The Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa, Explained

What the Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa is

The Spanish Non-Lucrative Visa (NLV, or visado de residencia no lucrativa) is a residence permit for non-EU nationals, including US citizens, who want to live in Spain on their own passive income without working. It is the most common route for American retirees and financially independent buyers settling on the Costa del Sol, from Marbella and Estepona through Fuengirola to Nerja. The word that matters is non-lucrative: the permit forbids any economic or professional activity in Spain, and Spanish consulates now treat remote work, freelancing and drawing income from your own US LLC as prohibited too ². If you intend to keep working remotely, the Digital Nomad Visa is the correct route, not this one.

The Non-Lucrative Visa is granted for one year and is renewed in two-year blocks (2 + 2), after which you can apply for long-term residence. Buying a home is not a condition of the visa, and the visa is not a condition of buying: Americans can purchase Costa del Sol property freely as non-residents. This guide explains how the two interact, because your residency status changes the tax you pay both on your home and on your worldwide income.

2026 income requirements

The financial threshold is pegged to the IPREM (Indicador Publico de Renta de Efectos Multiples). For 2026 the IPREM remained at EUR 600 per month, or EUR 7,200 per year, because Spain carried its previous budget forward rather than approving a new one ¹. The NLV requires proof of stable passive income of 400% of the IPREM for the main applicant, plus 100% for each accompanying family member ².

So a couple needs to show roughly EUR 36,000 a year (EUR 28,800 + EUR 7,200). Acceptable sources include pensions, rental income, dividends, annuities and savings. The income must be passive and recurring: a salary from ongoing employment does not qualify, precisely because the permit is non-lucrative ².

Health insurance and documents

Applicants must hold full private Spanish health insurance with no co-payments and no deductibles, with cover equivalent to the public system, paid for the first year in advance ². US applicants also submit an FBI background check, apostilled under the Hague Convention, along with apostilled and sworn-translated supporting documents. The consular visa fee for US nationals is around USD 140 in 2026, before insurance, translations, apostilles and any legal help ².

The tax consequence nobody budgets for

The Non-Lucrative Visa exists to make you resident, and residence has a tax meaning. Under Spanish law you become a tax resident once you spend more than 183 days in Spain in a calendar year, and part-days count ³. Because the NLV effectively requires you to live in Spain, most holders cross that line in their first full year. From that point Spain taxes your worldwide income, not just Spanish-source income, at progressive state-plus-Andalusia rates that run from 19% up to 47% ³.

For US citizens this overlaps with America’s citizenship-based taxation, which follows you regardless of where you live. The 1990 US-Spain double-taxation convention, updated by the 2013 Protocol, keeps that US claim intact through its saving clause but provides relief so you do not pay twice on the same income: chiefly the Foreign Tax Credit on IRS Form 1116, and the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion on Form 2555 ³. In practice you file in both countries and credit Spanish tax against US tax. This is specialist territory: engage a cross-border adviser before your first Spanish tax year, and see our related guide on tax residency and the 183-day rule.

Buying on the Costa del Sol: purchase taxes

Property purchase tax is set by whether the home is new-build or resale, and by the region. In Andalusia, which covers the whole Costa del Sol, the split is as follows ⁴:

You never pay both IVA and ITP on the same purchase. For a new-build home you pay 10% IVA plus 1.2% AJD; the ITP does not apply ⁴. On top of the tax, budget for notary, Land Registry, legal fees and, if applicable, mortgage costs. As a rule of thumb, allow around 14% to 15% on top of the price for a new-build and roughly 10% to 12% for a resale ⁴. Every buyer, resident or not, needs an NIE (Numero de Identidad de Extranjero) to complete. See our related guide on buying costs and the NIE.

Mortgages for US buyers

Non-resident lending is more conservative than resident lending. For non-residents the maximum loan-to-value typically sits between 60% and 70%, and for US citizens it usually maxes out at 60% (occasionally 70% for strong profiles) because of the extra FATCA compliance banks must carry out ⁷. Expect to be asked for a W-9, IRS transcripts and a foreign-tax-compliance declaration ⁷. Plan for a deposit of at least 30% to 40% of the price plus the purchase costs above.

Owning as a non-resident vs a resident

Until the NLV makes you resident, you own your Costa del Sol home as a non-resident, and that carries its own annual filing: the Modelo 210 for Non-Resident Income Tax (IRNR). Even if you never let the property, Spain charges imputed income tax on a second home, calculated on 1.1% of the cadastral value (2% where the value has not been revised recently). As a US national you are a non-EU resident, taxed at 24% on that base, with no expense deductions permitted, unlike the 19% net rate available to EU/EEA residents ⁵. If you let the property, rental income is likewise taxed at 24% gross on the Modelo 210 ⁵.

Separately, every owner pays IBI (Impuesto sobre Bienes Inmuebles), the annual municipal property tax levied by the town hall on the cadastral value. Once you become a Spanish tax resident under the NLV, you stop filing the non-resident Modelo 210 for imputed income and instead declare through the resident IRPF system, and the imputed-income mechanics change. See our related guide on the Modelo 210 for non-residents.

When you eventually sell

If you sell while still a non-resident, the buyer must withhold 3% of the sale price and pay it to the Agencia Tributaria as an advance against your capital gains tax, using Modelo 211 ⁶. You then file Modelo 210 within four months to settle the balance or claim a refund. Capital gains for non-EU sellers are taxed at 24%, and gains for EU/EEA sellers at 19% ⁶. You will also face plusvalia municipal, the local tax on the increase in land value, payable to the town hall. Once you are a Spanish resident, gains are instead taxed under resident savings-income rates. Keep every invoice from purchase, taxes and improvements, as these reduce the taxable gain.

Is the NLV right for a Costa del Sol buyer?

The Non-Lucrative Visa suits Americans with reliable passive income who genuinely intend to make Spain their home and are comfortable becoming Spanish tax residents. It is a poor fit if you plan to keep working, or if you want a holiday home you visit for only a few months a year, in which case staying a non-resident owner (and filing the Modelo 210) may be simpler. Whichever path you choose, the visa question and the property-tax question are separate decisions that should be modelled together. Treat every figure here as a 2026 baseline and confirm your own numbers with a Spanish lawyer and a US-Spain tax adviser before you commit.