Beckham Law in Spain: who gets the 24% rate and how to file modelo 149

What the Ley Beckham is and what it changes in your taxes

“Beckham Law” is the popular name for the special regime of article 93 of Ley 35/2006 (LIRPF): in Spanish, régimen especial de trabajadores desplazados, and in business usage also the “impatriados regime”. If you became a Spanish tax resident because you moved here, you can choose to be taxed under IRNR rules while remaining an IRPF taxpayer. The regime applies in the tax period in which your residence changes and in the five following ones [1].

The year of change of residence is the first calendar year in which you became a tax resident under article 9. This is usually the year in which you spent more than 183 days in Spain [1]. Arrived in autumn, stayed fewer than 183 days and your centre of interests is not yet in Spain? Then the count will usually start the following year. In total that makes six consecutive tax periods.

People under the regime pay wealth tax (Patrimonio) on the obligación real basis, that is, on assets located in Spain [1]. Citing a TEAC decision of 17 July 2025, the AEAT says that people under the regime are charged imputed income on real estate, including the home they live in themselves [3]. A general overview of nomad taxes: digital nomad taxes in Spain.

Ley Beckham for an employed teleworker on a digital nomad visa

For employees, article 93.1.b.1º expressly mentions remote work. The “employment contract” ground is met if the work is done remotely, using only computer and telecommunications means. For employees holding the teletrabajo de carácter internacional visa under Ley 14/2013, the law says the condition is met “in particular” [1]. So an employee applying for a DNV who works for a foreign company is on the list.

The visa itself is not required. In ruling V2460/2025 of 11 December 2025, the DGT looked at the case of a person with Spanish and US citizenship: he works from Spain for an American company and, because of his citizenship, cannot get a TEL visa. The DGT concluded that if there is an employment relationship, the work is remote and the other conditions are met, he may opt for the regime [7]. This is an answer to one case, and it should not be applied to every holder of a UGE permit without checking.

The other conditions for employees are the general ones: not having been resident in the 5 tax periods before the move, not earning income through a permanent establishment in Spain, and moving in the first year the regime applies or in the year before [1]. How tax residence is determined is covered in 183 days and the centre of economic interests. The visa and an employee’s rights are described in DNV for employees.

How much the Beckham Law saves with a digital nomad visa: a 2026 example

The saving depends on the salary. Under the Beckham Law the tax is 24% of gross salary: Social Security contributions, expenses and the personal minimum are not deducted [4]. Under the general IRPF scale the rate rises with income, but contributions and €2,000 of expenses are deducted and the €5,550 personal minimum reduces the tax. The table below is for one employee with no children, tax resident in Catalonia, at 2026 rates; it comes from our Beckham vs IRPF calculator.

For a single employee with no children the regime starts to pay off at roughly €55,000 gross a year. With children the general scale stays cheaper for longer: at €60,000 with two children IRPF comes to about €14,007 against €14,400 under the Beckham Law. So not everyone pays less tax under this law: below the threshold a modelo 149 application only raises the bill, and you can waive the regime later but never opt back in [2]. Social Security is paid either way: at €60,000 about €3,900 a year for the employee.

Two DGT rulings from 2026 clarify who can use the regime. In V0476-26 of 2 March 2026 an employee of a Swedish company moves to Spain and keeps the same job remotely, using only digital and telecommunication means: the DGT held the relocation condition met under article 93.1.b).1º, provided the employment relationship is genuine and the conditions in letters a) and c) are met [12]. In V0266-26 of 9 February 2026 the DGT confirmed that the spouse and children under 25 (or of any age with a disability) opt in under article 93.3 LIRPF, each with their own modelo 149, subject to the same five years of non-residence and to their combined taxable base being lower than the main applicant's [13].

Ley Beckham for freelancers and autónomos: what the text of the law says

Material on this topic gives two opposite answers: “the regime does not work for autónomos” and “it works for everyone”. Both are too categorical. Article 93.1.b names four grounds for the move, and a self-employed person can rely on two of them [1]:

A freelancer on a DNV with foreign clients is not employed, has no ENISA report and, as a rule, does not provide services to start-ups or in R&D. Without additional circumstances, they fit none of the rows in the table. This does not mean autónomos are excluded: an entrepreneur with ENISA or a professional working for start-ups can apply for the regime. But “everyone qualifies” is wrong too.

The restriction also applies while the regime is in force. Under article 93.1.c and article 113 of the Reglamento, only these economic activities are allowed: entrepreneurial activity, services to start-ups and R&D [1][2]. In ruling V2248/2024 of 21 October 2024, the DGT answered a person who had moved from employment to self-employment (software development for clients in third countries). The answer: except in cases 3º and 4º, income from an economic activity through a permanent establishment in Spain excludes you from the regime from the tax period in which the condition is breached [8].

We have not found a DGT ruling that expressly allows the regime for a freelancer on a DNV without ENISA, start-ups or R&D. Disputed cases, such as mixed “salary plus client work” income or a switch from employment to self-employment, are settled before the move, not after.

Conditions of the regime: checklist

1. You were not a Spanish tax resident in the five tax periods before the move. Until 2023 the requirement was 10 years; since 2023, 5 periods are enough [1][4].
2. The move is linked to one of the grounds in the table above and took place in the first year the regime applies or in the year before [1].
3. You do not earn income that counts as obtained through a permanent establishment in Spain. Exception: grounds 3º and 4º [1].
4. You have actually become a Spanish tax resident (article 9 LIRPF) [1][2].
5. You filed modelo 149 on time and attached the documents [2][5].

Family. A spouse and children under 25 (at any age if they have a disability) or, where there is no marriage, the children’s other parent can each opt for the regime in their own right. They must move together with the main applicant or later, but before the end of the main applicant’s first tax period under the regime. The sum of their tax bases must be lower than the main applicant’s base [1]. If the main participant gives up the regime or is excluded from it, the family leaves with them [2]. Income and family under the visa are covered in family on a DNV.

How to apply: modelo 149, documents and the 6-month deadline

1. Get a NIF and register in the tax census (censo de obligados tributarios). If you are not on it, first file a census declaration [5].
2. Upload the documents in the AEAT section “Aportar documentación necesaria para optar por el régimen especial”. For remote employment these are: an employer’s letter that acknowledges the employment relationship and states the start date and the expected length of work from Spain, proof of alta in the Seguridad Social (or a document confirming you remain under your home country’s legislation) and the residence authorisation [2][5]. How to deal with social security without an A1 is explained in DNV: social security for employees.
3. Get the submission registration number and enter it in modelo 149 [5].
4. File modelo 149 within six months of the start date of activity shown in the alta or in the document confirming you remain under foreign legislation. The spouse and children each file their own form, the main applicant first [2][5].
5. The AEAT issues a confirmation within 10 working days, and the employer receives a copy to calculate withholding [2].
6. Every year while the regime applies, file modelo 151. According to the AEAT, the deadline is the same as for the Renta campaign [11].

Modelo 151 is filed electronically: the AEAT lists identification by DNIe, certificate or Cl@ve PIN [10]. How to get Cl@ve: getting Cl@ve. About the form itself: what modelo 149 is. The Reglamento does not say directly what happens if you miss the six months, and we have not found any AEAT guidance on it either. Take this question to a tax adviser.

How to leave the regime and what happens if the conditions are breached

You can give up the regime only in November or December of the year before the one from which the waiver takes effect. An employee first notifies the employer, then files modelo 149 [2]. Once you have given it up, you cannot return to the regime [2].

If you no longer meet the conditions, the regime ends from the tax period in which that happened. You must report this within a month via modelo 149, and you cannot opt for the regime again [2]. If the assignment has ended but you remain resident, this is also reported within a month: the regime does not cover income from work after that date and before the move [2].

What the regime does not change: Russia, modelo 720, common mistakes

Double taxation treaty. According to the AEAT, people under the regime are not treated as Spanish residents for treaty purposes, because they pay tax only on Spanish income. The law does still allow a deduction for international double taxation on employment income and entrepreneurial income earned abroad, but for no more than 30% of the part of the tax attributable to that income [2][4]. The treaty between Russia and Spain and its status are covered in double taxation between Russia and Spain.

Modelo 720. According to the AEAT, people under the article 93 regime do not file this return. On family members the AEAT is ambiguous: they are not automatically exempt and file the return if they are resident and exceed the threshold [6].

Common mistakes:

• Thinking that the visa or the DNV gives you the regime by itself. You opt for it separately, via modelo 149.
• Treating income from a Russian employer as “foreign”. During the regime all pay for work counts as earned in Spain and is taxed at 24% [1].
• Filing modelo 149 late: the six months run from the start of activity, not from the visa approval [2].
• Switching from employment to self-employment during the regime without checking whether the new activity falls under 3º or 4º [1][8].
• Forgetting that after a waiver or exclusion the regime cannot be restored [2].
• Overlooking that the regime does not cover income for work before the move and after the assignment ends [2].

When you need an individual review

You opt for the regime once, and after giving it up you cannot go back. Look at your situation in advance if you are a freelancer or combine employment with client work, if you have held a residence permit or tax residence in Spain in the last five years, if your employer plans to open a branch in Spain or hire you there, or if your family is moving. Whether the regime pays off for you depends on how your income is structured. We do not assess that: a tax adviser does the calculation with your figures.

How we can help

The ReloVictory team in Barcelona prepares the DNV application pack and helps with the tax side of the move: drawing up the list of employer documents for modelo 149, checking the dates of the start of activity and of alta, and preparing questions for a tax adviser. We do not give tax opinions on your case. The first consultation is 15 minutes and free; a full consultation is €121 for 45 minutes. Book here: consultation. Service page: digital nomad residence permit; step-by-step filing procedure: DNV route card.

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