The end of the Spanish Golden Visa for UK British Nationals and other non-EU citizens, has been on the cards since Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s announcement in April 2024. Since then the Government have made significant progress with legislation necessary to bring about the end of this type of Spanish residency.
In November 2024 Congress approved a bill that included text to scrap the ‘Golden Visa’ and end this residency scheme as soon as January 2025. On December 2nd, the Senate vetoed the bill sending it back to Congress delaying the ending of the Golden Visa for property purchases in Spain for several months. It is now expected that the earliest legislation could get pushed through is April 2025.
The Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa offers residency to nationals from non-EU countries who have the financial means to support themselves without working. The Non-Lucrative Visa residency scheme is therefore ideal if you are retired or have passive income, for example from a portfolio of properties or other investments. The Non-Lucrative Visa is for people who intend to take up full-time residency in Spain.
What does the Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa Offer?
Spain’s Digital Nomad Visa and Residency is now nearly two years old and has become the second most popular Spanish residency after the Non-Lucrative Visa. This visa or residency permit allows the holder to live in Spain and work remotely or online. It can be applied directly in Spain, or via the Spanish Consulate in the country in which you currently reside.
To get Spain’s Digital Nomad Visa, applicants must have sufficient funds to support themselves, proof they can work remotely from Spain, and must already have been working in their current ‘remote worker’ employment or self-employment prior to applying.
Holders of the Digital Nomad Visa or Residency Permit, may also be eligible for a special income tax rate fixed at 24% for the first 5 years, offering higher earners reduced income tax compared to normal residents.
All three Spanish Consulates in the UK have outsourced handling of Non-Lucrative Visa applications to BLS International.
The consulates in London and Edinburgh were the first to make the switch at the start of summer in 2023 at the onset of Student Visa application processing.
Manchester consulate continued handling Non-Lucrative Visa applications in house, though to the end of October 2023, before making the switch.
Everything is now handled by BLS so all former procedures through the Consulates have been done away with, and new processes with BLS are in place.
Who Are BLS International?
It’s now the beginning of the 4th year since the UK left the EU changing the requirement and costs for British nationals to get residency in Spain. British nationals apply for a Spanish residency visa if they want to live in Spain, and by far the most popular is the Non-Lucrative Visa.
We initially published this article early in 2021 not long after Brexit, and now three years into the ‘new norm’ for Brits, we revisit the requirements and costs for British nationals to a Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa and highlight the most recent changes.
We cover the general requirements in our article Spanish Residency Requirements for British Citizens and UK Nationals.
Here we drill down further into what the Spanish residency requirements for British nationals and the costs in real terms.
British citizens / UK nationals now have to follow the same process as other non-EU national citizens of third countries to get Spanish residency, i.e. there is a requirement to first obtain a visa.
The financial means required for a British Citizen / UK national to obtain a residency visa, is a lot higher than it was when the UK was in the EU. A single applicant needs to have around €30k per year in either income or savings, whereas a citizen of an EU country €6k is sufficient.
British nationals also have to obtain a police criminal report, get official supporting documents legalised, and medical certificates are also required for most visa applications.
The Spanish Consulate in London covers the southern counties of the UK, Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories. So if you live in East Anglia, the South East or the South West, you’ll take your application to the BLS International Visa Centre in London which handles visa processing for the Consulate of Spain in London.
Locations that come under the Spanish Consulate in London
The Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa offers residency to British nationals who have the financial means to support themselves without working. The Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa scheme is therefore ideal if you are retired, or have passive income, for example income from rental properties or other investments. The Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa is intended for full-time residency in Spain, i.e. 6 months or more per year.
What does the Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa Offer UK British Nationals?
The Spanish Consulate in Manchester covers Central UK. So if you live in the Midlands, the North West, Isle of Man or Wales, you’ll take your application to the BLS International Visa Centre in Salford Manchester, which handles visa processing for the Consulate of Spain in Manchester.
Locations that come under the Spanish Consulate in Manchester
Now that BLS International have taken over processing of Non Lucrative Visa Applications, it is no longer possible to track your application through the Spanish Consulate portal. BLS have their own tracking system and in addition to this your can also check the progress of your residency application on the Spanish immigration website.
