Hidden Details of Moving to Spain as a Nomad
There is a wealth of information on the web about moving to Spain, but most say roughly the same thing. So here are a few of the most important parts along with some helpful information that is much harder to find.
Among the first things people looking to move to Spain find first is how much they can expect to pay in taxes. For the most part, these articles are meant to hook you with Spain’s Special Expats Tax Regime (SETR), also known as Beckham’s law. The SETR however is not something that applies to digital nomads, as it requires and benefits foreigners moving to Spain either to start a new company in Spain or to work with a Spanish company. The former will enjoy a reduced tax burden if this is their first time moving to Spain, and the latter will most likely have that set up for them by their contracted Spanish company. More information on tax rates and the SETR can be found in our previous post here.
For the rest of those looking to work in Spain remotely, there are three big things to consider. Before you start your application, you need to decide where you are applying from, where are you applying to, and which documents that communal will need.
If you are applying from your country of origin, the Nomad visa program offers a visa for a maximum of 1 year before you need to renew. Alternatively, the program allows you to apply from within Spain. This option gives you a maximum visa of 3 years before the need to renew. For most people, applying from within Spain is the better option. Americans will want to use their standard 90 day Schengen allowance to enter Spain and will submit their application before that time is up.
Where you are applying to is also critically important to a smooth visa application. Spain’s national government provides the fundamental structure for immigration. But different regions have their own requirements regarding things like housing registration. Some regions like Catalonia and Salamanca are easier to find housing that is eligible for registration.
Once you registered your address, you will have a month to establish your address and get a TIE (residency card) appointment. And, while Spain does have a good public health system, digital nomads along with a number of other foreign visa holders have to begin on the private system. Nomads will need to be careful to select a private insurer whose healthcare network will be readily available in their destination.
Both of these I will go into more detail in an upcoming post for this week.
There can be a lot of confusion in the apostille process. How it is supposed to work is that any state or federal document must be apostilled by a registered official within the country of origin. But Spanish immigration officials may require US state documents to be apostilled by the secretary of state’s office of the state where the document is from. Some lawyers who assist with applications will refuse documents apostilled by a different state’s secretary of state to avoid the potential for rejection.
There is a difference between running a business out of the US versus being a contractor to another company. If you or are your business are contractors to a single company, you may need that company to be able to provide additional documents to show the stability of your income. These documents can include documents of good standing, proof of how long they have been operating, permission from that company to work from abroad, and contracts of a fixed duration over two years.