Spanish Consulate in Moscow: applying for a digital nomad visa

Who can apply for the digital nomad visa at the consulate in Moscow

The consulate accepts applications from Russian citizens and legal residents of its district: the applicant applies in person, through a parent (if a minor) or through a representative with a document proving their authority [1][2]. Russians aged over 14 add a copy of their internal passport showing their registration and marital status; legal residents bring a document proving residence (a residence permit or a valid visa) [1].

The district of the Consulate General in Moscow covers Russia, except Saint Petersburg and the Leningrad, Murmansk, Novgorod, Pskov and Kaliningrad regions and Karelia, as well as Armenia, Belarus, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan [10]. Residents of north-west Russia apply through the consulate in Saint Petersburg: it accepts teletrabajo applications by appointment booked at cog.sanpeter.vis@maec.es [9].

If you live in another country, you need to go to the consulate for your place of residence. If you are already in Spain and staying there legally, you do not need the consulate: you can apply to the UGE without a visa, the permit is granted for up to three years, while the visa is for up to one year [2][4]. The two routes compared: from Spain or through a consulate.

Document list for the teletrabajo visa: Moscow consulate

The list below is based on the consulate’s page on the teletrabajo (nómada digital) visa [1] and supplemented by a news item of 2 May 2023 [2]. All documents in other languages must be translated into Spanish [1].

What Russians should consider: apostille, translation, income, banks

• Criminal record certificate. A document from Russia must carry a Hague Convention apostille, be translated into Spanish and go through legalización [1]. How to obtain the certificate and the apostille in Russia is set by the Russian authorities: check their official resources. The Spanish side: apostille and legalisation.
• Translation. The consulate asks for all documents in other languages to be translated into Spanish [1]. The UGE requires a sworn translation; check which format the consulate accepts when you book [1][2].
• Income in roubles. The requirement is set in euros. Which exchange rate the consulate accepts is not stated: give the rate and the conversion date in your cover letter [1].
• Money and banks. The consulate does not name any banks. It requires proof that the funds are yours, lawful and available [1]. On statements and proof: Russian income certificates.

Applying step by step

1. Put together the file, translations and apostilles. Some documents (the criminal record certificate, the company register extract) take longer to prepare than the rest.
2. Request your NIE alongside the visa. The consulate’s page requires you to request it at the same time as the visa, the 2023 news item advises getting it before you apply; the visa process does not create an NIE [1][2][5].
3. Book an appointment: national visa applications are accepted by prior appointment, requested by email at cog.moscu.citas@maec.es [3]. Since 1 June 2026 some national visas (study, employment, family reunification, residencia sin finalidad laboral and others) are submitted at BLS visa centres, and the teletrabajo category is not named in the consulate’s notice of 14 April 2026 [8]. So confirm the booking procedure with the consulate before you send the email.
4. Go to the consulate: applications are accepted from 9:00 to 12:20, corrections and passport collection from 8:00 to 9:00. The consulate is at Stremyanny pereulok 31/1 [3].
5. Get a filing receipt with a code you use to check the status of your application at sutramiteconsular.maec.es [1].
6. Wait for the decision: the consulate may ask for missing documents and call you for an interview [1].
7. Collect the visa in person or through a representative within one month of being notified of the decision [1].

How long to wait for a decision

By law, visa applications are decided within 10 working days, but where consultation under Article 22 of the Visa Code applies, the Code’s own time limit applies [4]. The consulate’s page gives 10 days from the day after you apply and adds that the time grows if documents or an interview are requested [1]. Teletrabajo visas (code TEL) are sent for prior consultation with the central services through SIVICO, together with the passport, the company certificado and the register extract [5]. We found no official data on how long this actually takes. The 20-day rule and silencio positivo apply to the UGE permit, not to the visa: how long the UGE takes to decide.

What comes after you get the visa

The visa is issued for up to one year (or for a shorter period of work) and confirms your right to live in Spain and work remotely; a TIE card is not required with it, but you can request one [1][4]. If you want to stay longer, you can apply to the UGE for a residence permit of up to three years 60 days before the visa expires [4][7]. Your alta with the Seguridad Social must be done before you start working in Spain [1]. What to do in the first weeks: the first 30 days after approval.

If the consulate refuses

A refusal is notified in writing with the reasons. The consulate names two routes: a recurso de reposición before the consulate within 1 month of receiving the notification, and a contencioso-administrativo appeal to the Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Madrid within 2 months of notification of the refusal or of the decision on the reposición [1]. In 2022 the consulate clarified that the appeal must be signed by the applicant or by a representative with a signed authorisation, an appeal in Russian must be accompanied by an unofficial Spanish translation, and emails are not accepted [6]. More: DNV refusal: reasons and recurso.

Common mistakes

• The passport is valid for less than a year or was issued more than ten years ago [1].
• No copy of the internal passport [1].
• Criminal record certificate without an apostille or without a translation [1].
• Company certificado without three months’ service and without explicit permission to work remotely [1].
• The insurer is not in the DGSFP register or the policy does not cover all the risks of the public system [1].
• For an employee, no proof of the company’s application to register with the Seguridad Social [1].
• Applying in Moscow while legally resident in another country [1].
• Appealing a refusal by email instead of filing at the consulate [6].

How we can help

The ReloVictory team in Barcelona draws up a checklist for your situation and checks documents, translations and apostilles before you book at the consulate. Book: consultation; service: digital nomad residence permit.

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ReloVictory · Sources reviewed 02.10.2026 · Not a substitute for individual legal advice.