Spanish residency for non-EU buyers after the Golden Visa closure

The Spanish Golden Visa investor route closed on 3 April 2025 under Organic Law 1/2025. For non-EU buyers eyeing a home on the Costa del Sol, that single change rewrote the residency playbook. This guide explains what the closure means in practice, which residence routes remain open in 2026, and how property ownership still fits into a wider relocation plan even though it no longer triggers a visa. We cover the non-lucrative visa, the digital nomad permit, work and highly-qualified professional permits, family reunification, EU mobility rights, and the investor routes that survived the cull.

What changed on 3 April 2025

Organic Law 1/2025 repealed the property-based investor visa established under Law 14/2013. The €500,000 real-estate threshold that had supported residence applications for over a decade is gone. Applications filed before 3 April 2025 are being processed under transitional rules, and renewals of existing investor permits are generally being honoured, but no new file can be opened on the basis of a property purchase.

The other Law 14/2013 investor categories survived. Capital transfers, business investment and public debt subscriptions remain on the statute book at the time of writing. The political signal, though, was clear: the Spanish government wanted to decouple housing demand from immigration policy, particularly in pressured markets like Málaga, Madrid and Palma.

The headline for buyers is simple. Purchasing a villa in Marbella, an apartment in Estepona or a finca in the Axarquía does not give you, your spouse or your children any right to live in Spain. Property and residency are now two separate workstreams. Treat them that way.

The non-lucrative visa (NLV)

The NLV is the classic passive-income route. It suits retirees, financially independent individuals and families who can live in Spain without working. You cannot carry out professional activity in Spain on this permit, and remote work for a foreign employer sits in a legal grey zone that most Spanish consulates now refuse outright.

The financial threshold is pegged to the IPREM (Indicador Público de Renta de Efectos Múltiples). The main applicant must demonstrate income or assets equivalent to 400% of the annual IPREM, plus 100% for each dependant. For 2025 that worked out to roughly €28,800 per year for the principal applicant and around €7,200 per dependant, though the IPREM is reset annually and consulates apply the prevailing figure.

• Proof of stable passive income (pensions, rental income, dividends, investment portfolios) or sufficient savings
• Private Spanish health insurance with full coverage and no co-payments
• Clean criminal record certificate, apostilled and sworn-translated
• Medical certificate using the prescribed wording
• Application filed at the Spanish consulate covering your country of legal residence

The visa is issued for one year, then renewed for two-year periods. After five years of legal residence you can apply for long-term residence, and after ten years for Spanish nationality, subject to the usual integration and language requirements.

The digital nomad residence

Introduced by the Startups Law (Law 28/2022) in December 2022, the digital nomad visa is the most relevant new route for working-age non-EU buyers. It permits remote work for non-Spanish employers, or freelance activity where no more than 20% of income comes from Spanish clients.

Core requirements

• Employment or client relationship of at least three months' standing, with the employer or main client active for at least one year
• University degree, professional qualification or three years of relevant experience
• Income threshold of around 200% of the Spanish minimum wage (approximately €2,760 per month gross in 2025, with uplifts for family members)
• Private health insurance from an insurer authorised to operate in Spain
• Social security coverage, either through a totalisation agreement or by registering with the Spanish system

The permit is granted for up to three years and renewable for two-year terms. It can be applied for from within Spain on a tourist entry, which speeds matters considerably compared with consular processing abroad.

The Beckham regime angle

Digital nomad permit holders may opt into the special expat tax regime under Article 93 of the Personal Income Tax Law, often called the Beckham regime. Where eligible, the holder is taxed as a non-resident on Spanish-source income at a flat 24% up to €600,000 (47% above), and broadly escapes Spanish tax on most foreign-source income for up to six tax years. This is a powerful planning tool but it has technical conditions on prior non-residency and the nature of the activity. Confirm eligibility with an asesor fiscal before relying on it.

Work and residence permits

If a Spanish employer wants to hire you, the standard route is the work and residence permit (cuenta ajena). The employer files the application, the role generally has to clear a labour-market test, and the process can take several months. This is rarely the right tool for a property buyer, but it matters if you plan to set up or run a Spanish business with yourself on the payroll.

Highly-qualified professional (HQP) permit

The HQP permit, also under the Startups Law framework, is faster and more flexible. It targets senior managers, specialists with a degree and equivalent experience, and roles that meet a salary threshold (typically well above the median Spanish wage, with sector variations). Processing through the UGE (Unidad de Grandes Empresas) is fast, usually under 20 working days.

Entrepreneur visa

For those launching an innovative business in Spain, the entrepreneur visa requires a business plan endorsed by ENISA or another evaluating body. The bar is genuinely innovative, scalable activity. A holiday-letting venture or a standard hospitality project will not qualify.

Family reunification

All the routes above allow family members to join the main applicant, though the mechanism differs. The digital nomad and HQP permits permit joint application from day one, including spouse, registered partner, dependent children and dependent parents. The NLV likewise allows simultaneous family inclusion, subject to higher financial thresholds.

Standard family reunification under the general immigration regime requires the sponsor to have completed one year of legal residence and to have a renewal authorisation in hand. Adequate housing and income must be evidenced. The Costa del Sol rental and ownership market generally satisfies the housing test without difficulty, but the income test is tightened where multiple dependants are involved.

EU mobility rights for third-country nationals

If you already hold long-term residence in another EU member state (the EU long-term resident status under Directive 2003/109), Spain offers a mobility route. After five years of legal residence in, say, Portugal, Ireland or Germany, a third-country national can apply to move to Spain under a simplified procedure, evidencing means and accommodation. This is increasingly relevant for buyers who used other countries' programmes before the Spanish closure.

Holders of an EU Blue Card can also move to Spain after 12 months in the first member state, provided they meet the Spanish Blue Card salary and qualification thresholds. Family members benefit from accelerated processing.

Investor routes still open

The property route is closed. The other Law 14/2013 categories remain, though their future is not guaranteed and the government has signalled a broader review.

• Capital transfer: €1,000,000 deposited in a Spanish bank or invested in shares of Spanish companies or Spanish investment funds
• Public debt: €2,000,000 in Spanish government bonds
• Business project: investment in a business project considered of general interest, evidenced by job creation, socio-economic impact in the area, or relevant scientific or technological contribution

These routes preserve the original five-year permit structure and the family inclusion benefits. They are not suitable for buyers whose budget is concentrated in real estate. Anyone considering them should take coordinated legal and tax advice before moving funds, since the capital deposit route in particular has implications for Spanish wealth tax and the solidarity tax on large fortunes.

Sample calculation: a family of four planning a Marbella move

Consider a British couple in their forties, two school-age children, looking at a €1.8 million villa in Nueva Andalucía. One spouse works remotely for a UK technology company on £140,000. The other does not work.

• Property purchase: standalone transaction. Budget around 11-13% on top for ITP (Transfer Tax in Andalucía currently 7%), notary, registry and legal fees
• Residency route: digital nomad permit for the working spouse, with spouse and children as dependants. Income comfortably clears the threshold
• Tax planning: assess Beckham regime eligibility. If granted, the working spouse's UK employment income is taxed in Spain at a flat 24% up to €600,000, and most non-Spanish investment income falls outside Spanish tax during the regime period
• Healthcare: private policy from a Spanish-authorised insurer for all four family members, around €2,000-€3,500 per year depending on age
• Schools: independent of the immigration file, but factor €8,000-€20,000 per child per year for international schooling

The property and the residency files run in parallel. Completion on the villa does not depend on the permit, and the permit does not depend on the villa. The connection is practical: the villa provides the address used for the empadronamiento and the TIE card issuance.

Common pitfalls

• Assuming property still equals residency. It does not, as of 3 April 2025. Marketing material that suggests otherwise is out of date
• Working remotely on a tourist stamp. The 90/180 Schengen rule applies to presence, not to work status. Working from a Spanish property without the right permit creates tax and immigration exposure
• Mismatching the visa to the lifestyle. NLV holders cannot work, including remote work. Choosing NLV because the threshold looks lower, then carrying on a remote job, risks non-renewal
• Underestimating the 183-day tax trigger. Spending more than 183 days in Spain in a calendar year generally makes you Spanish tax-resident on worldwide income, regardless of visa status
• Health insurance gaps. Policies with co-payments, exclusions or annual caps are routinely rejected. Use a policy specifically marketed as compliant for Spanish residence applications
• Apostille and translation errors. Documents must be apostilled in the issuing country and translated by a sworn translator (traductor jurado). Notarised translations done abroad are often rejected
• Wealth tax surprises. Andalucía effectively neutralises regional wealth tax through a 100% bonificación, but the state-level solidarity tax on large fortunes still bites above €3 million of net wealth
• Confusing the TIE with the visa. The visa lets you enter. The TIE (Tarjeta de Identidad de Extranjero) is the residence card issued once you are in Spain, with a one-month window to apply

How property still fits the picture

Owning on the Costa del Sol is no longer a residency shortcut, but it remains a sensible base for any of the routes above. A registered Spanish address simplifies the empadronamiento, the TIE appointment and the renewal cycle. Owning rather than renting also stabilises school admissions, banking relationships and utility contracts during the often slow administrative phases.

For buyers who do not intend to become Spanish tax-resident, the property can be held as a non-resident second home with visits structured around the Schengen 90/180 rule. For those moving full-time, the right permit is selected on its own merits and the property supports the file as evidence of accommodation.

When to engage professional advisers

Spanish immigration, tax and property law interact in ways that reward early, coordinated advice. Engage the following before signing anything:

• Abogado de extranjería (immigration lawyer): to map the right residence route, prepare the file and handle appeals if needed
• Asesor fiscal (tax adviser): to model Spanish tax exposure, assess Beckham eligibility, and structure asset holding before you trigger residency
• Gestor: for the administrative layer (NIE, empadronamiento, TIE appointments, social security registration)
• Independent mortgage broker: non-resident mortgage terms differ materially from resident terms, and the application timing affects the purchase file
• Property lawyer: separate from the immigration lawyer in most cases, to handle the conveyance, the nota simple, charges and the deposit contract

Nothing in this guide constitutes legal or tax advice. Immigration rules, IPREM figures, salary thresholds and tax regimes change, sometimes mid-year, and consular practice varies. Use the framework above to brief qualified Spanish professionals, and have them confirm the current position before you commit funds or relocate the family. The property market on the Costa del Sol will still be here while you take the time to get the paperwork right.