What's the income requirement for Spain's digital nomad visa and will it go up in 2024?
Spain’s DNV became available for the first time earlier this year, but there's still a lot of confusion about the financial requirements and many media outlets are reporting incorrect amounts. There's also a big chance the threshold will increase in 2024.
READ FIRST: New 2024 income requirement for Spain's Digital Nomad Visa confirmed
Spain's DNV is also referred to as visado de teletrabajador de carácter internacional on most of the official websites in Spain, so this is what you'll need to search for when researching.
So, what is the Spanish DNV's true income requirement, how much do you actually need to earn per month in order to be able to get Spain’s DNV?
Firstly, the UGE (Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos) the body that deals with these visas and the one you apply to states that you need to prove you have monthly earnings of at least 200 percent of the minimum interprofessional salary (SMI), or minimum wage.
READ ALSO - LISTED: All the documents you need for Spain’s digital nomad visa
Official government sources state that Spain’s minimum wage is currently €1,080.
However, here’s where much of the confusion comes in - this is the amount across 14 payments rather than 12. It is standard for many companies in Spain to pay their employees 14 times a year rather than just once per month or 12 times.
If you take the minimum wage amount across 12 payments, it equates to €1,260 per month.
This means that you must be able to prove that you will have an income that’s 200 percent of this amount to obtain Spain's digital nomad visa. This equals €2,520 per month or €30,240 per year.
If you're applying for yourself and your partner, you will need to prove you earn an extra 75 percent of the SMI. This currently equates to an extra €945 per month on top of the €2,520 just for you.
For each additional family member after this, such as children, you will have to prove you have an extra 25 percent of the SMI, which is an extra €315 per month.
If you are an employee and a remote worker, you should be able to prove this via your contract, which you will submit along with your application.
If you are self-employed, like many on the DNV will be, it’s likely you won’t have fixed earnings each month and your income will fluctuate. In this case, you can prove this amount either with several job contracts, invoices, bank statements or tax returns.
If you earn different amounts, many nomads have stated that they have submitted invoices for the last three months or more and the authorities have taken the average to check if it’s over €2,520 per month.
READ ALSO: Is Spain's digital nomad visa still worth it?
Will the monthly requirement for the DNV go up in 2024?
Spain's SMI is set for another rise in 2024 and experts predict that this will most likely happen from January.
While the exact amount hasn’t been finalised yet and the government still has to approve the rise, the Ministry of Labour has proposed it should be raised by four percent.
This would result in the amount going up to €1,123.20 per month across fourteen payments, compared to the current €1,080.
When split up between the 12 payments that many from other countries are used to, this will equate to €1,310.40 per month. 200 percent of this amount equals €2620.80 per month, which is what those applying for the DNV in 2024 would need if SMI increases.
READ ALSO: What we know so far about Spain's next minimum wage increase
This would mean that digital nomads applying next year would need to earn an extra €100.80 per month compared with those who applied in 2023. This is equivalent to earnings of €31,449.60 per year.
It would also mean that the amounts for each family member you want to bring with you will increase. It would be an extra €982.80 for a partner for example and €327.60 for any more after that such as a child.
While the exact amount you’ll need to earn to be eligible for the DNV in 2024 remains unknown it’s extremely likely that the amount will go up and that you will have to prove you earn more than anyone who applied this year.
Comments
See Also
READ FIRST: New 2024 income requirement for Spain's Digital Nomad Visa confirmed
Spain's DNV is also referred to as visado de teletrabajador de carácter internacional on most of the official websites in Spain, so this is what you'll need to search for when researching.
So, what is the Spanish DNV's true income requirement, how much do you actually need to earn per month in order to be able to get Spain’s DNV?
Firstly, the UGE (Unidad de Grandes Empresas y Colectivos Estratégicos) the body that deals with these visas and the one you apply to states that you need to prove you have monthly earnings of at least 200 percent of the minimum interprofessional salary (SMI), or minimum wage.
READ ALSO - LISTED: All the documents you need for Spain’s digital nomad visa
Official government sources state that Spain’s minimum wage is currently €1,080.
However, here’s where much of the confusion comes in - this is the amount across 14 payments rather than 12. It is standard for many companies in Spain to pay their employees 14 times a year rather than just once per month or 12 times.
If you take the minimum wage amount across 12 payments, it equates to €1,260 per month.
This means that you must be able to prove that you will have an income that’s 200 percent of this amount to obtain Spain's digital nomad visa. This equals €2,520 per month or €30,240 per year.
If you're applying for yourself and your partner, you will need to prove you earn an extra 75 percent of the SMI. This currently equates to an extra €945 per month on top of the €2,520 just for you.
For each additional family member after this, such as children, you will have to prove you have an extra 25 percent of the SMI, which is an extra €315 per month.
If you are an employee and a remote worker, you should be able to prove this via your contract, which you will submit along with your application.
If you are self-employed, like many on the DNV will be, it’s likely you won’t have fixed earnings each month and your income will fluctuate. In this case, you can prove this amount either with several job contracts, invoices, bank statements or tax returns.
If you earn different amounts, many nomads have stated that they have submitted invoices for the last three months or more and the authorities have taken the average to check if it’s over €2,520 per month.
READ ALSO: Is Spain's digital nomad visa still worth it?
Will the monthly requirement for the DNV go up in 2024?
Spain's SMI is set for another rise in 2024 and experts predict that this will most likely happen from January.
While the exact amount hasn’t been finalised yet and the government still has to approve the rise, the Ministry of Labour has proposed it should be raised by four percent.
This would result in the amount going up to €1,123.20 per month across fourteen payments, compared to the current €1,080.
When split up between the 12 payments that many from other countries are used to, this will equate to €1,310.40 per month. 200 percent of this amount equals €2620.80 per month, which is what those applying for the DNV in 2024 would need if SMI increases.
READ ALSO: What we know so far about Spain's next minimum wage increase
This would mean that digital nomads applying next year would need to earn an extra €100.80 per month compared with those who applied in 2023. This is equivalent to earnings of €31,449.60 per year.
It would also mean that the amounts for each family member you want to bring with you will increase. It would be an extra €982.80 for a partner for example and €327.60 for any more after that such as a child.
While the exact amount you’ll need to earn to be eligible for the DNV in 2024 remains unknown it’s extremely likely that the amount will go up and that you will have to prove you earn more than anyone who applied this year.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.