Spain digital nomad visa income: what you must earn each month

The figure above is what a single applicant must earn each month for Spain's digital nomad visa: twice Spain's minimum wage. It moves every time the minimum wage does, and each family member who comes with you raises it.

It is the monthly income Spain asks of the main applicant for its international teleworker visa, the digital nomad visa: twice the national minimum wage, as the Ministry of Inclusion states it. It is income you earn, not a sum you pay or hold.

The risk is in the date, not the salary. Spain sets its minimum wage by royal decree, usually early in the year and back-dated to 1 January, so a calculation made on last year's minimum wage can fall short of this year's test. The latest rule change shown above is the most recent rise.

Family members, and who you work for

Each family member who comes with you raises the income you must show: the first by more than each one after. The ministry sets the add-ons as shares of the minimum wage.

The work has to be for companies outside Spain. If you are self-employed, some work for Spanish clients is allowed, but no more than a fifth of your total.

Two ways to apply

• From outside Spain, a visa through the Spanish consulate, valid for up to a year.
• From inside Spain, a residence permit from the government's unit for large companies and strategic groups, valid for three years.

What to ask before you pay

Before comparing a quote against anything, sort which charges are the government's and which are the firm's own.

Charges that go to the government:

• The filing fee for the residence permit, shown above as the government fee.
• The consular fee for the visa, which each consulate sets in its own currency.

Charges that are the firm's own:

• A lawyer's or agency's fee. It should sit on its own line, separate from the government fees.

A few questions are worth asking directly:

1. Is the income calculated on this year's minimum wage, and per month as the ministry states it?
2. How many family members are coming, and has the amount been raised for each of them?
3. Are the companies you work for based outside Spain? If you are self-employed, how much of your work is for Spanish clients?
4. Are you applying at a consulate or from inside Spain, and what does each route cost?
5. Which fees are the government's, and which are the firm's own?

Check your own income against the requirement using the box below. No account and no document are needed: just the income you earn and the period it covers. The check compares figures only. It does not look at your application or advise on it; for advice on your own case, speak to a qualified immigration lawyer.

General information, not legal advice.