Spain digital nomad visa for Australians in 2026: requirements, the reciprocity fee and applying from Spain

Australians can get the Spain digital nomad visa on the same terms as other non-EU citizens: remote work for a company or clients outside Spain, income of at least €2,849 a month and a degree or three years of experience. Because Australians enter Spain without a visa for 90 days, most apply from inside Spain to the UGE and receive a three-year permit; the consulate route in Australia carries a reciprocity fee — AUD 4,540 for this visa at the Consulate General in Melbourne.

Below: the requirements in 2026, the consulate route versus applying from Spain, the AFP police check and the apostille, what happens with social security and super, the Australian tax consequences of leaving — CGT on departure and HELP debt — and citizenship. General rules for all residence permits are in our guide to Spanish residence permits.

1. Spain digital nomad visa: requirements for Australians

The digital nomad permit (teletrabajo de carácter internacional, Law 14/2013) lets you live in Spain and work remotely for companies located outside Spain. It fits Australians employed by a company in Australia or elsewhere outside Spain, and freelancers and consultants serving foreign clients.

• Who qualifies: employees of a company outside Spain that has operated for at least a year, with at least three months of working relationship; freelancers with contracts with foreign clients, where Spanish clients may account for no more than 20% of the work.
• Qualification: a university degree or vocational qualification, or at least three years of professional experience in the field.
• Income: at least €2,849 a month for the applicant (200% of the Spanish minimum wage), plus €1,068 for the first family member and €356 for each additional one. With pay in Australian dollars, keep a margin for exchange-rate swings.
• Family: a spouse or registered partner and children can apply together with you, or join later — see a digital nomad’s family in Spain.
• Health insurance with full cover and no co-payments, and a clean criminal record.
• Duration: applied for from Spain, the permit is issued for up to three years at once and then renewed for two years. Applied for at the consulate, you first receive a one-year visa, then a residence permit in Spain.

Applying from inside Spain: usually the better route

Australian citizens are on the EU visa-free list: up to 90 days in any 180 across the Schengen area. Spain has no separate bilateral agreement with Australia that adds days. While you are in Spain legally on this visa-free stay, you can apply online for the digital nomad permit. The UGE (Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit) decides within 20 working days, and if it does not reply in time the application counts as approved. This route gives a three-year permit straight away. You pay the UGE fee on form 790 code 038 instead of the consular visa fee. Plan to file early in the 90 days and keep the stay within the limit while the application is pending.

Applying at a Spanish consulate in Australia

There is no BLS or VFS visa centre for Spain in Australia. The consulate decides within 10 days and issues a one-year visa; in Spain you then apply for a residence permit. The Consulate General in Melbourne publishes a reciprocity fee of AUD 4,540 for the digital nomad visa (and AUD 470 plus the 790-052 fee for the non-lucrative visa); Sydney and Canberra quote the amount by email. Check before applying whether it is charged per family member. Official information: Consulate General of Spain in Melbourne — digital nomad visa.

2. Startup visa: for founders of an innovative business

The startup visa (residence for entrepreneurs, Law 14/2013) is for founders who move to Spain to develop an innovative business with growth potential. The key document is a favourable report from ENISA, the state innovation agency, on the business plan. The permit is first granted by the UGE and is then collected as a visa at the consulate, or the whole procedure is done from Spain. It runs for up to three years and is renewed for two if the business really operates — after approval the company must be set up and registered with Social Security, see startup visa renewal.

3. Non-lucrative permit: living on capital without working

The non-lucrative permit is for those who live on savings, rental or investment income and do not plan to work in Spain, including remotely.

• Funds: at least €2,400 a month for the applicant and €600 for each family member, for the whole period of the permit.
• Where: only at the Spanish consulate for your place of residence — it cannot be applied for from Spain. The residence permit fee is form 790 code 052.
• Restrictions: no work; private health insurance; to renew, you need to spend most of the year in Spain.

For people with significant capital, Spain no longer has a golden visa: the investor residence was abolished on 3 April 2025 — see residence after the golden visa.

Documents from Australia: AFP check, apostille, translations

• Police check. The consulates ask for a national police check from the Australian Federal Police based on name and fingerprints, issued no more than six months before you apply. The AFP fingerprint check is lodged by post and costs AUD 114; allow 15–30 working days. Order a paper certificate — the apostille goes on the paper document.
• Apostille. The Apostille Convention has applied between Australia and Spain since 16 March 1995. Australian public documents are apostilled by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).
• Translations. Plan for sworn Spanish translations (traducción jurada) of the police check, degree, contracts and civil certificates; Sydney requires them, Melbourne may accept some documents in English — check the list of the office you use, and for a UGE application in Spain translate everything.
• Degree. For the digital nomad permit a foreign degree does not have to be homologated; for regulated professions in Spain, see degree homologation in Spain.

Social security: the agreement covers pensions, not super

Spain and Australia have a social security agreement in force since 1 January 2003 (BOE-A-2002-24712). On the Australian side it covers only Centrelink pensions: periods in Spain can help you qualify for the Age Pension, and it can be paid to you in Spain. Superannuation and health care are outside it, and there is no coverage certificate that keeps a remote worker in the Australian system. A digital nomad is therefore registered in Spanish Social Security — an employee by the foreign employer, a freelancer as autónomo. Without registration the permit can be terminated for the whole family — see residence permit cancellation in Spain.

Taxes: leaving Australia and arriving in Spain

• Australian residence. Whether you stop being an Australian tax resident is decided by the residence tests in section 6(1) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 — where you live, your home and ties, not only days abroad.
• CGT on departure. When you stop being a resident, CGT event I1 treats your assets other than taxable Australian property (mainly Australian real estate) as sold at market value. You can choose to defer this, but only for all such assets together (section 104-165 ITAA 1997) — decide before you leave, with an Australian adviser.
• Super and HELP. Citizens cannot withdraw superannuation on leaving Australia. A HELP student debt follows you: if you leave for 183 days or more, you must notify the ATO within seven days and repayments are based on your worldwide income.
• The treaty. Spain and Australia have had a double taxation agreement since 10 December 1992 (BOE-A-1992-28742). It covers income taxes only — not Spanish wealth tax. Pensions are taxed in the country of residence; withholding is capped at 15% on dividends and 10% on interest and royalties.
• Spanish tax residence. You become a Spanish tax resident if you spend more than 183 days a year in Spain or your main economic interests are here; a resident declares worldwide income — see Spanish tax residency.
• Beckham Law. Employees moving for work, including employed digital nomads, may opt for a flat 24% rate on employment income up to €600,000 and exclude most foreign income for six years — see the Beckham Law. Freelancers registered as autónomos cannot.
• Wealth. Residents with large assets may owe wealth tax and the solidarity tax on large fortunes, depending on the region — see wealth tax and capital income in Spain. Accounts, securities and property abroad above €50,000 per block are reported on form 720.
• Source of funds. Spanish banks check where large transfers come from. Before moving capital, gather statements, sale contracts and tax returns that show its origin.

Citizenship: ten years, and Australia lets you keep yours

Spanish citizenship by residence takes ten years for Australian citizens (Civil Code, Article 22.1), and the applicant signs a declaration renouncing their previous nationality (Article 23 b). Australian law does not take citizenship away for acquiring another one: under the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 it ends only by your own renunciation, revocation or a court decision. Many Australians therefore stay on long-term residence, which is available after five years — see Spanish citizenship.

Community, cities and driving

• Community. 2,692 Australian citizens were registered in Spanish municipal registers on 1 January 2022 (the latest breakdown), a quarter of them in the province of Barcelona, followed by Madrid, the Balearic Islands and Málaga; 7,210 residents of Spain were born in Australia. Compare the best cities to live in Spain, Madrid and Marbella.
• Driving licence. Australia is not on the DGT list of countries whose licences can be exchanged. You can drive on an Australian licence for six months after becoming resident; then you need to pass the Spanish tests — see driving licences in Spain.
• First steps after arrival: the TIE card within a month of arriving on a visa, a bank account and health insurance.

If your income comes from several countries, you plan to move capital or the family has different statuses, it is worth choosing the route and the order of steps in a consultation before booking the appointment.

Similar guides to the Spain digital nomad visa: for Indians, Filipinos, Chinese citizens, New Zealanders, South Africans, Mexicans, Nigerians, Ghanaians, Moroccans, Egyptians, Bangladeshi citizens, Iranians; and from Saudi Arabia, from Qatar, from Singapore.

Frequently asked questions

Can Australians get the Spain digital nomad visa?

Yes. Australians who work remotely for a company outside Spain or serve foreign clients can apply, either at the Spanish consulate for their state or online from Spain during the 90-day visa-free stay. They need income of at least 200% of the Spanish minimum wage and a degree or three years of experience.

Do Australians need a visa to move to Spain?

Not to enter: Australians can stay up to 90 days in any 180 without a visa. To live in Spain they need a residence permit, which for remote workers is the digital nomad permit, requested at a consulate or from inside Spain.

How much does the Spain digital nomad visa cost for Australians?

At the Consulate General in Melbourne the reciprocity fee for this visa is AUD 4,540. Applying from inside Spain to the UGE avoids the consular visa fee; you pay the UGE fee instead.

Is it better to apply in Australia or from Spain?

For most Australians, from Spain: there is no visa to get first, the permit is issued for three years at once and the consular reciprocity fee does not apply. The consulate route suits those who want the visa before travelling.

Which police check do I need for the Spanish visa?

A national police check from the Australian Federal Police based on name and fingerprints, issued no more than six months before the application, apostilled by DFAT and translated into Spanish.

Does the Australia–Spain social security agreement cover remote workers?

No. It covers Centrelink pensions only, not superannuation or a coverage certificate for remote workers, so a digital nomad registers in Spanish Social Security.

Can I keep Australian citizenship if I become Spanish?

Australian law does not remove citizenship when you acquire another. Spain asks Australian applicants to sign a declaration renouncing their previous nationality after ten years of residence.

Sources

• Consulate General of Spain in Melbourne — digital nomad visa
• Law 14/2013 (digital nomads, entrepreneurs)
• Immigration Regulation RD 1155/2024
• Spanish Civil Code, Articles 22–24 (nationality)
• HCCH — Apostille Convention status table
• Spain–Australia social security agreement (BOE)
• Spain–Australia double taxation agreement (BOE)
• Australian Federal Police — national police checks
• DGT — countries with licence exchange agreements