Working from the Costa del Sol: the digital nomad visa and the Beckham Law

By Beatriz Ochoa de Retana Framis - Octubre 2026

We keep seeing the same profile: professionals who work remotely and decide to do it from the Costa del Sol. For them, two pieces, well combined, change the equation a lot: the visa that lets them stay, and the tax regime that lets them pay less.

The digital nomad visa. Created by Law 28/2022 (the Startups Act), it is designed for those working remotely for companies outside Spain. It requires proof of the employment or professional relationship with a certain seniority, minimum income (linked to the minimum wage) and health cover. It allows residence and, in many cases, opens the door to medium-term residency.

The Beckham Law, the tax magnet. This is the special impatriate regime of article 93 of the Personal Income Tax Act. It allows someone moving to Spain for work reasons to be taxed at a flat 24% on employment income up to €600,000 (47% above), during the year of arrival and the following five, instead of the general scale. The major reform came with Law 28/2022, which cut the prior non-residence period from ten to five years and opened the regime to digital nomads, directors and other profiles.

Legal analysis. The detail that makes the difference: moving is not enough. For the Beckham Law you must not have been tax-resident in Spain in the previous five years, the move must have an accepted work cause, and the option must be exercised in time (within six months of registering with Social Security). Moreover, the regime does not generally exempt worldwide income; employment income is treated specially. And the visa and the tax go hand in hand: fitting them together badly can leave you outside the 24% in the very year you earn most. That's why we study them together, before the move.