CostaLuz Lawyers made a breakthrough with regard to an issue which has been affecting a number of working-age people: that of the non-lucrative visa for Spain.
In recent months, Spanish Consulates have been denying these visas, which are a great option for people who intend to live in Spain with a passive income (which can be from pensions, rents or dividends), to younger people.
Non-lucrative visas may be the perfect choice for retired people, but for young people, it’s very difficult to demonstrate that they meet all the visa requirements:
- A criminal record certificate issued by the country or countries where you have lived in the five years preceding your visa application.
- A fully comprehensive private health insurance policy with an insurer licensed to operate in Spain.
- A medical certificate, issued by a medical centre in your home country or Spain.
- Proof of sufficient funds to support yourself. In 2022, ‘sufficient funds’ are defined as having funds of at least 27,792.96 euros a year per person.
It must be noted that the non-lucrative visa does not allow you to work remotely.
The applicant must “be in possession of sufficient funds to meet living and accommodation expenses including, when appropriate, those of family, for the duration of the residence period requested, without having to carry out any work or professional activity.”
It is primarily for this reason that in recent times, many applications for non-lucrative visas have been denied to younger people.
In this regard, CostaLuz Lawyers recently won an appeal against a denial of a non-lucrative visa to a very young person. During this appeal we found that as a working-age person, it is very important to prove that you meet two requirements:
1) You have proof that you are not working and do not intend to work in Spain. This includes working remotely. This can be proved through a Termination of Employment letter from your employer and your P45 from HMRC.
2) Sufficient financial funds. Despite the established amount being 27,792.96 euros a year per person, in order to succeed, it is necessary to prove, as a working-age person, that you have more funds.
This can be proved through savings, dividends, investment portfolios, etc.
As a working-age person, if you are able to prove that you meet these two requirements, the non-lucrative visa could be a good option for you.
If you would like to know more about obtaining a non-lucrative visa in Spain, get in touch with us. We would be very happy to advise you.
Sara Velasco
Sara is the newest addition to the Costaluz Lawyer team. Bilingual, Sara is currently focused on Immigration and Private International Law at Costaluz. She specialises in Civil Law, Contract Law, and Real Estate Law. For more information see Sara Velasco’s author profile.
