Partner of a Spanish or EU Citizen? Family Residence vs Spain's Digital Nomad Visa (2026)

If your partner is Spanish, you may not need Spain's Digital Nomad Visa (DNV) at all. Since 20 May 2025, Royal Decree 1155/2024 has given spouses and partners of Spanish nationals their own residence permit for family members of Spanish nationals. It has no income requirement, costs nothing to file, lasts five years and lets you work in Spain from the day you apply. If your partner holds another EU nationality, a different procedure applies: the EU family member residence card.

The DNV, in comparison, asks for at least €2,849 a month in income, a degree or three years of experience, and remote work for clients or employers outside Spain. This guide explains which route your partner's nationality points you to, how the two family routes compare with the DNV, and when the DNV is still the smarter choice.

Key Takeaways

• Partners of Spanish nationals use form EX-24 under Articles 93 to 99 of Royal Decree 1155/2024. The permit is free, has no income test and is resolved within two months.
• Partners of other EU citizens use form EX-19 under Royal Decree 240/2007. The EU citizen must be working in Spain or have sufficient resources and health insurance.
• Filing an EX-24 application gives a spouse or partner provisional permission to work while it is processed.
• If the authority does not respond within two months, the family permit application counts as refused (negative silence). A DNV filed in Spain counts as approved after 20 business days without a response.
• Unregistered couples need 12 months of continuous cohabitation or a child together to use either family route.
• The DNV still makes sense if your partner does not live in Spain, if you cannot prove cohabitation, or if you want a permit that does not depend on the relationship.

What this guide covers: how to identify your route, the Spanish-partner permit, the EU family card, a side-by-side comparison with the DNV, relationship proof, when the DNV wins, UK nationals, using the family route after a refusal, and common document mistakes.

Your Partner's Nationality Decides Your Route

Before comparing anything else, check one fact: your partner's passport.

There is one exception. If your Spanish partner has lived with you in another EU country using EU free movement rights, the Ministry's guidance sends you to the EX-19 instead. Opening the wrong procedure is one of the most common early mistakes Hoply's lawyers see. It wastes weeks, and the application has to start again on the correct form.

Spanish Partner: The Residence Permit for Family Members of Spanish Nationals

This permit was created by the 2024 reform of Spain's immigration regulations. It replaced the old practice of sending family members of Spaniards through the EU family card or through arraigo familiar.

Who qualifies. According to Article 94 of RD 1155/2024 and the Ministry's information sheet 18, the permit covers:

• a spouse over 18, if the marriage is valid and not a sham
• an unmarried partner over 18 whose relationship is registered in a public register of an EU or EEA state or Switzerland
• an unmarried partner over 18 in a "duly proven" stable relationship, meaning at least 12 continuous months of cohabitation, or a child in common

In every case the couple must live together in Spain. The Spanish partner signs a statement confirming that no other spouse or partner lives with them in Spain.

No income test. The information sheet sets no income, savings or health insurance requirement for the Spanish partner. This is the single biggest difference from the DNV.

Cost and timing. Article 97 says the procedure is free and handled with priority. The authority has two months to decide. If it does not decide in that time, the application is refused by negative silence, so you would need to follow up or appeal.

Working while you wait. Filing the application lets you stay in Spain while it is processed. For spouses and partners, filing also grants provisional permission to work, either employed or self-employed, until the final decision.

Validity. If granted while you are in Spain, the permit lasts five years from approval, or less if your Spanish partner plans to live in Spain for a shorter period. You then have one month to apply in person for your TIE card. Renewals are filed between two months before and three months after expiry.

Where to apply. If you both live in Spain, you can file at the Oficina de Extranjería for your province or online through the Mercurio platform. If you live abroad, the application goes through the Spanish consulate, followed by a residence visa.

EU Partner: The EU Family Member Residence Card

If your partner is French, German, Italian or any other non-Spanish EU, EEA or Swiss citizen, the rules come from Royal Decree 240/2007, which implements EU free movement law.

The key difference is that the conditions apply to your partner, not to you. Under Article 7 of RD 240/2007, your EU partner must be working in Spain as an employee or self-employed person, or have sufficient resources for the family plus public or private health insurance covering Spain. Students with insurance and sufficient resources also qualify.

Partners qualify in the same three ways: marriage, a registered partnership, or a stable relationship proven by at least one year of continuous cohabitation or a child together. You apply with form EX-19, and according to the Ministry's information sheet 62 the card must be issued within three months. A small fee applies, paid with Modelo 790 código 052, set at the same level as the fee Spaniards pay for their DNI. The card is valid for five years.

Family Residence vs Digital Nomad Visa: Side-by-Side

The income gap is large. A DNV couple applying with one partner as dependant needs roughly €2,849 plus €1,068 a month, based on the 2026 SMI set by Royal Decree 126/2026. See our income requirements guide for the full breakdown and the family guide for dependants.

The trade-off sits in the decision rules. The UGE's 20-day deadline with positive administrative silence is faster and safer than a two-month deadline that ends in refusal. If you are unsure which side of the table fits you, request a free case evaluation and Hoply's lawyers will tell you which route fits your situation before you file anything.

Proving Your Relationship for the Family Route and for a DNV Dependant

Both family routes accept three forms of relationship, and each needs specific proof:

• Marriage: an apostilled marriage certificate with a sworn Spanish translation, plus proof that any earlier marriages were dissolved.
• Registered partnership: a certificate from a public register in an EU or EEA state or Switzerland.
• Stable relationship: evidence of at least 12 months of continuous cohabitation, such as a joint lease, utility bills at the same address, a shared bank account or a joint empadronamiento, or the birth certificate of a child in common.

The DNV works differently. Article 62.4 of Ley 14/2013 allows the main applicant to include "the spouse or person with an analogous relationship of affectivity". A registered pareja de hecho is valid proof for a DNV dependant, and so is a well-documented unregistered relationship. If anyone tells you a registered partnership "doesn't count" for the DNV, ask for the specific reason. Usually the issue is the document itself (missing apostille, an expired certificate or a translation), not the type of relationship. Our couples guide explains how registration rules vary between Spanish regions.

When the Digital Nomad Visa Is Still the Better Choice

The family route is not automatically the right answer. The DNV usually wins in these situations:

• Your Spanish partner does not live in Spain and is not moving with you. The family permit requires you to live together in Spain.
• You cannot prove 12 months of cohabitation and you are not married or registered.
• You want independence from the relationship. A family permit is tied to the relationship. Article 99 of RD 1155/2024 lets you keep residence after a breakup only under certain conditions. A DNV held as main applicant does not depend on your partner.
• You both qualify independently. Two remote professionals can each hold their own DNV.

There is also a tax angle. The Beckham Law special regime under Article 93 of the Spanish income tax law (LIRPF) is linked to specific reasons for moving to Spain, and remote work under the DNV is one of them. A family residence permit is not, on its own, one of the listed triggers. If the Beckham regime matters to you, review the tax side with an adviser before you choose a route.

Example (invented names): Ana, a Brazilian designer, has lived with Pablo, a Spaniard, in Valencia for two years. They are not married. Her freelance income is €2,400 a month, below the DNV threshold. With two years of joint utility bills and a shared lease, the family route fits her well. If Pablo instead lived in Madrid while Ana stayed in Lisbon, they would not meet the cohabitation requirement, and the DNV would be her only option once her income rose.

UK Nationals With a Spanish or EU Partner

Since 1 January 2021, British citizens have been non-EU nationals for Spanish immigration purposes, so they follow the same rules as any other third-country national. A British national with a Spanish partner applies with the EX-24. A British national with a partner from another EU country applies with the EX-19, and the EU partner must meet the work or resources condition. A couple where both partners are British has no family route, so one partner applies for the DNV and the other joins as a dependant, as explained in our UK citizens guide.

British applicants should apply early for the ACRO police certificate and the FCDO apostille, since both take time.

Using the Family Route After a Refused Application

Some people only find the family route after another application fails, for example a refused change from student status or a DNV refusal. If you have a Spanish partner and meet the cohabitation rule, a new EX-24 application is a legitimate alternative, and it does not require you to appeal the earlier decision first.

Before relying on it, check three things: that you are still lawfully in Spain or have another way to file, that your relationship evidence covers a full 12 months if you are not married or registered, and that you have filed any appeal deadlines you still want to keep open. If you have been studying in Spain, our guide on the student visa as a bridge covers what that time does and does not count for.

Documents and Common Mistakes

The core file for an EX-24 application includes the signed form, your full passport, your partner's DNI or passport, proof of the relationship, and the Spanish partner's statement that no other spouse or partner lives with them in Spain. You also need criminal record certificates from every country where you lived in the previous five years, excluding time spent in Spain. Our police certificate guide explains validity and apostille rules.

Foreign public documents need an apostille or consular legalisation, plus a sworn Spanish translation. If your country is outside the Hague Convention, see our guide to consular legalization.

The mistakes that most often delay these cases:

• filing the EX-19 for a Spanish partner, or the EX-24 for a non-Spanish EU partner
• counting cohabitation from a date that cannot be documented
• submitting relationship documents without an apostille or sworn translation
• letting the two-month deadline pass without following up, which leaves you with a refusal

Get Your Route Right Before You Apply

Choosing between the family route and the DNV depends on your partner's nationality, where each of you lives, how you can prove the relationship and what you want from your residence in the long term. Getting it wrong costs months, while choosing correctly can save you the DNV's income test altogether. Hoply's immigration lawyers review your situation and tell you which route fits before you spend time or money on the wrong one. Request your free case evaluation to get started.