Digital nomad residence for your family in Spain: who qualifies

Who counts as family for digital nomad residence

The family categories are set out in Article 62.4 Ley 14/2013 and apply to all international mobility permits, including telework (DNV) [1]. For each family member the UGE lists an indicative set of documents, the same for all categories [5].

Article 62.4 does not include brothers, sisters, grandparents or other relatives. For them you will have to look for a different ground. Otherwise, the general list for any family member is: the completed family application form (MI-F), passport, proof of means, health insurance in Spain (unless the person becomes entitled to public healthcare through the applicant’s activity) and a document proving the family relationship [5][6]. On insurance: UGE requirements for the policy.

This article explains who counts as family and on what terms. How to apply for your family step by step, which documents each person needs and in what order is covered in how to apply for your family on the digital nomad visa.

Spouse and unmarried partner

A spouse proves the relationship with a marriage certificate: an official document is needed, with an apostille and translation if required [5]. For an unmarried partner, the law uses the wording “análoga relación de afectividad” and says nothing more [1]. In its indicative list, the UGE names a “certificado de convivencia” (certificate of living together) [5]. In Barcelona, a document with a similar meaning is issued by the Ajuntament (volant de convivència), but the sources do not say whether the UGE accepts it for the DNV.

For comparison: the general regulation RD 1155/2024, for family reunification with a resident, accepts a partner if the couple is entered in a public register of an EU state, or if you prove a stable relationship, including 12 continuous months of living together, or you have a child together; marriage, a registered partnership and a proven stable partnership are considered mutually exclusive [4].

Under the Código civil de Cataluña, a couple in Catalonia is considered stable if you have lived together for more than two years, have a child together or have formalised the relationship before a notary (Article 234-1 Ley 25/2010) [7]. Registration in the Registre de parelles estables is voluntary and does not in itself create the partnership [8]. We have not found whether the UGE applies the RD 1155/2024 criteria to the DNV, so do not rely on a Catalan document alone without checking. Details: marriage or pareja de hecho and pareja de hecho in Catalonia and residence permits.

Children: minors and over-18s

Minor children are included without age-related conditions, apart from the general requirement to prove the relationship [1][5]. If a child is travelling with one parent, prepare custody documents and the other parent’s consent. For family reunification with a resident, when the child is the child of only one of the spouses or partners, the regulation requires that parent to hold sole parental authority or the other parent to consent to the move [4]. We have not found such a rule for the DNV in Ley 14/2013, but it is sensible to prepare documents showing the right to move.

Children over 18 are part of the applicant’s family only if they are financially dependent on the applicant and have not started a family of their own (Article 62.4). The UGE asks for proof of dependency and of not having an independent family [1][5]. The sources do not list which documents are convincing (statements of transfers, a maintenance agreement, a certificate of studies and of having no income); it helps to show ongoing dependency rather than one-off transfers. For the general scheme, the regulation defines dependency as real, stable and existing before the application [4].

Parents of the applicant and their partner

Parents are included when they are dependent on the applicant (ascendientes a cargo) [1]. Ley 14/2013 does not define this wording. The UGE asks you to “prove that they are dependent” [5]. Article 196 of the regulation RD 1155/2024 explains that being dependent means real and stable material support: financial dependency that must be real, stable, not one-off and existing before the application, or physical dependency for health reasons.

Dependency is presumed if, in the previous year, they received money or had expenses covered amounting to at least 51% of the country’s GDP per capita according to World Bank data, and also for parents over 80 [4]. A Tribunal Supremo ruling of 8 July 2026 removed from Article 196 the proviso that the dependency must exist in the country of origin [4]. These rules were written for the regulation, and we have not found whether the UGE applies them to the DNV.

If you go by the regulation’s criteria, parents living abroad will need bank transfers for the year before the application, documents on their income and proof that they have no other means of support in their country of residence, as well as the applicant’s birth certificate. For Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine, birth and marriage documents usually need an apostille and a sworn translation, see what an apostille is and sworn translation. For family reunification of parents under a different scheme, the conditions are stricter, see family reunification with parents.

How much income the family needs

The threshold is calculated from the SMI: the applicant 200%, the first family member adds 75%, each additional one 25% [2][3]. The monthly amounts are the annual figure divided by 12, gross, as of 01.10.2026.

A spouse or a child counts the same in the calculation, as the “first” or an “additional” member. Children and parents are also counted as family members for the threshold. The applicant proves the income: with payslips or invoices for three months and a bank certificate; any shortfall can be covered with savings for the whole term of the permit [2][3]. The sources do not say whether the spouse’s own income counts towards the threshold. Detailed calculation: income for a family of three and how to calculate income for the DNV.

How to file the family applications: the steps

1. Decide whether to file together with the main application or later. The law allows both; if filed at the same time, the decisions are made at the same time [1].
2. For each family member, gather the MI-F form, passport, proof of means, insurance and a document proving the relationship (with apostille and translation) [5][6].
3. Pay the €73.26 fee for each initial application; you will need proof of payment [2].
4. File the application electronically through the ministry’s website: applications and documents under Ley 14/2013 are accepted through electronic channels only, and you need a digital certificate [6].
5. Watch for notifications: the UGE decision period is 20 days, and silence means approval; more in the article on UGE processing times [1].
6. After approval, for a permit longer than six months, each person applies for a TIE in person (Article 76.2 Ley 14/2013) [1].

If you apply through a consulate, the law also allows family members to apply together with the applicant’s visa or after it [1]. The general route and documents: DNV service and family on a teleworker residence permit.

How the digital nomad visa regime differs from other family regimes

These schemes are not mixed: each family member is processed under the rule that fits their case. How they work is explained in the articles on family reunification, on the EU citizen’s family member card and on family reunification with a spouse.

Common mistakes

• Calculating the threshold for the applicant only and forgetting to add 75% and 25% for family members [2][3].
• Assuming a spouse can be added later without their own documents: each person needs a full set under Article 62.3 [1].
• Relying on a “common-law marriage” without a document: the UGE names a certificado de convivencia or other proof [5].
• Providing only proof of the relationship for an adult child, with no evidence of dependency and of not having a family of their own [5].
• Including a brother, sister or other relatives who have no place in Article 62.4 [1].
• Paying the fee only for the applicant: it is also due for each family member [2].
• Not checking whether a child needs a document giving the right to move when leaving with one parent.

How we can help

The ReloVictory team in Barcelona draws up a family plan: who goes into the application, which documents each person needs, how to calculate income and when to file together or one after another. We prepare the documents proving family relationships and explain where an apostille and translation are needed. The outcome depends on the authorities; we are not responsible for their response times. Book a consultation. Service page: family. The applicant’s whole route step by step is in the DNV route card, and the family schemes are summarised in the family route card. The general procedure after arrival: residence permit in Barcelona.

Frequently asked questions

Related articles

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