Spain Visa Options for Britons: Which Long-Stay Route Fits You

Britons have counted as third-country nationals in Spain’s immigration rules since January 1, 2021, so the right Spain visa for a Briton depends on why you are moving and what you will live on. Spain offers separate long-stay routes for people who live on their own means, work remotely, take a job, start a business, study or join family. Each has its own money test, work rights and consulate fee. This article compares them for a Briton arriving now. Rules change, so confirm each step with the relevant Spanish authority before you file. This article is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice; verify current requirements with the relevant Spanish authority or a licensed professional.

Do you need a visa at all?

For a short visit, no. The UK government says British citizens can travel to Spain without a visa for up to 90 days in any 180-day period, as a tourist, to visit family or friends, or to attend business meetings. Moving is different. The London consulate general’s page says that third-country nationals need a national visa to stay more than 90 days in any 180 to work, study or settle, and also to work for less than 90 days. The same page adds that a national visa does not give an automatic right of entry to the Schengen area, and border officers can refuse entry if the conditions are not met.

The Ministry of Inclusion’s Brexit guide describes the dividing line. Britons arriving after January 1, 2021 and not covered by the Withdrawal Agreement must request the visa or residence authorization required by ordinary aliens law. The UK government’s Living in Spain page says you do not need a work permit or visa if you have lived in Spain legally since before January 1, 2021. For everyone else, the page points to the Spanish consulates’ visa pages. This article does not cover the group that lived in Spain before that date; the Withdrawal Agreement residence card guide does.

Staying on without a visa carries a penalty. The UK government warns that overstaying the 90-day limit may bring a ban from Schengen countries of up to 3 years. Stays under a residence permit or long-stay visa do not count toward the 90 days. The 90 of 180 days rule article explains how to count.

The long-stay routes compared

The table shows the main routes for a Briton applying from the UK. Euro thresholds are percentages of 2026 reference values, worked out by us and marked as derived: IPREM, the public income indicator, is 600 euros a month, and the minimum wage is 1,221 euros a month. Fees are from the [London consulate general’s price list](https://www.exteriores.gob.es/Consulados/londres/es/Comunicacion/Noticias/PublishingImages/Paginas/Articulos/Tasas-Consulares/Listado%20precios%2001-01-26.pdf, whose file name is dated January 1, 2026, in its section for British applicants.

The price list is a PDF whose British section starts on one page, where the non-lucrative row appears, and continues onto the next, where the other visa rows sit after the page break. Validity in the table comes from the London consulate’s pages for the non-lucrative, remote-work, employee, highly qualified, self-employed, entrepreneur, student and family reunification visas. Confirm the amount with the consulate or its filing centre before you pay.

Routes for people who live on their own means or work remotely

Non-lucrative visa

The non-lucrative residence authorization is for people who live in Spain without working and is requested from the applicant’s country of origin. The money test is 400 percent of IPREM a month for the applicant and 100 percent for each family member. Funds can be shown by any means of proof, including bank certificates; income from shares in companies based in Spain needs a certificate that you carry on no work in them, plus a sworn statement. You also need health insurance with an insurer authorized in Spain, a criminal record certificate, a medical certificate and a passport valid for at least a year.

You file in person at the consulate. The decision is due within one month of the consulate’s communication, and silence means refusal. After the visa is granted you collect it within a month and enter within its validity, no more than 3 months. The London consulate’s page, read in October 2026, gives the visa 365 days; Hoja 6, updated May 2025, says the visa lasts no more than 3 months. Ask the consulate which applies. The first authorization lasts one year from entry, and the foreigner’s identity card (TIE) is requested within one month of entry; the TIE card guide covers that step. Renewal is requested in the 2 months before expiry and gives 2 years. The Hoja names the form 790, code 052, for the application fee but prints no amount.

Remote-work visa

Spanish law grants this status to a third-country national who works remotely for companies outside Spain using only IT and telecom means, under article 74 bis of Law 14/2013. Employees may work only for non-Spanish companies. The self-employed may take up to 20 percent of their professional activity from Spanish companies. The Ministry’s page asks for a degree or 3 years of experience, a working relationship of at least 3 months with the foreign company, and a company with real activity for at least a year.

The income threshold is 200 percent of the minimum wage a month for the holder, gross, with higher figures for family units. Health cover can be public, through Spanish social security, or a private policy equivalent to public cover; travel insurance, reimbursement-only plans, waiting periods and copays do not qualify. According to the Ministry’s FAQ, registration with Spanish social security is mandatory, though an employee may instead keep home-country cover where a social security agreement applies and the home administration issues a certificate; the self-employed must join Spain’s self-employed scheme. The initial residence authorization carries a 73.26 euro fee for the holder and each relative. The visa lasts at most one year and is renewed into a residence authorization of up to 3 years, which renews in 2-year periods. The London consulate’s page for this visa asks for an ACRO certificate for UK criminal records.

Routes tied to a job or a business

Employee, and highly qualified professional

For an ordinary job, the employer applies. Hoja 12 describes an authorization requested by an employer for a worker staying more than 90 days. It depends on the national employment situation: the occupation must be on the public employment service’s hard-to-fill catalog, or the employer must show it could not fill the post. Decision time is 3 months, and silence means refusal. The worker then has a month to request the visa. Hoja 12, updated May 2025, says the visa lasts 3 months; the London consulate’s employee-visa page gives up to 180 days, or 365 days for authorizations over 6 months.

The highly qualified route has two modalities, the EU Blue Card and a national one, and the employer files electronically with the large-companies unit. Hoja 66 sets a decision time of 20 days, with silence meaning approval. A June 2026 notice of the salary threshold sets 41,356.36 euros gross a year for the Blue Card, with a reduced 33,085.09 euros for shortage occupations or recent graduates, and a single 41,356.36 euros for the national route. It rests on the Order PJC/44/2026, which sets the reference at 1.4 times average pay. Hoja 66 itself states no salary figure.

Self-employed and entrepreneur

Hoja 14 asks applicants to meet the same requirements as Spanish nationals, hold the qualifications, and show enough investment and effect on jobs. The initial authorization lasts a year and is limited to one autonomous community and one sector. The London consulate’s page for the self-employed visa prints a visa fee of 90 euros, yet the price list shows £719 for work and remote-work visas. This article follows the price list, and you should confirm the amount before paying. Hoja 14 gives the visa 3 months; the London page gives 365 days.

The entrepreneur route is for people over 18 with an innovative project of special economic interest to Spain and a favorable report from the state innovation agency ENISA. The Ministry’s page says there are no minimum investment or job-creation figures. The authorization lasts 3 years under article 69, renews for 2 years, and permanent residence is possible at 5 years.

Study, family and the closed golden visa

The student authorization covers higher education and post-compulsory secondary studies of more than 90 days. Hoja 1 asks for 100 percent of IPREM a month unless accommodation is prepaid for the whole stay, with 75 percent more for the first family member and 50 percent for each further one. Apply at least 2 months before studies start. Higher studies are covered for their full length, and secondary studies for up to a year.

Family routes depend on the sponsor. Under Hoja 8, a foreigner can sponsor relatives only after living in Spain for at least a year and having applied for authorization to stay at least another year, so a newcomer cannot reunite family from abroad. Relatives of a Spanish national fall under Hoja 18, which grants 5 years, or the Spanish relative’s expected stay if shorter, with the right to work.

The golden visa is closed. The Ministry’s investor page records that Organic Law 1/2025 left articles 63 to 67 of Law 14/2013 without content, and those who applied before then keep the old rules.

Choosing a route and filing

Start with what you will do in Spain, not with the cheapest fee. If you will not work, the non-lucrative visa fits, provided you can show 2,400 euros a month. If you will work for a foreign employer, the remote-work visa fits, with a 2,442 euro monthly floor. A Spanish employer or your own business points to the employer-led or self-employed routes. A Briton can usually prepare the file alone and check each requirement on the official pages; an employer or an immigration lawyer is needed when an employer must file, when the file turns on an investment plan, or after a refusal.

Next, find your consulate and gather the paperwork. The guide to the consulate and filing place shows which of Spain’s three UK consulates covers your address, and the visa dossier guide lists the UK documents to prepare. Allow time: a decision can take up to a month after the consulate transmits the file, and authorizations that need the Extranjería office take up to 3 months.

The Spain Navigator puts every step of your move to Spain in order, from the visa to settling in.