Spain: Digital Nomad Visa Income Threshold Rises to €2,849/month in 2026
Spain’s digital nomad visa income threshold has risen to €2,849 per month in 2026, up from €2,763 in 2025. This increase follows the Royal Decree 126/2026, published in the Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE) on 19 February 2026, which raises the country’s Minimum Interprofessional Wage (SMI) by 3.1% to €1,221 over 14 monthly payments. The remote work visa, introduced under Law 28/2022, requires applicants to earn at least 200% of the SMI, meaning any SMI increase directly impacts the entry threshold. Family supplements also follow the same logic: €916 for the first dependent and €305 for each additional member.
Key details of Royal Decree 126/2026
Approved by the Council of Ministers on 17 February 2026, the decree sets the SMI at €40.70 per day or €1,221 per month (€17,094 annually) with retroactive effect from 1 January 2026. This represents an increase of €37 per month compared to 2025. Fieldfisher notes that the increase applies to all employment contracts below the new threshold, including part-time workers on a pro-rata basis.
The decree does not explicitly mention the digital nomad visa. However, Law 28/2022 (the Start-up Law) ties the remote worker’s income requirement to the SMI rather than a fixed amount, making the adjustment automatic:
Single applicant: 200% of the SMI, or €2,442 over 14 months, equivalent to €2,849 over 12 months;
First dependent (spouse or child): 75% of the SMI, or €916 per month;
Each additional dependent: 25% of the SMI, or €305 per month;
A couple with one child must demonstrate approximately €4,070 per month, while a couple with two children needs around €4,375.
These amounts are gross and must be evidenced over the last three months. Consulates accept employment contracts, payslips, invoices, or bank statements, as outlined in the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Unchanged visa conditions
The remaining requirements of the digital nomad visa remain as they were in 2023. Applicants must work remotely for a company outside Spain or for foreign clients if self-employed. Up to 20% of their activity may be performed for Spanish companies. The employer or client must have been in operation for at least one year, and the working relationship must date back at least three months. Applicants must hold a university degree, vocational training, or three years of professional experience in their field, a clean criminal record over the past five years, and private health insurance with no deductibles or waiting periods.
There are two pathways to apply. From abroad, applicants can obtain a one-year visa from the consulate, convertible into a three-year residence permit once in Spain. Within Spain, legally residing applicants may apply directly to the Unidad de Grandes Empresas (UGE), which issues a three-year permit renewable for two additional years. After five years of residence, holders may apply for long-term residency.
Taxation: Beckham Law remains available
Holders of the digital nomad visa may opt for the Beckham Law tax regime within six months of registering with Spain’s social security system. Under this regime, they pay a flat 24% tax on Spanish-sourced employment income up to €600,000 annually for the year of arrival and the following five years, without taxation on foreign capital income. The main condition is that the applicant must not have been a Spanish tax resident in the five years prior, as detailed by Costaluz Lawyers.
The €2,849 threshold is not a migration policy decision but a direct result of Spain’s wage negotiations. As long as the SMI continues to rise annually, the digital nomad visa entry requirement will follow suit, rendering 2024 and 2025 guides outdated.
How the changes affect your situation
Employee working remotely for a French employer. The employment contract must explicitly state remote work from Spain, and the employer must provide a corresponding attestation. The gross monthly salary on payslips must reach €2,849. In practice, consulates and the UGE assess the contractual gross salary, not the net received; an employee earning €34,000 gross annually meets the threshold, while one earning €32,000 does not. For social security, EU coordination applies: the employer must request an A1 certificate from URSSAF to maintain French affiliation; otherwise, the employee must be affiliated in Spain.
Self-employed individuals. Invoices from the last three months, client contracts, and bank statements serve as proof. The revenue considered is the invoiced turnover, with the monthly average needing to exceed €2,849. A French self-employed person relocating to Spain typically registers under the Régimen Especial de Trabajadores Autónomos (RETA) and benefits from reduced social security contributions in the first year.
Employers. Allowing an employee to work remotely from Spain for more than 183 days per year may make them a Spanish tax resident, with potential risks of a permanent establishment for the company if the role involves commercial responsibilities. Employers must ensure the contract specifies the workplace, secure social security coverage via an A1 certificate, adjust health insurance, and document the duration of the stay. These are precisely the aspects tracked by the Nomamundi case management system on an employee-by-employee basis.
The Spanish government has initiated negotiations for the 2027 SMI with social partners, aiming to maintain it at 60% of the median salary. A comparable increase to 2026 would raise the digital nomad visa threshold to around €2,940 in 2027. Applications submitted before the next decree’s publication will be assessed under the threshold in force at the time of submission, according to immigration practitioners, underscoring the importance of early-year submissions.
