Route map and first choices
You leave with a short list of Spanish routes that fit your passport and situation, and know which ones to read next.
Spain has several ways to live there legally, and the right one depends on your passport, where your money comes from, whether you plan to work, and who is moving with you.
Pick the article that fits your situation
The map of Spanish residence routes and where to start
Spain groups residence permits into a small set of families. You do not need to read about every permit. A few questions about yourself point you to two or three families, and you can read about those.
Do you need a visa for Spain? What your passport changes
Your passport decides which of three paths you are on: registering as an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen, visiting visa-free for a short stay, or applying for a visa.
Retiree, remote worker, employee or student, which route is yours?
Matches your situation (retiree, remote worker, employee, self-employed or student) to the realistic Spanish residence route for non-EU nationals, and shows what each route does not let you do. Read it before choosing a visa.
Non-lucrative visa or digital nomad visa, which one is legal for you?
Income type decides which visa is legal.
Moving to Spain as a British citizen after Brexit
British citizens arriving after 31 December 2020 are third-country nationals. That means the same rules apply to you as to Americans or Canadians. You need a visa or residence authorisation for stays beyond 90 days.
Latin American and other special-ties passports, what really gets easier
An Ibero-American passport helps with short visits and with the time needed for Spanish nationality, but not with residence permits.
Can you switch routes after arriving in Spain?
Shows which residence routes you can start from inside Spain and which must be filed at a Spanish consulate abroad. It is for newcomers who plan to arrive first as a visitor and then change status.
What changed in Spain's 2025 immigration rules, and why old advice misleads
The new immigration rules took effect on 20 May 2025.
Residence shortcuts that don't exist, myths to check before you pay anyone
Five popular residence shortcuts do not work: turning a tourist stay into residence, border runs, buying property, remote work on a visitor stay and a Gibraltar address.
About this topic
Start with The map of Spanish residence routes and where to start. It shows every main route type in one place.
Key rules
- Non-lucrative income: The non-lucrative route needs income or savings of at least 400% of the IPREM per year for the main applicant and 100% for each dependant, which is €28,800 and €7,200 in 2025.
- Nomad Spanish clients: The digital nomad route allows work for companies outside Spain, with Spanish clients limited to 20% of professional income.
- Student work: Students may work up to 30 hours per week alongside their studies.
- 2025 reform: The new immigration rules took effect on 20 May 2025, and earlier applications are handled under the old rules unless the new ones are more favourable.
Route map and first choices: the whole process, step by step
From first question to residence
- Find your passport group (EU/EEA/Swiss, visa-exempt or visa-required). Do this before anything else. See what your passport changes.
- Drop outdated advice. The new immigration rules took effect on 20 May 2025, so check any forum post or video against what changed in 2025.
- Match your situation to a route. Retiree, remote worker, employee, self-employed or student: which route is yours.
- If you are choosing between the non-lucrative and digital nomad visas, decide on income type and work rights: which one is legal for you.
- If you are British or from Latin America, check what your passport changes: British citizens after Brexit or Latin American and special-ties passports. British citizens arriving after 31 December 2020 need a visa or residence authorisation for stays beyond 90 days.
- Test any shortcut you are offered (buying property, border runs) before you pay anyone: residence shortcuts that do not exist.
- Check whether your route is filed abroad or inside Spain. Visa-free entry covers only 90 days in any 180-day period and does not convert into residence, except for the UGE routes (digital nomad, highly qualified, Blue Card, entrepreneur and intra-company transfer), which you can file from inside Spain while your stay is legal. See where each route is filed.
- Apply for the long-stay visa at the Spanish consulate where you live, before you travel, if your route is filed abroad.
- Collect your foreigner identity card (TIE) within 1 month of arrival.
- EU, EEA and Swiss citizens skip the visa and the TIE: register in person and receive your registration certificate with your NIE within three months of arrival.
Explore places
Where you live changes the details. See how Spanish regions and cities compare on rent, jobs, weather, safety and healthcare.
What to read next
More in Eligibility and route selection
EU, EEA and Swiss citizens
You know which free-movement category you fall under, what you must be able to show, and where the rules are lighter or stricter than for visa routes.
Non-lucrative residence
You can tell whether you qualify, how the money is counted, what you may not do, and whether this is the right route.
Digital nomad residence
You can tell whether you meet the route's tests, how your work setup counts, and how to choose where to file.
Also in Immigration and residency
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.