Immigration and Visa Options for Remote Workers, Freelancers and Entrepreneurs in Spain

Spain has several legally distinct residence pathways for internationally mobile professionals, but search terminology often blurs them together. A remote employee or foreign-client freelancer may fit the international teleworker framework; a person establishing an ordinary independent business in Spain may fit the self-employment residence and work authorization; and an innovative founder may qualify for the entrepreneur authorization under Law 14/2013.

One famous route no longer belongs on an active-options list: Spain's investor residence framework, widely called the Golden Visa, closed to new applications from 3 April 2025. Legacy holders and applications filed before the closure can still fall under transitional rules.

This guide was last verified on 15 September 2026 against Spain's consolidated legislation, the Ministry of Inclusion/Migration, UGE-CE, Spanish consular guidance, the Tax Agency and BOE.

Important: ReloTide is an editorial research service, not the Spanish government or a law firm. Immigration, tax and Social Security outcomes depend on individual facts and current rules.

Spain immigration routes at a glance

| Route | Best fit | Key 2026 economic test | Initial status/duration | Family model | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Digital nomad / international teleworker | Remote employees and foreign-client professionals | Main applicant: 200% of 2026 SMI = €2,442/month | Visa up to 1 year; residence authorization up to 3 years | Law 14/2013 family route; family may apply jointly or successively | | Self-employment visa | Freelancer, consultant, sole trader or ordinary business activity established in Spain | Sufficient investment/resources for the activity; no universal fixed statutory investment minimum | Initial authorization 1 year | General family-reunification framework | | Entrepreneur / innovative founder | Innovative project with special economic interest for Spain | ENISA assessment; no fixed minimum investment or job-creation number | Residence authorization 3 years; renewal 2 years | Law 14/2013 family route | | Golden Visa legacy guide | Existing/pending pre-closure investor cases only | Closed to new applicants from 3 April 2025 | Transitional/legacy only | Depends on protected legacy application/authorization |

Spain digital nomad and remote-work availability

Spain's official term is teletrabajo de carácter internacional. Articles 74 bis to 74 quinquies of Law 14/2013 cover third-country nationals who work remotely for companies outside Spain using information and telecommunications systems.

The route distinguishes employees from independent professionals:

a salaried employee may work only for companies located outside Spain under the teleworker authorization;
a self-employed professional may also provide services to a Spanish company, but Spanish work must not exceed 20% of total professional activity;
the foreign company/group must demonstrate real and continuous activity for at least one year;
the applicant must generally show at least three months of the relevant employment or professional relationship; and
the applicant needs an eligible higher-education/vocational/business-school qualification or at least three years of professional experience.

Spain's 2026 minimum interprofessional salary is €1,221 per month under Real Decreto 126/2026. UGE's teleworker rules use 200% of SMI for the principal applicant, so the current main-applicant benchmark is:

€1,221 × 200% = €2,442 per month

For accompanying family, the current formula adds 75% of SMI for the first family member and 25% for each additional family member. That is €915.75 and €305.25 respectively using the statutory 2026 SMI; consular pages may display rounded values such as €916 and €306.

Read the detailed Spain digital nomad visa guide.

Self-employed and freelance options

Spain's ordinary residencia temporal y trabajo por cuenta propia is different from the digital-nomad authorization. It is designed for a non-EU/EEA/Swiss national who will carry out a profitable self-employed activity in Spain under the general immigration regime.

Under Articles 82–87 of Real Decreto 1155/2024, applicants must demonstrate the licenses/authorizations, qualifications and resources required for the planned activity. The law and current Ministry guidance do not impose one universal euro-denominated investment minimum for every self-employed applicant; the investment must be sufficient for the actual project.

The initial authorization lasts one year and is limited to an autonomous-community geographic scope and a sector of activity. A qualifying renewal normally lasts four years and authorizes both employed and self-employed work throughout Spain in any sector.

Read the Spain self-employment visa guide.

Startup founders and innovative entrepreneurs

Searchers often use terms such as Spain startup visa, Spain founder visa and Spain entrepreneur visa for the same immigration strategy. The current immigration route is the residence authorization for entrepreneurs under Articles 69–70 of Law 14/2013.

The project must be innovative and/or have special economic interest for Spain and receive a favorable report from ENISA. UGE expressly states that there are no minimum levels of investment or job creation for this immigration authorization.

ENISA assesses the founder's professional profile and involvement, the business plan and financing, and the value added to the Spanish economy through innovation or investment opportunities.

The authorization is valid throughout Spain for three years and may be renewed for two years if the conditions continue. A founder outside Spain can use the coordinated authorization/visa process set out in Law 14/2013.

Read the Spain entrepreneur visa guide.

A separate point about “startup certification”

ENISA also operates startup-company certification under Spain's Startup Law. That corporate certification can be relevant to company-level benefits, but it should not be confused with the favorable ENISA assessment required for the immigration entrepreneur authorization. ReloTide therefore uses one canonical immigration page for the founder/entrepreneur search cluster instead of publishing a duplicate “startup visa” page.

Spain Golden Visa: closed to new applicants

Articles 63–67 of Law 14/2013 were left without content with effect from 3 April 2025 by Organic Law 1/2025. New applicants cannot now obtain a Spanish investor residence permit simply by making one of the former qualifying investments, including the historic real-estate route.

The legislation protects certain legacy cases:

investor/family applications submitted before the closure can be decided under the rules in force when submitted;
investor visas and authorizations valid on 3 April 2025 remain valid for their issued period; and
renewals are processed under the rules applicable when the initial authorization was granted.

See the Spain Golden Visa 2026 legacy guide if you already hold a qualifying legacy authorization or had an application pending before the closure.

Other business and talent routes worth comparing

Spain also has routes for highly qualified professionals/EU Blue Card holders and intra-company transferees. These can be more suitable than an entrepreneur route when the move is driven by employment with a qualifying Spanish company or a transfer inside a corporate group.

UGE currently lists highly qualified professionals, EU Blue Card holders, researchers, intra-company transferees, audiovisual professionals, entrepreneurs and international teleworkers among the categories it processes. These are important alternatives, but they are not duplicated here as founder/freelancer pages because their primary intent is employer-driven skilled employment or corporate mobility.

Family considerations

Family rules depend on the route.

Law 14/2013 routes

For international teleworkers and entrepreneurs, Article 62 allows the spouse or analogous partner, qualifying dependent children and dependent ascendants to apply jointly/simultaneously or successively. Current UGE guidance also confirms that family residence authorizations under this framework permit work in Spain without restriction as employee or self-employed worker.

Ordinary self-employment

The self-employment route operates under the general immigration regulation. Its family members normally use the general family-reunification framework rather than the special Law 14/2013 process. Current Ministry guidance states that a family-reunification authorization held by a spouse/partner or a child of working age permits both employed and self-employed work without an additional work-authorization procedure.

Family eligibility, timing and evidence should therefore be checked against the route the principal applicant actually holds.

Tax overview: tax residence and the Article 93 regime

A Spanish immigration authorization does not automatically determine tax residence or entitlement to a special tax regime.

Spain's Article 93 inbound-worker regime—often informally called the Beckham Law—was expanded from 2023. Current Agencia Tributaria guidance includes qualifying remote employees and expressly recognizes international telework visa holders as one possible qualifying circumstance. It also covers certain entrepreneurs and qualified professionals, subject to separate tax conditions.

One key condition is generally that the taxpayer was not Spanish tax resident during the previous five tax periods. The regime is optional and uses separate tax eligibility tests; a digital-nomad or entrepreneur permit alone is not a guarantee.

Self-employed people should separately model Spanish tax registration, VAT/IRPF and Social Security. Remote workers should examine payroll and cross-border Social Security obligations. Company founders should assess corporate residence, permanent establishment, salary/dividend treatment and related-party issues with a qualified adviser.

Long-term residence

Spain's national long-term residence authorization generally requires five years of legal and continuous residence immediately before the application. It authorizes indefinite residence and work under the same conditions as Spaniards, subject to the statutory rules.

Continuity rules matter. The separate long-term EU framework, for example, specifies absence limits when measuring the five-year period. Applicants should evaluate their actual residence history rather than assuming that merely holding a card for five calendar years guarantees long-term status.

Citizenship by residence

Spain's Civil Code Article 22 sets a 10-year general residence period for nationality by residence.

Shorter statutory periods apply to specified categories:

5 years for people who have obtained refugee status;
2 years for nationals by origin of Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea or Portugal, and for Sephardim; and
1 year in certain defined circumstances, such as particular birth/family connections to Spain.

The reduced two-year rule is therefore not a universal benefit for every digital nomad or entrepreneur. Nationality has additional legal requirements and approval is not automatic.

Which Spain route may fit your profile?

You are a remote employee for a foreign company

Start with the digital nomad / international teleworker route. Check the foreign-employer relationship, professional qualifications/experience, Social Security evidence and €2,442 main-applicant benchmark.

You are a freelancer with mostly foreign clients

The digital-nomad route may work if Spanish activity stays within the legal 20% cap and the other teleworker conditions are met. If you intend to build a Spain-based independent practice, compare the self-employment route.

You want to open a conventional local business or practice

The self-employment visa is generally the more relevant starting point. Expect a project-specific investment/resources assessment, licenses where required and Social Security registration.

You are building an innovative scalable startup

Consider the entrepreneur authorization. The decisive issue is not a fixed investment cheque; it is whether the project receives the required favorable ENISA assessment for innovation/special economic interest.

You planned to buy property for a Golden Visa

That route is no longer available to new applicants. Review the current digital-nomad, entrepreneur, self-employment or other lawful routes instead. The Golden Visa page is for closure and legacy-case information.

Frequently asked questions

Does Spain have a digital nomad visa in 2026?

Yes. Spain's Law 14/2013 contains the international teleworker visa and residence authorization for qualifying third-country remote workers and professionals.

How much income is required for Spain's digital nomad route in 2026?

The principal-applicant benchmark is 200% of SMI. With the 2026 SMI at €1,221/month, that equals €2,442/month. Family amounts are added under the separate 75%/25% formula.

Can a digital-nomad freelancer have Spanish clients?

A professional/self-employed teleworker may work for a company in Spain provided that Spanish work is no more than 20% of total professional activity. A salaried teleworker under this route may work only for companies outside Spain.

Does Spain have a freelancer visa?

There is no need to invent a separate legal category called “freelancer visa.” Depending on the facts, a freelancer may use the international teleworker route or Spain's ordinary residence and work authorization for self-employment.

Is there a minimum investment for Spain's entrepreneur visa?

UGE says there is no fixed minimum level of investment or job creation. ENISA assesses the founder, business plan, financing, innovation and value added to Spain.

Is the Spain Golden Visa still open in 2026?

No for new applicants. The investor provisions were closed with effect from 3 April 2025. Transitional protection remains important for qualifying pre-closure applications and existing authorizations.

How long until permanent or long-term residence in Spain?

The standard national long-term residence route generally requires five years of legal and continuous residence, subject to the detailed statutory conditions.

How long until Spanish citizenship?

The general residence period is 10 years, but Article 22 of the Civil Code provides shorter periods for specific groups, including two years for nationals by origin of specified Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea and Portugal.

Official research starting points

Published pathways

digital-nomad

Spain Immigration and Visa Options for Remote Workers, Freelancers and Entrepreneurs