Guide for US citizens · 2026

Spain digital nomad visa document checklist for Americans

Every document a US applicant needs for Spain's digital nomad visa in 2026, which ones need an apostille and a sworn translation, and what to order first.

Last reviewed 13 August 2026

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Quick answer

A US applicant needs, at minimum: a valid passport, an apostilled FBI Identity History Summary Check, private health insurance from a DGSFP-authorised insurer with no copays, an employment or client contract, a letter authorising remote work from Spain, proof the company has traded for at least a year, evidence of qualifications or three years of experience, and financial records showing €2,849 a month. Every US public document needs an apostille from the issuing authority and a sworn translation into Spanish by a traductor jurado. The FBI check and its apostille take the longest, so they are what you order first.

The numbers that matter

Order first: FBI check
Insurance: DGSFP-authorised
Translations: Traductor jurado
TIE card fee: €16

The full list

Documents, and what has to be done to each
Document	Apostille	Sworn translation	Notes
Passport	No	No	At least one year of validity, with blank pages
FBI Identity History Summary Check	Yes	Yes	Plus equivalent records from any country lived in over the last two years
Private health insurance policy	No	Usually issued in Spanish	Insurer must be DGSFP-authorised; full coverage, no copays, no waiting periods
Employment contract or client contracts	No	Yes	Must show the remote nature of the work
Employer letter authorising remote work from Spain	No	Yes	Should state the role, that remote work from Spain is authorised, and the length of the relationship
Company registration / proof of trading	No	Yes	Evidence the company has operated for at least one year
Degree or professional certification	Yes	Yes	Or documented evidence of roughly three years of experience
Payslips, invoices and bank statements	No	Yes	Must evidence income at or above the threshold, consistently
Marriage and birth certificates (for dependents)	Yes	Yes	Long-form certificates, not abstracts
Proof of fee payment	No	No	€90 at the consulate, €73.26 at the UGE

What an apostille is, and what it is not

An apostille is a certificate under the Hague Convention that authenticates a public document for use in another member state. Spain and the United States are both members, so an apostilled US document is accepted without further legalisation.

For federal documents such as the FBI check, the apostille comes from the US Department of State. For state-issued documents such as birth and marriage certificates, it comes from the Secretary of State of the issuing state. Getting this wrong — sending a state certificate to the federal authority, or vice versa — is a common and avoidable delay.

An apostille authenticates the signature and seal. It does not translate the document, does not extend its validity, and does not make an incorrect document correct.

Sworn translation is not ordinary translation

Spanish authorities require translations by a traductor jurado, a translator officially appointed by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who signs and stamps the translation and assumes responsibility for it. A translation done by a bilingual colleague, an agency without that appointment, or a machine, will be rejected regardless of quality.

Order translations after the apostille, not before: the apostille itself is part of the document and has to be translated with it.

The health insurance requirement, in detail

This is where files fail for reasons that feel unfair, because a policy that looks perfectly good gets refused on a technicality.

The insurer must be authorised by the DGSFP to operate in Spain. A US policy with international coverage is not the same thing.
Coverage must be comprehensive and equivalent to Spain's public system.
No copays. A policy with any patient contribution per visit is routinely rejected.
No waiting periods for coverage to begin.
Full-year coverage, covering the whole permit period.
Travel insurance and credit-card medical cover do not qualify, however generous the limits look.

Sequence matters more than the list

Week 1: request the FBI Identity History Summary Check. It is the long pole.
Week 1: start the employer letter conversation. It depends on someone else's calendar, not yours.
On receipt of the FBI check: apostille it, then order the sworn translation.
In parallel: obtain state-level certificates for dependents and apostille them at the correct Secretary of State.
Before filing: buy the DGSFP-authorised insurance policy, confirm the exact income figures against the current threshold, and assemble bank statements as continuous documents.

Have a Spanish lawyer handle it

Abroad Life prepares, reviews and files your application through a lawyer admitted to a Spanish bar (abogado colegiado). Fixed price, agreed before you start, and the whole process runs online.

1.210 € VAT included

Spanish administrative fees are paid separately to the authorities.

Start with a free diagnosis See the service page (in Spanish)

Frequently asked questions

What documents need an apostille for the Spain digital nomad visa?

US public documents: the FBI Identity History Summary Check, degree certificates, and any marriage or birth certificates used to include dependents. Federal documents are apostilled by the US Department of State; state-issued documents by the Secretary of State of the issuing state.

Do I need a sworn translation of my documents?

Yes. Spanish authorities require translations by a traductor jurado appointed by the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. An ordinary or machine translation will not be accepted, no matter how accurate. Translate after apostilling, so the apostille is included.

Will my US health insurance be accepted?

Almost certainly not. The policy must come from an insurer authorised by the DGSFP to operate in Spain, with comprehensive coverage, no copays and no waiting periods, for the full permit period. International coverage on a US policy does not meet that test, and travel insurance never does.

How long is the FBI background check valid?

Spanish authorities generally expect a recently issued certificate, so treat it as short-lived and time it deliberately. Requesting it far too early is a real risk: applicants who order it first and then spend months on the rest of the file can find it stale by the time they submit.

What does the employer letter have to say?

That you are employed, in what role, since when, and that the company expressly authorises you to perform that work remotely from Spain. It should be on company letterhead and signed by someone with authority. Vague wording about flexible working is the usual reason these letters get queried.

Primary sources

Figures and legal references on this page come from the sources below. Requirements and thresholds change: check the current position before you rely on it.

This page is general information about how Spanish immigration and tax rules work, not legal or tax advice for an individual case. Every file Abroad Life submits is prepared and filed by a lawyer admitted to a Spanish bar.

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