Spain Long-Stay Routes: Relocation Checklist
A step-by-step checklist for Canadians moving to Spain on the digital nomad visa, the non-lucrative visa, or a work permit: documents and what to verify.
This route fits you if you want a long stay in Spain. The main options are the digital nomad visa for remote income, the non-lucrative visa for living on savings or passive income without local work, work-based permits tied to a job, and youth mobility if you are 18 to 35. Spain’s Golden Visa for investors ended in April 2025. For thresholds and details, see moving to Spain from Canada.
Before You Start
Pick your route honestly, because they are not interchangeable. The non-lucrative visa does not permit you to work, which makes it suited to retirees or the passively funded rather than remote workers. If you earn from a job or clients, the digital nomad visa is the one to look at.
Documents to Gather
- Valid passport.
- Proof of income or funds appropriate to your route: remote-work income for the digital nomad visa, or passive income and savings for the non-lucrative visa.
- Private health insurance with full coverage in Spain, no co-payments, from an authorised insurer.
- A criminal record certificate, apostilled and officially translated.
- For the digital nomad visa, proof that your company or clients sit outside Spain and that the working relationship predates your application by the required period.
Steps in Order
- Choose the route that matches how you will actually earn or fund your life in Spain.
- Assemble your income or funds proof and a compliant health insurance policy.
- Get certificates apostilled and translated into Spanish by a sworn translator.
- Apply at the Spanish consulate for your region. For the digital nomad visa, check whether you qualify to apply through the large-companies unit (UGE) from within Spain.
- After arrival, complete your residence card (TIE) and registration steps.
What to Verify With Official Sources
- Current income and funds thresholds for each route, on the Spanish consulate site.
- Whether the digital nomad route through the UGE is open to your situation.
- The insurance requirements, which are strict and reject many ordinary travel policies.
Common Traps
- Treating the non-lucrative visa as a remote-work visa. Working on it is the classic cause of refusal or renewal problems.
- Travel-style insurance with co-payments or coverage gaps. Spain rejects these.
- Skipping the apostille or sworn translation. Both are usually required.
Want the background first? The Moving to Spain from Canada covers how this route works and what Canadians tend to underestimate.
Still Comparing Routes?
- Portugal D8 Remote-Work Route: Relocation Checklist: Portugal's D8 is the closest equivalent route.
- France Long-Stay Routes: Relocation Checklist: if your French is workable, France widens what you can do locally.