Is Spain a good fit, and what dominates your situation?

Key rules

• EU, EEA and Swiss citizens: You need no visa, only registration as a resident for stays over three months.
• Non-lucrative visa: It lets you live in Spain but gives no right to work.
• Digital nomad route: Work for Spanish clients is limited to 20% of your income.
• Employees: Your employer in Spain usually requests your work-and-residence authorization.

Your passport comes first

If you hold an EU, EEA or Swiss passport, you do not need a visa. For stays over three months you register as a resident and receive a registration certificate with your NIE. For you, the deciding factors are usually healthcare, tax and work, not permission to live here.

If you are not from the EU, EEA or Switzerland, the route you qualify for decides everything else. Each route has its own money test and its own limits on work.

Which factor is yours

Retirees. Your income and visa route dominate. Non-EU retirees use the non-lucrative visa, which needs passive income or savings of 28,800 euros a year for the main applicant, plus 7,200 euros a year for each dependant. You also need full private health insurance with no co-payments, a clean criminal record certificate and a medical certificate. You apply at the Spanish consulate in your country of residence. Residence starts at one year, then can be renewed for two years. It gives no right to work. After that, healthcare entitlement and tax on your pensions become the next things to check.

Remote workers. Your income and the type of clients you have dominate. Non-EU remote workers can use the digital nomad route. You need work for non-Spanish companies, at least three months of relationship with your employer or clients, and a degree or three years of experience. Income must be at least 200% of the minimum wage, 2,849 euros a month, plus extra for dependants. Work for Spanish clients is limited to 20% of your income. Residence is granted for up to three years and then renewed in two-year periods. EU citizens can simply register and work remotely.

Freelancers and business owners. Your business plan and Social Security registration dominate. Non-EU freelancers apply for residence for self-employment. You need a viable business plan, adequate funds and any required licences or professional registration. Entrepreneurs with innovative projects can use the entrepreneur visa. Freelancers register in the autonomous workers regime with Social Security and with the tax office. EU citizens can set up freely once registered as residents.

Employees. The job offer dominates. Non-EU employees need a work-and-residence authorization, usually requested by the employer in Spain. It depends on the national employment situation unless the job is on the shortage occupation list. Highly qualified professionals and intra-company transfers have separate routes.

Families. Your residence status and the sponsor's income and housing dominate. A legal resident can usually bring a spouse or partner and minor or dependent children through family reunification, normally after one year of residence and with permission for at least another year. Dependent parents are possible only for long-term residents. Families of highly qualified workers can join at the same time. Family members of EU citizens get an EU family member residence card.

What to do next

Use the decision below to pick the factor to examine first. The timeline and documents below show the steps for each route. If your situation may change after you arrive, such as losing a job or a partner joining you later, read the page on what happens if your situation changes.

Which Spain factor should weigh most for your household?

Which factor should you examine first for your move to Spain?

• Your income and visa route: You are retired or live on savings, or you work remotely for a foreign employer. The income you can show decides which visa you can get.

• Healthcare entitlement: You have a health condition or are not working in Spain. Public healthcare is open to legal residents, but not if your visa requires private insurance, so check this first.

• Your family and residence status: You are moving with a partner or children. Their residence depends on yours, and a separation or a new child changes what each person is entitled to.

• Work and Social Security contributions: You plan to take a Spanish job. Unemployment benefit and parental leave depend on how long you have paid in.

• Tax on your pensions and income: You will have foreign pensions or income and spend more than 183 days a year in Spain. Check how the tax treaty between your countries treats them.

Start with the option that matches your main source of income. If you are moving with family or have a health condition, check that option second.

Timeline and deadlines

• EU, EEA and Swiss citizens register in the Central Register of Foreign Nationals and receive a certificate with a NIE: if you stay in Spain for more than three months

• Non-EU retirees apply for the non-lucrative visa at the Spanish consulate: before you move, from your country of residence

• Non-lucrative visa residence starts for one year, then can be renewed for two years: after the visa is granted

• Non-EU remote workers build a working relationship with their foreign employer or clients: at least three months before applying for the digital nomad residence

• Digital nomad residence is granted, then renewed in two-year periods: up to three years at first

Documents you need

• Registration certificate with your NIE, issued by the Central Register of Foreign Nationals through the police or Oficina de Extranjería (EU, EEA and Swiss citizens staying over three months)

• Proof of sufficient resources (EU, EEA and Swiss citizens registering as residents)

• Proof of health cover, either private insurance or an S1 form (EU, EEA and Swiss citizens registering as residents)

• Proof of passive income or savings that meets the non-lucrative visa threshold (non-EU retirees, applied for at the Spanish consulate in your country of residence)

• Full private health insurance with no co-payments (non-EU retirees)

• Clean criminal record certificate (non-EU retirees)

• Medical certificate (non-EU retirees)

What if your situation changes after you move to Spain?

Most changes after you move do not end your right to live in Spain. They change what you must show at your next renewal, and they can change how you are covered for healthcare. Which of these apply to you depends on your permit type, so check with the immigration office (oficina de extranjería) that handles your file before you act.

A new child

A baby adds to your rights, and it does not put your residence at risk. Your child continues under your residence authorization if you hold one through family reunification.

If you work and pay into Social Security, each parent gets 16 weeks of paid leave at 100% of the regulatory base. The first six weeks, straight after birth, are mandatory. Single-parent families get 32 weeks.

To qualify, you need a minimum record of contributions, and it depends on your age:

• Under 21: no minimum.
• 21 to 25: 90 days in the last seven years, or 180 days overall.
• Over 26: 180 days in the last seven years, or 360 days overall.

If you have just arrived, some periods worked in another EU country can count toward these totals.

Other support may follow:

• Unpaid parental leave of up to eight weeks per child under eight, with a paid element added in 2025.
• A monthly payment of around 100 euros per child under three for working mothers.
• Income-based child support if your household has low income.

Benefit amounts change often, so confirm today's figures with Social Security before you plan around them.

For schooling, regional education offices run school places, and the rules differ by region. Ask your town hall or regional education office how and when to enrol.

Losing your job

Losing a job does not by itself end your residence. A work-and-residence permit stays valid until it expires. At renewal you must show an ongoing job or enough contributions, and periods of unemployment are often tolerated. Receiving unemployment benefit is usually taken into account.

Act quickly on the benefit:

1. Register with the employment service (SEPE) within 15 working days of dismissal.
2. Check that you meet the conditions for the contributory benefit (paro): at least 360 days of contributions in the previous 6 years, and involuntary unemployment.
3. If you do not have enough contributions, ask about the non-contributory subsidy.

The benefit pays 70% of your contribution base for the first 180 days, then 60%, within minimum and maximum limits. It lasts from 4 to 24 months, depending on your contributions. Only legally worked periods count.

For healthcare, you stay covered while you receive benefits. Anyone whose visa requires private insurance (for example non-lucrative, student or golden visa holders) does not get public healthcare through this route.

Retiring

If you are a resident, public healthcare covers pensioners. Register at the local Social Security office (INSS) with your passport or NIE, your padrón registration and the form. Then go to your health centre to get the tarjeta sanitaria. Procedures vary by region.

If you are a Spanish tax resident, your foreign pension is taxable in Spain. It is usually taxed as work income at progressive rates. Tax treaties decide which country may tax it:

• Private pensions are usually taxable only where you live.
• Government-service pensions are often taxable only by the country that pays them, with exceptions for Spanish nationals and residents.

Foreign tax you have paid can be credited against your Spanish bill. Treaty wording differs by country and pension type, so check the treaty between Spain and the country that pays your pension.

Separation or divorce

If you hold residence through family reunification, you keep it in practice until renewal. After two years of residence in Spain you can apply for your own independent authorization. Victims of gender violence, and widowed spouses, can apply earlier.

At renewal after a separation, you must show your own means or a work contract. Your children continue under the reunifying parent's authorization.

If you are the partner of an EU citizen, you keep your residence rights after divorce if the marriage lasted at least three years, with at least one year in Spain. Similar protection can apply in cases involving custody or violence.

Your public healthcare may depend on your partner's status. If so, check your own entitlement at the Social Security office as soon as the separation happens. For children's schooling and custody arrangements, speak to the regional education office and a lawyer.

Frequently asked questions

Can I work remotely in Spain on the non-lucrative visa?

No, the non-lucrative visa gives no right to work, so a non-EU remote worker needs a different route. The digital nomad residence is built for people working for non-Spanish companies, and work for Spanish clients is limited to 20% of your income.

Do EU citizens need a visa to retire or work remotely in Spain?

No, EU, EEA and Swiss citizens need no visa, but for stays over three months you must register as a resident. You then get a registration certificate with your NIE, the foreigner number, and you can work remotely freely.

Can I bring my family if I move to Spain for work?

Yes, a legal resident can bring a spouse or partner and minor or dependent children through family reunification (reagrupación familiar), normally after one year of residence. You need an authorization valid for at least another year, plus adequate income and housing.