Spain Digital Nomad Visa for Iranians: 2026 Guide

Yes, Iranians can apply for Spain's digital nomad visa, officially the residence visa for international telework. The core rules are the same as for every nationality. What makes an Iranian file harder is everything around them: Iranian documents need a full legalisation chain, Spain has no social security agreement with Iran, and income that moves to or from Iran falls under EU transfer rules. This guide covers those Iran-specific parts. For the general rules and income figures, see our Spain digital nomad visa page. Everything here was checked on November 5, 2026 against the Spanish Embassy in Tehran, Spain's Ley 14/2013 and EU regulations.

The core requirements in brief

• Remote work for clients or an employer outside Spain: employees must work for a company outside Spain; freelancers may earn up to 20% of their work from Spanish clients.
• An established employer or client relationship: the company must have been active for at least one year, and you must have worked with it for at least the last three months.
• Qualifications: a degree from a recognised university, vocational school or business school, or at least three years of professional experience.
• Income: at least €2,849 a month in 2026 (200% of Spain's minimum wage), plus €1,068 for the first family member and €356 for each additional one.
• Health insurance and a clean criminal record, explained below.

Two routes: Tehran or inside Spain

From Tehran. The Spanish Embassy in Tehran lists the telework visa among its national visas. Applications are not filed at the Embassy itself but at its visa application centre run by BLS in Tehran, with appointments booked online through BLS. You apply in person or through a duly accredited representative, and you must be legally resident in Iran. The Embassy also asks you to request your foreigner identity number (NIE) at the same time as the visa. Your passport needs at least one year of validity, two blank pages, and must have been issued within the last ten years. The legal deadline for a decision is ten working days, which can be extended if extra documents or an interview are requested. The visa lasts up to one year; before it ends you apply in Spain for the residence permit of up to three years. From inside Spain. Ley 14/2013 lets anyone who is legally in Spain apply for the telework residence permit directly to Spain's Large Companies Unit (UGE), without a prior visa. Iranians need a Schengen visa to enter Spain, so in practice this route starts with a short-stay visa. That visa is issued for a short visit, so be truthful about your plans when you apply for it. The UGE's legal deadline is 20 days, and if it does not decide in time, the application is treated as approved. While your application is pending, your legal stay is extended until the decision. The permit is for up to three years.

Legalising and translating Iranian documents

Iran is not a party to the Hague Apostille Convention, so Iranian public documents cannot be apostilled; they have to be legalised. According to the Spanish Embassy in Tehran, the chain is: Two details catch people out. Legalisation does not extend a document's validity, so a certificate that expires still expires. And the BLS checklist asks for a legalised translation of your shenasnameh, plus an employer letter that states your role, your duties, that the work can be done remotely and your salary in euros, translated and legalised too.

• Translation into Spanish by a sworn translator (traductor jurado) from the list on the Embassy's website.
• Legalisation by Iran's Ministry of Justice, then by Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• Legalisation by the Spanish Embassy: €5 per document, paid in cash in euros, up to five documents per appointment, booked by email by the applicant. If you have a BLS appointment for a national visa, the Embassy also accepts walk-ins for legalisation the day after it, between 12:00 and 13:00.

Social security: why Iranians need an extra step

Many nationalities can bring a certificate of coverage from home under a bilateral agreement. Spain has social security agreements with 26 countries, and Iran is not one of them, so that option is closed to Iranian applicants: In practice, this is often the biggest hurdle for an employee, because it depends on the employer agreeing to register in Spain.

• Employees: the foreign employer has to register with Spain's Social Security as a non-resident company, so that you can be enrolled in Spain's general scheme. The Embassy asks for proof of that registration request and of your enrolment.
• Freelancers: you register as self-employed (autónomo) in Spain's RETA scheme.
• Everyone: a signed declaration that you will meet your social security obligations before you start working.

Income, payments and sanctions rules

The BLS checklist asks for payslips or invoices for the last three months, and a bank certificate for the same period, to prove your income. EU sanctions on Iran are targeted at listed people, entities and sectors. Reading the regulations, we did not find a rule that bars Iranian nationals from holding a bank account in the EU, although each bank applies its own checks. What does matter is the EU rule on transfers of funds to and from an "Iranian person", which means anyone in or resident in Iran, or an entity registered there, not a passport holder as such: So if your income is paid by a company registered in Iran, or you move savings from Iran, plan for these rules. If your employer or clients are outside Iran, the payment path is usually simpler.

• Under €10,000: no notification needed.
• €10,000 or more: advance written notification.
• €40,000 or more: prior authorisation.

Criminal record and health insurance

Criminal record. Spain asks for a criminal record certificate from every country you have lived in during the last two years, plus a signed declaration that you have had no criminal record in the last five years. An Iranian certificate has to be translated and legalised like any other document. The Tehran Embassy does not publish how recent the certificate must be, and other consulates set different limits, so ask the Embassy or BLS before your appointment. Health insurance. It must be public or private insurance from an insurer authorised to operate in Spain, covering everything Spain's public health system covers. Travel insurance, reimbursement-only policies, and policies with waiting periods or co-payments are not accepted. If you are covered by Spanish Social Security, separate insurance is not needed.

Fees and timelines

• Consular visa (Tehran): BLS lists a visa fee of €90 plus a €16.90 service fee. Fees change, so check before you pay.
• Residence permit from inside Spain (UGE): €73.26 for each initial application, for the main applicant and each family member.
• Legalisation: €5 per document at the Embassy, plus Iranian ministry fees and sworn translation costs.
• Decisions: ten working days at the consulate (extendable), and 20 days at the UGE, where no answer counts as approval.

Taxes: a word on the Beckham regime

Employees who hold the telework visa can generally opt into Spain's special regime for incoming workers, known as the Beckham Law: a flat 24% on employment income up to €600,000 a year, for the tax year you move and the next five. All salary earned while on the regime counts as Spanish income, even from a foreign employer. Freelancers qualify only in limited cases. Details are on our Spain digital nomad visa page.

Next step

For an Iranian applicant, the order of work matters: first confirm that your employer will register with Spanish Social Security or that you can register as self-employed, then start the legalisation chain, because translation and three rounds of legalisation take time. If you would like us to review your file before your BLS appointment, start with our free assessment or book a consultation. If you are deciding between this visa and Spain's non-lucrative visa, see our non-lucrative visa page. The information in this article was checked on November 5, 2026. Spanish rules, fees and EU sanctions change, so check the official sources before you apply.