(SPAIN) – Spain issued 2026 renewal guidance for its Digital Nomad visa, also known as ARTIN, setting a higher income threshold of €2,442 a month and imposing a 20% Spanish-income cap on renewal applicants.

The guidance allows holders to file for renewal from 60 days before expiry until 90 days after expiry. Applicants who file during that post-expiry grace period face a 25% fee surcharge, but keep legal status while the renewal remains pending.

Renewal extends total ARTIN validity to five years before a possible transition to EU long-term residence. Family members renew at the same time, and each dependent adds 75% of the SMI to the income requirement.

The clearest figures in the current 2026 renewal guidance are the monthly income floor of €2,442 and the rule that no more than 20% of earnings over the previous year may come from Spanish sources. Applicants must also submit 12 months of bank statements, a detailed income-source declaration, and updated AEAT and TGSS compliance certificates.

That package places the renewal process on a narrower track than many holders may have expected. The income test is tighter, and the Spanish-income rule turns the composition of earnings into a central part of the renewal file, not just the total amount earned.

Current 2026 material also contains an inconsistency on the exact monthly income figure for a single applicant. Some 2026 guides cite about €2,849 a month, while the renewal guidance cited here sets the figure at €2,442 a month specifically for renewal.

The guidance ties that €2,442 threshold to 200% of the 2026 minimum wage (SMI). It also sets a firm rule on domestic earnings: no more than 20% of income from the past year may come from Spanish sources.

Holders whose domestic income rises above that line face a sharper problem. Current guidance says applicants with more than 30% Spanish-source income risk refusal unless they switch to a standard residence-and-work permit.

That distinction matters for remote workers whose client base has shifted during their first authorization period. Someone who entered Spain while working almost entirely for foreign companies may now find that local freelance work, Spanish contracts, or billing through Spanish entities affects renewal eligibility even when overall earnings remain high enough.

The filing window is also broad enough to shape strategy. An applicant can renew as early as 60 days before expiry, which gives time to collect tax and social security compliance records, while the 90-day grace period offers a backstop for late filings at the cost of the 25% surcharge.

Spain’s 2026 renewal guidance does not treat the renewal as a light-touch extension. The requirement for 12 months of bank statements and a detailed declaration of where income came from indicates that authorities want a year-long financial record, not a snapshot taken shortly before filing.

AEAT, Spain’s tax agency, and TGSS, the social security system, both appear in the renewal checklist through updated compliance certificates. That places tax and social security standing alongside income proof as part of the core renewal review.

The 2026 renewal guidance also draws a distinction between keeping ARTIN status and moving into a different immigration category. A holder who breaches the 20% Spanish-income cap but has built a larger local business presence may need to consider a standard residence-and-work permit rather than a Digital Nomad renewal.

That shift gives the Spanish-income rule more weight than a routine administrative requirement. It sets a boundary around how much of a digital nomad’s economic activity can come from Spain while still fitting the ARTIN model.

Dependents raise the financial threshold further. Each family member added to the renewal file requires an increase of 75% of the SMI, meaning families must show more than the single-applicant minimum of €2,442 a month.

Applicants preparing files under the 2026 renewal guidance therefore face two parallel tests: whether total earnings meet the higher income threshold, and whether the source of that income stays within the 20% Spanish-income cap. Meeting one without the other does not resolve the renewal question.

The discrepancy between €2,442 and the roughly €2,849 cited in some other 2026 guides is likely to draw attention from applicants and advisers working through this year’s rules. The renewal guidance itself, however, most directly states €2,442 a month for renewal and pairs that figure with the cap on Spanish-source earnings.

That leaves 2026 renewal guidance more exact on renewal mechanics than on the wider debate over how Spain calculates the income floor across different Digital Nomad scenarios. On renewals, the practical framework is already set out in concrete terms: file within 60 days before expiry or up to 90 days after, document a year of earnings, keep Spanish-source income at or below 20%, and show at least €2,442 each month, with extra income required for each dependent.