place after filing
Need certainty before you act?
For important relocation decisions, speak with a qualified human specialist.
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.