Non-Lucrative Visa Requirements

What This Visa Is

Residency without a Spanish employer — built for income that already exists elsewhere.

The Non-Lucrative Visa (NLV) lets you live in Spain without working here. It's built for people whose income comes from outside Spain — savings, investment returns, a business run remotely, rental income, or a pension.

It's the most common path I see for entrepreneurs who want a real base in Spain while their business keeps running elsewhere. If your plan is to actively run a Spain-based business day to day, we'd look at a different visa first — I'll tell you which one when we talk.

The Six Requirements

What your file actually needs to contain.

Valid passport

Valid for at least one year at the time of application, with at least one blank page.

Financial means

Documented proof of income or savings above the threshold — see the exact figures below.

Private health insurance

Full coverage in Spain, no co-payments, from an insurer authorised to operate in the country.

Criminal record certificate

Covering the last 5 years, from every country lived in during that period, apostilled and officially translated.

Medical certificate

Confirming you don't carry a disease with serious public health implications, per WHO international health regulations.

Consular application

Filed at the Spanish consulate covering your place of legal residence — never from inside Spain.

The Financial Threshold — In Real Numbers

How much you actually need to show.

The requirement is set as a percentage of Spain's public income indicator (the IPREM), reviewed by the Spanish government every year. Based on the current published figure, here's what that translates to:

Main applicant
400% of the annual IPREM

€28,800 / yr

Each additional family member
100% of the annual IPREM, per dependent

€7,200 / yr

Family of 4, applying together
Main applicant + 3 dependents

€50,400 / yr

These figures are calculated from the most recently published IPREM (€600/month, €7,200/year) and the standard 400% / 100% formula consulates apply. The base indicator is reviewed annually in Spain's national budget — I confirm the exact current figure with you before we file, so your application is never built on an outdated number.

Scope

What this visa gives you — and what it doesn't.

This visa allows

Legal residency in Spain, renewable
Free movement across the Schengen Area
Bringing your spouse and dependent children
Living in Spain on income earned abroad
A path to permanent residency, then citizenship

This visa does not allow

Working for a Spanish company
Taking paid work inside Spain
Filing the application from inside Spain
Switching to work status without a formal modification

The Process

From application to your life in Spain.

File at the consulate

Submitted in person at the Spanish consulate covering your legal place of residence — with the full document set, translated and legalised.

Consular review

Typically resolved within a matter of weeks, not months, once the file is complete and accurate.

Visa approved, travel to Spain

You collect your visa and enter Spain within the validity window stated on approval.

In person, within 30 days of arrival — your physical residency card, valid for one year and then renewed.

Renewals, then permanent residency

Renewed at 1 year, then 2, then 2 again. After 5 continuous years, you can apply for permanent residency. After 10, citizenship becomes possible.

"This page tells you what the visa requires. It doesn't tell you whether it's right for your specific situation, how to document your income so it doesn't get questioned, or how to time the move around your business. That part is personal — it depends on you."

— Renata