Is legal residence easier or harder in Spain than in alternatives?

Key rules

• Golden visa: Buying property no longer gives you residence, because the golden visa ended on 3 April 2025.
• Quotas: Most Spanish routes have no annual quota, unlike Italy's work system.
• Waiting time: Expect real waits to be longer than the legal limit.

The short answer

Spain is neither the easiest nor the hardest option. It has many open routes and, for most of them, no annual quota. The friction is in the waiting, not in finding a route. The property golden visa is closed. This page is for non-EU nationals comparing countries.

What is open in Spain

Several routes are open to non-EU nationals:

• Work as an employee or self-employed person.
• Highly qualified professional and EU Blue Card.
• Digital-nomad (remote worker) visa.
• Non-lucrative residence, for people with enough income and no work in Spain.
• Study and research.
• Family reunification, and family of EU citizens.
• Arraigo, a residence route based on your ties to Spain. It comes in social, labour, socio-formative and family versions, plus a newer second-chance version.
• Investor and entrepreneur routes, humanitarian and international protection, and long-term residence.

The rules were reformed from 20 May 2025, so check the exact conditions for your route before you plan around it.

The golden visa is closed

The residence-by-property-investment route (golden visa) ended on 3 April 2025. Applications filed before that date continue under the old rules, and existing holders can renew. Other investor routes continue in other forms, but buying a home no longer gives you residence.

How slow is it?

The legal limit for most initial residence and work applications, including arraigo, is three months. Digital-nomad applications at the consulate or the UGE (the unit that handles large-company and nomad permits) have a 20-working-day limit. In practice, many offices take four to eight months, and some take longer. Fast-track routes are quicker. Times vary by province and consulate, so ask people who recently applied at the same office. The timeline below shows what happens if the office does not reply.

The digital-nomad income threshold is tied to the national minimum wage, so it rises when that wage rises. Check the current figure with the UGE before you apply.

Spain compared with Portugal and Italy

Portugal offers D7 passive-income, D8 digital-nomad, work and job-seeker visas. Its property golden visa ended in 2023, though fund-based options continue. Its nationality rules are stricter.

Italy relies heavily on annual quotas for work visas, known as decreto flussi. It also has a digital-nomad visa launched in 2024, elective residence for people with passive income, and investor visas.

Spain has no quota for most routes, which makes it more predictable than Italy if your plan depends on a specific job or status. On the golden visa, both Spain and Portugal have closed the property route. The FAQ below covers the quota and golden-visa questions in more detail.

How to use this

If you have a job offer or remote income, Spain's open routes are a strong fit. If you need a fast, certain start date, allow for the slow processing and do not book a move around the legal deadline.

Timeline and deadlines

• Legal limit for most initial residence and work applications, including arraigo: 3 months from filing

• Legal limit for digital-nomad applications at the consulate or UGE: 20 working days from filing

• Typical real wait at many offices: 4 to 8 months, longer where there is a backlog

• If the office does not reply in time: after the legal limit passes; for most initial applications silence means approval, for some it means refusal

Actual waits vary by province and consulate; ask the office handling your case for current times.

Frequently asked questions

Does Spain use quotas for residence like Italy does?

No, Spain has no quota for most of its residence routes, while Italy relies heavily on annual quotas for work permits. That means a Spanish application is judged on your own case, not on whether places are left in a yearly cap.

How does Portugal's golden visa compare with Spain's?

Both countries have closed the property route, but Portugal still allows fund-based investment options. Portugal ended its real estate golden visa in 2023. Spain's other investor routes continue in other forms.

How long does a Spanish residence application really take?

Many offices take four to eight months, even though the legal limit for most initial applications is three months. Some backlogs are longer. For most initial applications, no reply by the deadline counts as approval, but for some it counts as a refusal.

Does the digital-nomad visa income requirement stay the same each year?

No, the income threshold is a multiple of the national minimum wage, so it rises whenever that wage is raised. Check the current figure with the UGE, the Spanish unit that handles these applications, before you apply.