The Digital Nomad Visa launched in January 2023. Three years later, the first renewal applications are landing on desks at Extranjería — the immigration office — across Spain.

What's becoming clear: the visa that felt like a loophole now feels like a job.

The application process rewarded a good story. Remote income, foreign employer, health insurance, clean record. Fill the forms, wait three months, receive your three-year autorización de residencia — residence authorization — and get on with life.

The renewal process rewards proof. And the gap between what people submitted in 2023 and what Spain expects in 2026 is catching some applicants off guard.

Income threshold (2026): €3,024 per month, €36,288 annually. That's 200% of Spain's minimum wage, which rose on January 1st. If you squeaked through in 2023 at €2,160/month, you need 40% more documented income now.

Documentation window: 12 months of payslips, invoices, and bank statements. Not a contract promising future income. Actual deposits, traceable to your account, matching your declared work.

Application timing: File approximately 60 days before your current authorization expires. If you got approved in March 2023, your window opens in January 2026.

The original application asked: Can this person support themselves remotely?

The renewal asks: Did they actually do it, while actually living here?

Income consistency: Your bank statements must show deposits matching your declared income. A contract saying €4,000/month means nothing if €2,500 shows up irregularly. Immigration offices are now cross-referencing contracts, payslips, and account movements.

Residence proof: Continuous padrón — town hall registration — without gaps. Utility bills. A lease or property deed. Regular local spending in your bank statements. The combination tells a story of someone who actually lived in Spain, not someone who registered and left.

Absence limits: Keep consecutive trips abroad under 90 days. Document all exits and entries with tickets, stamps, and boarding passes. "Continuous residence" means something now.

Health insurance: Policies with copays are triggering refusals. The safer path: no-copay coverage with a Spanish provider, or enrollment in Spanish Social Security if you're contributing. That €80/month policy with a €50 copay per visit? It may not clear the renewal desk.

While we're on healthcare: some centros de salud — public health centers — have posted notices asking patients to bring their own interpreters. Cue panic in the Facebook groups. Salud Responde confirmed that this is not official policy and that translation services remain available. Apparently, individual clinics got creative with printer access.

That said, we've been thinking about whether there's an appetite for a booking-and-translation service for medical appointments. Someone who handles the cita previa — appointment booking — calls in Spanish, confirms details, and shows up with you if needed. Not a full-time hire. Just someone in your corner for the appointments that matter.

If that's something you'd actually use, reply with "medical" and tell us what kind of appointment gives you the most grief. We're genuinely curious whether this solves a real problem or just sounds nice in theory.

This one stings, as an American, though with the week we’ve been having….

Through most of 2025, American W2 employees could present a Certificate of Coverage from the US Social Security Administration. The CoC proved their employer was handling social security contributions stateside, satisfying Spain's requirement without Spanish payroll registration.

In November 2025, Spanish immigration offices stopped accepting it.

The law didn't change. The interpretation did. The Unidad de Grandes Empresas — the office handling strategic cases — decided that the CoC no longer meets its standards. W2 employees now face a choice: restructure as independent contractors, have their employer register for Spanish payroll (which may kill Beckham Law eligibility), or find another path entirely.

If you applied as a W2 employee in 2023 using a CoC, your renewal just got complicated. Immigration lawyers in Málaga and Madrid are seeing a wave of Americans scrambling to restructure before their three-year window closes.

Based on early 2026 renewal cases, the issues clustering:

Vague invoices: Freelancers whose invoices say "consulting services" without specifying remote delivery or international clients. Immigration wants to see that your work couldn't be done from a Spanish office for a Spanish company.

Padrón gaps: You moved apartments and forgot to update registration for four months. That gap now raises questions about continuous residence.

Income mismatch: Contract says one thing, bank shows another. Even legitimate timing differences (quarterly payments, delayed reimbursements) create friction when reviewers want clean monthly matches.

Copay health coverage: Cheaper policies that seemed fine for three years are now grounds for rejection. The renewal standard is stricter than the original application.

Inconsistent tax positioning: If your Spanish tax filings don't align with what you told immigration, expect questions. The databases are now talking to each other.

Start now. Sixty days before expiry is the recommended filing window, but document gathering takes longer than you think.

Audit your bank statements. Do deposits match declared income? Are there gaps? Can you explain the irregularities with the supporting documents?

Check your health insurance. Copays are the new tripwire. Get quotes for no-copay Spanish coverage. Sanitas, Adeslas, and MAPFRE all offer policies that meet the standard. Budget €100-200/month depending on age and coverage (January 2026 quotes).

Verify your padrón history. Request your certificado de empadronamiento histórico — historical registration certificate — from your town hall. It shows all registration dates. Gaps require explanation.

If you're a US W2 employee: Consult an immigration lawyer about restructuring before your renewal date. The contractor path works but requires proper setup. Don't improvise this.

¿Cuándo caduca mi autorización de residencia? — When does my residence authorization expire?

Useful at the immigration office. They'll tell you the exact date and explain the renewal window.

Necesito renovar mi visado de nómada digital. — I need to renew my digital nomad visa.

The phrase that gets you to the right department.

The Digital Nomad Visa promised a three-year runway to build a life in Spain. The renewal process reveals what Spain actually expected: documented income, continuous residence, proper insurance, and clean paperwork. The "figure it out later" approach that worked in 2023 won't clear the desk in 2026. If your renewal is within six months, start gathering documents now. The visa sold flexibility. The renewal demands proof that you used it responsibly.

Onwards — A. and the barely autorización renewed WaypointSur team