For Spain's digital nomad visa you must be from outside the EU, hold a degree or postgraduate qualification or have three years of experience, work remotely for a foreign company with at least one year of activity and a relationship of at least three months, show 200 % of the SMI each month and have health insurance without co-payments.
What everyone calls the digital nomad visa is, in law, international teleworking. It was created by Law 28/2022 of 21 December, which added four articles to Law 14/2013. It lets you live in Spain, and so in Barcelona, while working remotely for companies based abroad. Here are the requirements as the law and the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit write them, without rounding.
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Who can apply
It is for third-country nationals of legal age: it does not apply to citizens of the European Union (EU) or to anyone covered by EU law. The work must be doable entirely at a distance, using computer and telecommunication systems. The Large Companies Unit spells out what that means: the job must not need on-site supervision or management at origin, such as overseeing production, running human resources or making sales visits.
The law also asks for a qualified profile: a degree or postgraduate qualification from prestigious universities, vocational training or business schools, or at least three years of professional experience. And it separates two cases. If you are an employee, you may only work for companies based outside Spain. If you are self-employed, you may also work for a Spanish company, as long as that work does not exceed 20 % of your professional activity.
The requirements, one by one
Article 74 ter of Law 14/2013 sets out the specific ones. The company you work with must have had real, continuous activity for at least one year. Your relationship with it, as an employee or a contractor, must go back at least three months before you apply. And you need a document proving the company lets you work remotely or, if you are self-employed, the terms on which you will do so.
On top of that come the general requirements of article 62: not being in Spain irregularly, being over 18, having no criminal record in Spain or in the countries where you have lived for the last two years (plus a sworn statement covering the last five), holding public health cover or private health insurance with an insurer authorised in Spain, having sufficient means and paying the fee. On insurance the Unit is blunt: travel policies do not count, nor do reimbursement-only policies, nor any with waiting periods or co-payments.
How much you need to earn, and Social Security
Income is measured against the minimum wage (SMI). According to the Large Companies Unit, the main applicant must show 200 % of the SMI each month, from work income. If one family member comes too, the household of two needs at least another 75 % of the SMI, plus 25 % for each additional member.
For 2026, Royal Decree 126/2026 set the SMI at 1,221 euros a month, with an annual amount of no less than 17,094 euros. We do not give a euro figure here, because it changes every year and depends on how the sum is done: in October 2026 neither the Unit nor the consulates we checked published this year's amount, and the Boston consulate was still showing the 2025 calculation. Ask whoever will decide your application for the exact figure before you gather bank statements.
Social Security is not optional. If you are an employee, your foreign employer has to register in Spain to enrol you in the General Scheme, unless there is a social security agreement with your country and its administration certifies that you are covered here. If you are self-employed, you must register with RETA, no exceptions: if you do not after getting the permit, the Unit warns that it is withdrawn. For the first six months your passport is enough to register if you do not yet have an NIE.
Visa from the consulate or permit from inside Spain
If you live abroad, the way in is the international teleworking visa, requested at the Spanish consulate for your area. It lasts at most one year and on its own lets you live and work in Spain while it is valid. The law allows 10 working days to decide these visas. The consular fee depends on nationality: the Boston consulate, for example, charges US citizens 190 dollars.
If you are already in Spain lawfully, for instance on a visa-free stay, you can apply directly for the residence permit without going home. It is done online with the Large Companies Unit, the fee is 73.26 € and the law sets 20 days for a decision: if there is no answer, it counts as granted. Meanwhile, the application extends your stay. The permit lasts up to three years and is renewed for periods of two.
Two traps. From your home country you cannot apply for the permit, only the visa; once the visa has 60 calendar days left, you can apply for the permit to stay on. And a non-lucrative residence is no springboard: it does not allow work, so you cannot claim you were already teleworking. With a permit of more than six months you also need the foreigner identity card (TIE).
Once you are in Barcelona
The City Council runs a free, confidential service for people arriving to work: the Barcelona International Welcome Desk, at Roc Boronat, 117. It helps in English, Catalan and Spanish, by appointment, in person or by video call. Its website gathers the immigration procedures for non-EU citizens, this one included.
Your family (partner, children who are minors or depend on you, and dependent parents) can apply with you or later, and the law lets them work without restrictions. For the rest of your first days, start by registering on the padró; and for where to open your laptop, see the guide to teleworking in Barcelona and the one on public libraries.
Checked
Checked in October 2026 in the consolidated text of Law 14/2013 in the BOE (articles 62, 74 bis to 74 quinquies, 75 and 76), Royal Decree 126/2026, the FAQ of the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit (Ministry of Inclusion), the Boston consulate's telework visa page and the Barcelona International Welcome website. Consular fees vary by country.
Quick questions
Can I apply for the digital nomad visa while already in Spain?
Not as a visa, but you can apply for the residence permit: anyone lawfully in Spain applies online to the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit, which has 20 days to decide.
How long does the digital nomad visa last?
The visa, at most one year. The residence permit, up to three years, renewed for periods of two.
Can I work for Spanish companies on the digital nomad visa?
If you are an employee, no: only for companies based outside Spain. If you are self-employed, yes, as long as that work does not exceed 20 % of your professional activity.
How much is the digital nomad visa fee?
The permit requested from inside Spain has a fee of 73.26 €. The visa fee depends on the consulate and your nationality.