Spain's digital nomad visa: keeping your US job while living in Madrid

Spain's international telework visa lets you live in Madrid while you keep working remotely for a US employer or your own foreign clients, and it can come with a very favorable tax option.

The short version

• It's for remote workers of companies outside Spain: employees with their employer's blessing, or freelancers with mostly foreign clients. Spanish clients can be no more than 20% of your work [1][2].
• The income test is 200% of Spain's minimum wage (SMI) a month. With the 2026 SMI at €1,221 a month in 14 payments, that works out to about €2,442 a month (about USD 2,730) by the consulates' method [1][3][4].
• Add 75% of the SMI for your first family member and 25% for each additional one [1][2].
• Two ways in: a one-year visa from a Spanish consulate in the US, or a residence permit of up to three years from the UGE, a Migration Ministry unit, if you're already in Spain legally [1][2].
• Taxes: you'll likely be a Spanish tax resident, but you may qualify for the "Beckham law" special regime, with a single 24% rate on work income up to €600,000 [5][6].

USD conversions in this guide use the Federal Reserve H.10 rate of October 30, 2026 (USD 1.1163 per euro).

Who qualifies

Spain calls this the visado or autorización de residencia para teletrabajo de carácter internacional. It's aimed at people who can do their whole job remotely, using computers and telecom, for a company based outside Spain [2]. The New York consulate's checklist [1]:

• Employees must work for a company outside Spain that explicitly authorizes remote work, and must have worked there at least three months.
• Freelancers need at least three months of working with their foreign clients, and work for Spanish companies can't exceed 20% of their total professional activity.
• Qualifications: a degree or postgraduate degree from a recognized university or business school, or at least three years of relevant professional experience.
• The company must have been incorporated for at least one year, shown by a company registration certificate.
• A clean record: an FBI fingerprint-based check, issued within six months, apostilled and translated by a sworn translator [1].
• Health insurance: either Spanish Social Security coverage or a private policy from an insurer authorized in Spain covering everything the public system covers [1]. The UGE says travel policies, reimbursement-only plans and policies with copays or waiting periods don't qualify [2].

Employees can work only for their foreign employer. Family members who come with you can work in Spain without restrictions, which is a big plus for trailing spouses [2].

The income requirement for 2026

The test is a multiple of the SMI, Spain's minimum wage. For 2026, Royal Decree 126/2026 set it at €1,221 a month in 14 payments, or €17,094 a year [3][4].

So a couple would need about €3,358 a month and a couple with one child about €3,663 a month by this math.

A heads-up on the math: consulates have applied the percentage to the monthly SMI. The San Francisco consulate's page, for example, used the 2025 SMI of €1,184 to get €2,368 a month for a single applicant [7]. Because the SMI is paid in 14 installments, some offices and advisers calculate on the annual figure divided by 12, which gives a higher number. Ask the office handling your file which method it uses, and show comfortably more than the minimum if you can.

Applying from the US: the consular visa

If you're stateside, you apply at the Spanish consulate that covers where you live [1][7].

1. Check your consulate's jurisdiction and booking method. San Francisco, for instance, covers Northern California, the Pacific Northwest, Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Alaska and Hawaii, and took telework applications in person or by mail when we checked [7].
2. Collect employer or client proof: a letter authorizing remote work from Spain, your contract, the company registration certificate and proof of your three months with them [1].
3. Show income and qualifications: pay stubs, invoices or bank statements, plus your diploma or proof of three years' experience [1].
4. Get the FBI check, apostille and translation last, so they're within six months on application day [1].
5. Sign the Social Security declaration. San Francisco asks for a signed statement, in Spanish, that you'll comply with Spanish Social Security rules [7].
6. Pay the fee. San Francisco listed USD 190 for Americans from July 1, 2025 [7]; New York links to its own 2026 fee sheet [1].

The legal decision period is 10 days, though it can stretch if the consulate wants more documents or an interview [1]. The visa is valid for one year. Before it expires, you can apply in Spain for a residence permit, in the 60 days before the visa runs out [2].

Applying from Spain: the UGE route

Americans can enter Spain visa-free for short stays. If you're in Spain legally, you can apply directly for the residence permit with the Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos (UGE), the Migration Ministry unit that handles these files online [1][2]. The perks:

• the permit is for up to three years instead of a one-year visa [1];
• family members can apply with you or later [2];
• the fee for initial applications is €73.26 (about USD 82), paid online by card, bank debit or Bizum [2].

You'll need a Spanish digital certificate or a representative to file electronically, which is why many Americans use an immigration lawyer for this route. Don't let your 90-day visa-free window run out while you prepare.

Social Security: the step people skip

The UGE says Social Security registration is mandatory. If you're an employee, your foreign employer must register with Spanish Social Security, unless you're covered by your home country under a bilateral agreement and have a certificate from that country [2]. The US and Spain have a totalization agreement, so a US employer may be able to keep you in the US system with a certificate of coverage. Freelancers must join Spain's self-employed regime, RETA, and can't bring US coverage with them [2]. That matches the US–Spain agreement, which generally covers self-employed people under the system of the country where they live [8]. If you don't complete registration, the permit can be revoked [2].

Tax under the visa, including the Beckham law

Living in Spain more than 183 days a year generally makes you a Spanish tax resident, taxed on your worldwide income at progressive rates. But digital nomads have a way out.

The Beckham law. Spain's special regime for workers who move to Spain lets you be taxed under non-resident rules for the year you move and the next five tax years [5]. The Tax Agency lists "remote workers with a visa for international telework" among those who can qualify, as long as you weren't a Spanish tax resident in the previous five tax years [6]. Under the regime [9]:

You opt in on form 149 with the Tax Agency, filed electronically [5]. The deadline is six months, counted from the start date on your Spanish Social Security registration (see our Beckham law guide), so don't wait until tax season.

The US side. Uncle Sam still wants his return. For tax year 2026 you can exclude up to $132,900 of foreign earned income ($130,000 for 2025), or use the foreign tax credit [10]. With a 24% Spanish rate, many people find the credit works better, but a US expat tax preparer can check your situation, especially if you're self-employed and paying into RETA.

Want to compare notes with other Americans working remotely from Spain? Join our community group for Americans in Spain.

Sources

1. Telework visa, Consulate General of Spain in New York
2. Nómadas digitales: preguntas frecuentes, UGE, Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration
3. Salario mínimo interprofesional 2026, Notarios y Registradores
4. SMI e IPREM en 2026, OCU
5. Modelo 149: opting into the special regime for workers moving to Spain, Agencia Tributaria
6. Special tax regime for workers moving to Spain: summary table, Agencia Tributaria (IRPF 2024 manual)
7. Telework visa, Consulate General of Spain in San Francisco (September 16, 2025)
8. Totalization agreement with Spain, Social Security Administration
9. Special regime for workers moving to Spain: tax scales, Agencia Tributaria (IRPF 2025 manual)
10. Figuring the foreign earned income exclusion, IRS

Keep reading

• The Beckham law: Spain's special tax regime
• Spain's non-lucrative visa for Americans
• NIE and TIE: Spain's foreigner numbers and card
• Self-employed abroad: US self-employment tax