If you invoice U.S. (or other non-Spanish) clients directly, Spain's Digital Nomad Visa fits you as a freelance professional. Your case is built on a paper trail: agreements, invoices, and bank deposits that reconcile to the cent — plus one rule about Spanish clients that trips up applicants who never heard of it.
The UGE reads your file as a reconciliation exercise: agreements prove the relationship, invoices prove the work, deposits prove the money. Any gap between the three is a subsanación notice waiting to happen.
A service, consulting, or contractor agreement with each main client — showing the relationship is at least 3 months old at filing. Handshake arrangements and email threads don't file well; where a formal agreement is missing, it's usually fixable before filing, not after.
Your invoices from the last 3 months, adding up past the income threshold — and issued to clients who are demonstrably real, operating businesses.
Every invoice must reconcile against a deposit in your bank records, with the qualifying payments expressly flagged. U.S. banks don't issue Spanish-style stamped certificates — a signed bank letter closes that gap, and we tell you exactly what to request.
At most 20% of your professional activity can come from clients based in Spain — and the check runs against your full billing history, not just last month.
For most U.S. freelancers this is a non-issue today and a real issue tomorrow: land one big Spanish client after moving and the ratio can flip. We map your client mix before filing and flag the boundary so you grow your Spanish network without endangering your status.
Invoices from the last 3 months plus the matching flagged deposits. The threshold is set in euros; variable months are normal in freelance income — documented savings can cover shortfalls for the full authorization period.
Your main clients must show real, continued activity — registration and existence evidence for each. A client roster of solid operating businesses is an asset; anonymous platform gigs need a different evidence strategy.
Diploma and transcript, or the experience route: SSA earnings statement plus client/employer letters detailing dates and duties — ordered first, because the SSA statement takes months.
FBI Identity History Summary with the federal apostille (U.S. Department of State), plus the 5-year declaration.
Freelancers commit to registering as self-employed (RETA) in Spain after approval — registration triggers the obligation to contribute, and skipping it can extinguish the authorization.
Universal items (passport, fee, health coverage, MAEC translations, apostille logistics) are on the full U.S. documents checklist. Invoicing through your own company? You're an owner — different profile.
Free 30-minute assessment: client mix, income evidence, the 20% check, and what to fix before spending a dollar on apostilles.