I will describe here my experience as a Canadian getting the Digital Nomad Visa to Spain. I started really travelling after I graduated university and planted trees in BC, Alberta and Quebec.
Cependant, je voulais voyager à l'extérieur du Canada et j'ai fini par vivre plusieurs années en Équateur et en Argentine. J'ai visité l'Espagne pour la première fois en 2017 et j'ai adoré. J'ai pu voir le lien avec l'Amérique latine et j'ai le plus apprécié la nourriture, la météo et la sécurité. J'ai déménagé en Espagne en 2019 grâce au programme nord-américain d'assistants linguistiques et culturels (Auxiliares de Conversación). J'ai passé 4 ans comme auxiliaire dans 4 villes Vitoria, San Sebastian, Carboneras et Cordoba. Dans le cadre de ce programme géré par le gouvernement, les anglophones natifs sont scolarisés dans des écoles publiques (écoles primaires, secondaires et de langues officielles) dans toute l'Espagne.
Au milieu de ma quatrième année, j'ai décidé que je voulais rester en Espagne au lieu de retourner dans la toundra gelée. Heureusement, le visa de nomade numérique est également sorti cette année. Il existe d'autres visas que vous pouvez demander en tant qu'indépendant ou entrepreneur, mais le DNV est le meilleur pour les indépendants travaillant en ligne. Pendant mon mandat d'auxiliaire, j'enseignais également l'anglais en ligne pour une entreprise allemande en tant que freelance. C'était ma clé pour obtenir le visa. Le fait de n’avoir qu’un seul « client » a facilité le processus car il faut recevoir une lettre de chaque client autorisant à travailler depuis l’Espagne. Vous devez également avoir travaillé avec ce client pendant au moins un an.
Mon niveau d'espagnol est correct, je me sentais donc suffisamment en confiance pour compléter la candidature moi-même. Il existe quelques groupes Facebook utiles qui peuvent vous aider et je les recommande fortement, vous pouvez y trouver de bons conseils et des réponses à vos questions.
Avant de demander ce visa
- You need to have an undergraduate or postgraduate degree from a University, College or Business School, or have at least 3 years of work experience in your field.
- Vous devez être un citoyen non-européen travaillant à distance depuis l’Espagne pour une entreprise située en dehors de l’Espagne. Vous devez également gagner au moins le double du salaire minimum espagnol, qui est de 1 050 euros par mois.
- Vous devrez demander un NIE (número de identidad de extranjero) et un certificat électronique ou Cl@ve pour vous permettre d'accéder à l'application.
- Prove that of the total income, the part coming from Spain does not represent more than 20%
- At least three months of continuous employment relationship with the company. The company must certify that you are allowed to work online.
- The company has been operating in the market for at least 1 year
Le site pour postuler est ici : https://www.inclusion.gob.es/web/unidadgrandesempresas/solicitudes
Options lors de la demande de ce visa
Il existe deux options différentes selon le type de professionnel que vous êtes…
- un employé qui travaillent pour une entreprise en dehors de l'Espagne
- un travailleur indépendant personne qui travaille pour différentes entreprises à travers le monde. Dans ce cas, vous pourriez travailler pour une entreprise située en Espagne à condition que celle-ci ne dépasse pas 20% de votre revenu total.
Il existe également deux options selon l’endroit où vous vous trouvez au moment de demander ce visa…
- D'Espagne: you get a 3-year residence permit (renewable), these years count for both Spanish nationality and permanent residence, which you can get after 5 years in Spain. there are some other benefits to applying from Spain, especially if you are already living here and have your NIE number. It may be more straightforward as you have local documentation and could potentially speed up the process. Additionally, applying from Spain means you will be able to attend any necessary appointments or provide additional documents in person, if required.
- Du Canada (or your country of origin): and get a 1-year residence permit which could be then modified later to the 3-year residence card. Applying from Canada might give you some flexibility if you want to keep your options open, and applying from your home country can sometimes make the process feel more familiar and less stressful.
Avantages offerts par le visa nomade numérique
Certains des avantages que vous obtiendrez en tant que Canadien en demandant ce visa sont les suivants…
- résolution en seulement 20 jours, et le silence administratif applicable est positif
- avantages fiscaux: if you are not a freelancer but just work remotely for a company you will pay a flat tax rate of just 24% on your income and also you don’t need to pay wealth tax. I am adding a section bellow dealing with Taxes.
vous pouvez inclure votre conjoint et vos enfants dans la demande de visa - Obtenir le résidence permanente après 5 ans
- Voyage dans tout l'espace Schengen est autorisé
- Your family members may also obtain the visa: your the spouse or unmarried partner and your dependent children and dependent relatives in the ascending line who form part of the family unit.
Les documents requis pour demander le Digital Nomad Visa
– Visa application form: can be downloaded ici
- La photographie. une photo couleur format passeport et récente (moins de 2 mois)
– Passeport valide : original et une photocopie et valable au moins 1 an
– Extrait de casier judiciaire : datant de moins de 6 mois
– Justificatif de résidence dans la circonscription consulaire.
– Frais de visa : le montant à payer est de 80€
– Assurance maladie privée, avec couverture dans toute l’Espagne (original et copie du certificat)
– Si vous êtes indépendant, une attestation de travail d’au moins 3 mois (avant la demande de visa) pour une entreprise étrangère.
– Si vous êtes indépendant, un contrat avec cette même entreprise d’au moins 1 an
– Copie du diplôme universitaire ou du certificat professionnel attestant que vous possédez un minimum de 3 années d’expérience dans votre carrière.
Documents à traduire
Le processus en lui-même ne prend pas beaucoup de temps, c'est simplement la collecte et la traduction des documents qui prend le plus de temps.
Certains documents doivent être traduits par un traducteur agréé :
1) Votre contrat de travail
2) Preuve que l'entreprise étrangère pour laquelle vous travaillez existe depuis au moins un an
3) Votre diplôme/certificat lié au travail que vous effectuez
Une simple traduction d’autres documents est nécessaire, vous pouvez donc traduire ces documents vous-même :
1) CV
2) Lettre de votre entreprise vous autorisant à travailler à l'étranger
Chronologie
L’ensemble du processus m’a pris environ 5 mois. Je n'ai demandé le visa qu'à la fin de l'année scolaire, où j'avais alors 90 jours pour soumettre la demande. J'ai soumis ma demande en juin et j'ai été approuvée environ 30 jours ouvrables plus tard.
Ils m'ont dit d'attendre une réponse dans les 20 jours, après 20 jours j'ai soumis une demande de résolution favorable basée sur le silence administratif (vous pouvez le faire sur la même page Web que la demande initiale) et j'ai été approuvé environ 10 jours après.
What taxes does a digital nomad pay?
A foreigner is considered a tax resident in Spain if they meet one of the following requirements…
- Living more than 183 days a year in the country.
- Having their center of economic interest in Spain, that is, their commercial or work operations.
- Having their spouse or children living in the country.
As a digital nomad you will get a residence card for 3 years and you will not be able to avoid being a resident. This has great implications in relation to the taxes you pay. The good news is that with this visa even if you are a resident you will continue to pay taxes as a NON-resident.
In the case of digital nomads with an employment contract (not applicable in the case of being freelance) and with their corresponding certificate of coverage issued by the Social Security of their country of origin, they will be able to benefit from a more beneficial tax regime known as the Beckham Law.
Because of this advantage, you will be subject to a flat tax rate of 24% on income earned in Spain (not income from other countries) up to €600,000 (48% will apply beyond this amount). This 24% regime is much more favourable than the progressive rate which can reach 50% for others.
In addition, as a beneficiary of the Beckham Law, you will be exempt from filing Form 720, you will not have to pay wealth tax, and capital gains tax will be reduced to a rate ranging from 19% to 28%.
To access this regime, the following requirements must be met:
- You must not have been a tax resident in Spain in the last 5 years.
- The reason for your move to Spain must be work-related, which applies to digital nomad workers.
Once your application to benefit from the Beckham Law is approved, you will enjoy the benefits for 5 years, plus the year in which you submit your application.
Do I have to pay taxes in Spain and also in Canada?
No, the Avoidance of Double Taxation agreement between Spain and Canada establishes the rules on where a person is considered a tax resident and how taxes are managed to avoid double taxation:
Requirements for Family Members
Proof of Family Relationship: provide documentation, such as birth certificates, marriage certificates from the civil registry, or a certificate of registration as an unmarried couple. If the relationship is an unregistered partnership, any relevant documentation confirming this status may be submitted. Documents from foreign countries must be legalized or apostilled, and, if needed, accompanied by an official Spanish translation.
For Adult Children: submit evidence of their financial dependence on the worker, along with documentation of their civil status. Foreign documents must be legalized or apostilled, with an official Spanish translation provided when necessary.
For Ascendant Relatives: submit proof that these family members are under the care of the investor. As with other foreign documents, legalization or apostille is required, along with an official translation into Spanish if needed.
Proof of financial means.
Financial means must be at least 200% of the monthly Spanish national minimum wage In the case of family members: For the first family member they must prove additional financial means of at least 75% of the Spanish minimum wage. For each additional applicant, 25% of the Spanish national minimum wage is required. Any means of proof are acceptable: work contract, bank statements, payslips etc.
Health service for dependant family members
For Autonomos (self employed in Spain) the steps to follow in order to register a dependant/s would be the next (They can only be your dependent if they have no other way of accessing healthcare, they are not working and have no right of their own)…
- Register as Autónomo
- after about a week you’ll be able to download a healthcare entitlement certificate from the social security website
- take the certificate to your local health centre to register with a GP
- Once you dependant/s have the TIE (foreing identity card) and Padron (Proof of address), you add your dependant/s on the social security website as your beneficiaries (https://sede-tu.seg-social.gob.es/).
- Once those application/s have been processed, you will be able to download a new entitlement certificate, showing your beneficiaries as well.
- With that new certificate you can go again to the health centre
What taxes does a digital nomad pay in Spain?
A foreigner is considered a tax resident in Spain if he or she meets one of the following requirements…
- Living more than 183 days a year in the country.
- Having his or her center of economic interest in Spain, that is, his or her commercial or work operations.
- Having his or her spouse or children living in the country.
As a digital nomad you will get a residence card for 3 years and you will not be able to avoid being a resident. This has great implications in relation to the taxes you pay, but the good news is that this visa comes with a great advantage and that is that even if you are a resident you will continue to pay taxes as a NON-resident.
So in the case of digital nomads with an employment contract (not applicable in the case of being freelance) and with their corresponding certificate of coverage issued by the Social Security of their country of origin, they will be able to benefit from a more beneficial tax regime known as the Beckham Law.
Because of this advantage, you will be subject to a flat tax rate of 24% on income earned in Spain (not income from other countries) up to €600,000 (a rate of 48% will apply beyond this amount). This 24% regime is much more favourable than the progressive rate which can reach 50% in the general case.
In addition, as a beneficiary of the Beckham Law, you will be exempt from filing Form 720, you will not have to pay wealth tax, and capital gains tax will be reduced to a rate ranging from 19% to 28%.
To access this regime, the following requirements must be met:
- You must not have been a tax resident in Spain in the last 5 years.
- The reason for your move to Spain must be work-related, which applies to digital nomad workers.
Once your application to benefit from the Beckham Law is approved, you will enjoy the benefits for 5 years, plus the year in which you submit your application.
Do I have to pay taxes in Spain and also in Canada?
No, the agreement to avoid double taxation between Spain and Canada establishes the rules on where a person is considered a tax resident and how taxes are managed to avoid double taxation: https://www.treaty-accord.gc.ca/text-texte.aspx?lang=eng&id=102340&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR1lk28H6PM1vN8glCAtvLl56e4FKH2GFgDakTrMZJxFPYj-SJehC2ghfro_aem_x8OM460aTudIIHyfQuSQFA
*A decision is always issued within a 20-day working period, otherwise the application is approved by administrative silence.
