Digital nomad, non-lucrative, work, study or family reunification: each legal path to live in Spain is designed for a different life situation. We explain the logic of each one, who they suit and how much you must prove.
By Suelen Miranda · Product Owner at Aterriza España · Brazilian in Spain
Updated June 2026
There is a very common confusion among those who dream of Spain: imagining immigration as a wall, when it is really more like a building full of doors. Each door — each type of visa — is designed for a specific life moment, with its own requirements and a logic behind it. Those who understand the map from the start save months of anxiety; those who try to force their story through the wrong door end up colliding with bureaucracy.
The good news is that this building was recently reorganized. Since 20 May 2025, Spain's new Immigration Regulation — approved by Royal Decree 1155/2024 — has been in force, modernizing and clarifying the residence pathways. Understanding this framework is the first step to choosing your route with confidence, rather than relying on the scattered, outdated information circulating in groups and videos.
Before getting into each visa, it helps to know two numbers that govern almost every financial requirement, because they come up constantly. The first is the SMI, the minimum wage, set at €17,094 per year in 2026. The second is the IPREM, a public reference indicator used to calculate requirements, at €600 per month.
Whenever the law asks you to "prove financial means", it usually translates that into a percentage of one of these indicators. So we give both the percentage and the approximate value in euros, keeping the information valid even as the indices change.
One last note, said with the honesty that is Aterriza's hallmark: everything that follows is a guideline. Figures update, and each case is assessed individually by the consulate or the Spanish administration, which may request additional documents depending on the profile. The goal here is for you to understand the map in depth; your specific case, we confirm together with you.
Before the detail, a bird's-eye view so you can quickly locate where your story fits.
| Route / visa | Who it's for | How much to prove | Can you work? | Family |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digital nomad | Works remotely for outside Spain | ~2.849 €/mês · 200% SMI | Yes, remote | ✔ |
| Non-lucrative | Lives on income, no work | 28.800 €/ano · 400% IPREM (+7.200 €/familiar) | No | ✔ |
| Work (employed) | Has a Spanish job offer | Contract salary | Yes | Later |
| Study | Going to study | 600 €/mês · 100% IPREM | Yes, up to 30 h/wk | ✔ |
| Family reunification | Family of a legal resident | 900 €/mês p/ 2 · 150% IPREM (+300 €/membro) | Depends | — |
Legal basis: Royal Decree 1155/2024 (in force 20/05/2025). SMI 2026: €17,094/year (BOE). IPREM: €600/month. Guideline figures; confirmed case by case.
Of all the routes opened in recent years, none has been as much of a game-changer as the digital nomad visa. The logic behind it is simple and smart: Spain realized there is a whole generation of professionals earning in euros, dollars or reais while working for companies abroad, and that they boost the local economy without competing for a single local job. Rather than block this profile, the country chose to attract it. It's a visa born of a win-win.
It is for those who work remotely for companies or clients located outside Spain, whether as an employee of a foreign company or as a freelancer with most clients abroad. The core financial requirement is to prove income of around €2,849 per month (200% of the Spanish minimum wage). That threshold isn't arbitrary: it ensures you can support yourself comfortably without relying on the public system, and it rises slightly per family member, since a family consumes more than a single person.
In practice, it's the favorite door for those in tech, marketing, design, consulting and digital services — people whose office fits inside a laptop. One caveat many overlook, though: the visa assesses the nature and origin of your income, not just the amount. A freelancer who, once settled, starts billing mostly Spanish clients can undermine their own nomad status. Thinking about this before you fly avoids surprises at renewal.
The name sounds scary, but the idea is clear. "Non-lucrative" means you come to live in Spain bringing your own support — pension, rental income, dividends, investments, savings — without needing to work in the country or take anything from the local labor market. It's the classic route for retirees, people of independent means, and anyone taking a career break to live a while on the Mediterranean on the resources they've already built.
Since the State wants to be sure you won't depend on it, the financial requirement here is higher than it seems: around €28,800 per year for the main applicant (400% of the IPREM), plus roughly €7,200 per year (100% of the IPREM) per dependent family member. It's not one month's salary that's assessed, but your ability to maintain a stable standard of living throughout the year, proven with statements, tax filings and income documents.
The point that causes the most confusion is the trade-off: this visa does not authorize working in Spain, and that includes remote work formalized here. Some imagine they'll "pick up a few freelance gigs on the side" once settled — and that kind of improvisation is exactly what puts renewal at risk. If your intention is to keep working, the honest path isn't the non-lucrative, but the digital nomad or work visa. Choosing the right route from the start is what separates a smooth move from a race against the clock two years later.
This is the most intuitive route in people's minds — "I'm going to Spain to work" — and, paradoxically, one of the most demanding for someone still in Brazil. The first key difference is who leads: the company that will hire you applies for the visa, not you. Without an employer willing to start the process, this door simply doesn't open.
The second difference lies in the law's philosophy, which protects the local labor market. So hiring a foreigner is usually allowed in two cases: when the occupation is on the so-called Catalogue of Hard-to-Fill Occupations — a list published by the public employment service, the SEPE, of roles short of workers in Spain — or when the company can show it couldn't find a local professional for the role.
Add the requirement that the employer be up to date on its obligations, and it's clear why this route works best for highly qualified profiles or sectors with real shortages. The response time is usually around three months.
Many treat the study visa as something minor, "just for university students", and make a strategic mistake. In reality it's one of the most accessible and flexible entries into Spanish life — and the current regulation made it even more attractive. The financial requirement is comparatively gentle: around €600 per month (100% of the IPREM), plus a smaller amount per accompanying family member.
The big twist is the built-in work authorization: today a student can work up to 30 hours a week, as long as it's compatible with the course. In practice, you can study, earn in euros and build a professional network at the same time — a springboard, not a dead end.
Language courses, vocational programs, degrees and postgraduate studies all open this door, and residency follows the length of your studies, renewable. For someone without high income or a job offer yet, but who wants to start life in Spain legally and with time to get organized, it's often the smartest path.
Family reunification stems from a human principle the law recognizes: a new life is only complete when the family is together. So a legal resident who has settled in can bring their loved ones. There is, however, a timing condition that often surprises people: in general, the sponsor must have already renewed their permit — that is, completed the first year of legal residence — as well as have adequate housing and sufficient means to support those arriving.
These means are also measured in IPREM and grow with family size: it starts at around €900 per month (150% of the IPREM) for a two-person unit, adding roughly €300 per month (50% of the IPREM) per additional member. You can reunite a spouse or registered partner, minor children and, in specific cases, dependent parents. It's the natural path, for example, for someone who comes first on a work visa and, once established, brings the family over.
In any search about immigration in Spain you'll run into the word "arraigo", and it's worth understanding why it almost certainly doesn't apply to you. Arraigo is a set of regularization routes designed for people already in Spain irregularly who, over time, have built ties — work, family, social or educational — that justify legalizing their stay. It's, by definition, a solution for those who entered or stayed outside the rules.
Someone arriving from Brazil with a visa is at the exact opposite end: entering legally, organized and fully planned. They don't need arraigo, don't go through the anguish of irregularity and aren't held hostage by time. It's precisely the calmest path, and the only one we recommend.
Once you know each door, the choice tends to be clearer than it seemed. If you work remotely for outside Spain, the digital nomad visa is usually the most direct fit. If you already live on income or are retired, the non-lucrative was designed for your reality. If you have — or can get — a concrete job offer from a Spanish company, the route is the employed-work visa.
If you plan to study, even to buy time and work part-time while getting organized, the study visa is quite a springboard. And if your family already lives legally in Spain, family reunification is the natural bridge.
What we never recommend is entering as a tourist "to see what happens": the tourist stay allows up to 90 days without a visa, but it was never a path to living there — and trying to turn it into one is the source of most stories that end badly.
Here's the truth few people tell, and it can spare you the biggest frustration of the move: having your visa approved doesn't remotely mean you'll manage to rent a home. As a newcomer, without a Spanish payslip or financial history in the country, it's common to hear "no" after "no" from landlords — no matter how much money you've saved or how valid your visa is. Getting permission to live there and actually getting a roof are two different battles, and the second usually catches people off guard.
That's precisely where Aterriza comes in. More than guiding your legal route, we work so you land with your rental already closed and the paperwork underway, with the rent-default insurance approved and documents in order before you even board the plane. Visa and home, solved side by side, so your first day in Spain is a fresh start — not a queue and a closed door.
Not sure which visa is yours — or where to start?
Tell us your case. We help you choose the right legal path and arrive with your home ready.
Talk to AterrizaTo spend a while as a tourist, no: a Brazilian can stay up to 90 days without a visa. But to live there — that is, reside more than 90 days and build a life — yes, a visa or residence permit is essential. Which one depends entirely on your profile: remote work, own income, job offer, studies or a family tie to a resident. Trying to live on a tourist entry alone isn't a shortcut, but the gateway to irregularity.
There's no absolute easiness champion, because "easy" depends on who you are. For remote workers, the digital nomad is usually the most direct. For those living on income, the non-lucrative. And for those still building income or buying time, the study visa is surprisingly accessible, especially since it allows working up to 30 hours a week. The real secret isn't finding the easiest visa, but choosing, from the very first moment, the one that truly matches your situation.
As a current reference, it's around €28,800 per year for the main applicant — the equivalent of 400% of the IPREM — plus about €7,200 per year (100% of the IPREM) per dependent family member. More important than the exact number is understanding what it represents: proof that you can support yourself steadily throughout the year, without relying on the Spanish public system. Being tied to the IPREM, it updates over time, and we confirm the current figure for your case.
Yes, and it's one of its biggest advantages today. The regulation in force allows students to work up to 30 hours a week, as long as the activity is compatible with the course. In practice, that turns the study visa into a real springboard: you train or specialize, earn in euros and also build a professional network in the country, all within the law.
It does. The visa covers spouse or partner and children, so the move can be made together, leaving no one behind. The trade-off is financial: on top of the around €2,849 monthly (200% of the SMI) required of the main applicant, you must prove additional income per family member, because a family naturally has a higher cost of living.
Not necessarily — and it's one of the biggest confusions we come across. A job offer is only mandatory for the employed-work visa. On the other routes it's dispensable: on the digital nomad you prove your remote income, on the non-lucrative your own means, and on the study visa your enrollment and means to support yourself. In other words, it's perfectly possible to live legally in Spain without ever having received a Spanish job offer.
Legal basis: Royal Decree 1155/2024 — Immigration Regulation (in force 20/05/2025). · Procedures and requirements: Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration. · SMI 2026: BOE — Royal Decree 126/2026 (€17,094/year). · IPREM: €600/month.
Guideline figures, expressed as % of the SMI/IPREM; updated periodically. Last updated: June 2026.