Two Routes, One Visa

The Digital Nomad Visa was designed to cover the reality of modern remote work, which comes in two main shapes: people employed by a company (on a salary, with a contract and payslips) who happen to work remotely, and people who are self-employed/freelance, invoicing their own clients. The DNV accommodates both, provided the work is genuinely remote and the income comes from outside Spain — but because an employee and a freelancer have fundamentally different working arrangements, the visa treats them through two distinct routes with different evidence and obligations.

Getting on the correct route for how you actually work is the starting point. Applying as an employee when you're really a freelancer (or vice versa), or presenting the wrong evidence, is a common cause of friction or refusal. So the first job is to identify your route accurately, then build the evidence that route requires. We do that assessment up front for every DNV client.

How the Routes Compare

At a glance, the main differences:

Both routes share the core DNV requirements — genuine remote work, the income threshold, qualifications/experience, clean record, health cover — and both can access the Beckham Law tax regime if eligible (though the eligibility details can differ between employees and freelancers). The differences are mainly about how you prove your working arrangement and the self-employment obligations that come with the freelance route. Let's take each.

The Employed Route

If you're an employee of a foreign company working remotely, your route centres on the employment relationship. The key evidence typically includes: your employment contract; recent payslips and bank statements showing the salary; a letter from your employer confirming you're permitted to perform your role remotely from Spain and that the relationship is ongoing; and proof the company genuinely exists and has been trading for the required period.

The employer's cooperation is therefore essential — the authorisation letter and company documentation come from them, which is why an employer's willingness can be decisive (see our piece on working for a UK company from Spain). On the obligations side, an employee generally doesn't register as autónomo; social security is handled through the employer and the relevant coordination rules, which need sorting correctly. The employed route is often the more straightforward of the two where you have a supportive employer and a solid, established contract. Our DNV for employees guide covers it fully.

The Freelance Route

If you're self-employed/freelance, invoicing your own clients, your route centres on your client relationships and business. The evidence typically includes: contracts or agreements with your clients (ideally showing an established, ongoing relationship); invoices and bank receipts demonstrating your income meets the threshold; and proof your clients are predominantly outside Spain.

The freelance route also brings self-employment obligations in Spain: freelancers typically register as autónomo, with the associated social-security contributions and tax filings, so you're effectively setting up as a self-employed person in Spain while serving foreign clients. This is more administrative than the employed route, but entirely manageable with the right support, and it's the correct route for genuine freelancers and contractors. The crucial extra rule for freelancers is the cap on Spanish clients, covered next. Our DNV for freelancers guide has the detail.

The 20% Spanish-Client Rule

The rule that most often catches freelancers out is the limit on how much of your work can come from Spanish clients. The DNV is for remote work earning from outside Spain, so a freelancer is generally permitted to derive only a limited proportion — commonly cited as up to around 20% — of their professional activity from clients based in Spain. The bulk of your work must be for clients abroad.

This matters because a freelancer whose client base is too Spain-heavy may not fit the DNV's purpose and could face problems. If your work is substantially for Spanish clients, the DNV freelance route may not be the right fit, and a different authorisation might be needed. For most genuine digital nomads — serving clients in the UK, US, elsewhere in Europe and beyond — this isn't an obstacle, but it's an important check, and it's worth structuring and evidencing your client mix with it in mind. We assess your client base against this rule before applying so there are no surprises.

Which Route Is Yours?

You don't really "choose" between employed and freelance — your route follows how you're genuinely engaged:

• You're an employee of a foreign company on a salary, working remotely → the employed route.
• You're self-employed, invoicing your own clients → the freelance route, registering as autónomo and observing the Spanish-client limit.
• You have a mix (e.g. employment plus some freelancing) → this needs careful assessment to determine the right basis and evidence.

The point is to apply honestly on the route that reflects reality, with the matching evidence — not to dress one arrangement up as another. Where someone's situation is genuinely mixed or unusual (a director of their own company, say), the correct route and evidence need expert assessment. Getting this right at the outset avoids the relationship-evidence problems that cause many DNV refusals. We assess each applicant's actual arrangement and apply on the correct route with the right proof.

How We Help

We work out your correct DNV route and handle it. We assess whether you're employed or freelance (or a mix), build the right evidence for that route — employer letters and company proof for employees; client contracts, invoices and the Spanish-client check for freelancers — sort the social security (including autónomo registration where needed) and tax, and advise on the Beckham Law. Our bar-registered solicitors and immigration specialists run the whole application. In English. Book a free consultation with a visa specialist — see DNV for employees and freelancers.

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