# Non-Lucrative Visa: Maintaining fiscal compliance and legal immigration status at the



## lashend (Dec 6, 2015)

Non-Lucrative Visa: Maintaining fiscal compliance and legal immigration status at the same time

[Short summary: USA citizen with non-lucrative visa, will arrive in Spain in April of this year; hoping to convert it to residence-with-work visa/permit in the Year 2 visa renewal. Remotely based freelancer with international clients. I think I should pay income taxes to Spain but don’t want to violate the terms of the non-lucrative visa. Can you please help me figure it out? Thank you!]

Hi everyone, and thank you very much if any of you can help me figure things out. I’m a real novice about a lot of these things, and, while I’ve done a lot of reading in preparation for my move, there’s still a lot to figure out. I’m “learning as I go,” and I’ll really appreciate any advice from those of you have “been there and done that.” Thank you!

My question now has to do with navigating the two big issues of visa status and tax status. To make it clear from the beginning, I want to do everything above-board, to comply with the laws, and to make sure each country is getting the tax that I owe it. I also want to be sure that I don’t violate any immigration laws: my hope is to move to Spain for the long haul, and I want to lay all the groundwork now to make that (the visa renewals and conversions I’ll have to make over the next few years) as sure and as smooth as possible. 

Here’s my situation: I’m a new-ish freelancer, and I’m preparing to move to Spain in April. I’m awaiting (with fingers crossed) my visa now. As I wrote, I hope that this will be Year 1 of a permanent move to Spain. Here are some possibly relevant details about me and my situation: 
•	I am a USA citizen.
•	I will come to Spain with the non-lucrative visa. (So I’ll have the right to live in Spain but *not* the right to work in Spain.)
•	I’ve recently moved from full-time employment with an institution (in higher education) to work as a freelancer, and I have a pretty simple professional-fiscal existence. (I don’t own any corporations or stocks, I don’t have any children, I don’t need to worry about retirement, etc., so I don’t need or want to get too complicated fiscally, I just want to be sure that I’m carrying out my very basic freelancing work in fiscal and legal compliance.) 
•	My freelance work is in language services (translation, editing, revision, etc., in case it’s relevant), I always work remotely, and my clients come from all over the world. This year, they are predominantly from USA and Italy, but next year it might easily be a different mix. (I suppose the point I’m making is that my clients are not Spanish, and my presence working in Spain doesn’t have any impact on the local labor market / threaten to take away any local job / etc.) 

And here’s my big uncertainty: Financially and fiscally, I had hoped/planned to be “like” a digital nomad but – and this is the tricky part – be physically present in Spain during the entire year. In my original thinking, I’d planned to maintain my tax home as the USA and pay my taxes to the USA (precisely because I won’t have the right to work in Spain). But after learning more, I think that’s “not right”: I think I’ve understood that, if I work from a home in Spain for more than 183 days in the year, I am working “in” Spain and become liable to the Spanish Hacienda for income taxes on the money I’ve earned worldwide and during the duration of the entire year. Can anyone here confirm or correct me on that understanding?

Someone also told me that, even if I have the non-lucrative visa, I should still present an income tax declaration to the Hacienda (and pay it the taxes due). Can I do that?! If I can, I’d like to – first to follow the rules “now,” and second to put myself in a good position to convert from a non-lucrative visa to a residence-with-work visa during the Year 2 renewal. But obviously I don’t want to file taxes if this will violate the terms of the non-lucrative visa. 

On a related note – final question – as I said, I’d like to make this the beginning of a permanent move to Spain, and my hope is to convert the non-lucrative visa into a residence-with-work visa/permit during in the Year 2 renewal process. I’ve heard it’s relatively easy to convert from one visa/residence type to another (or in any case easier to convert types than to get the initial visa). Has anyone else done this? Could you give me any insights? And has anyone else done something similar to what I want to do? Am I thinking about the situation and the processes and the best course of action well – or would you advise a different path? And if I convert to a residence with work permit in Year 2, when do I register to be an autónomo? 

That’s a lot of questions, I suppose, but they all revolve around the same thing: how to make sure my fiscal and immigration compliance is “correct” (and smart!). If any of you have “been there and done that,” I will be very, very grateful to hear about your experience and learn from your advice – Thank you very much!


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

Legally I really don't think you can declare an income as a freelancer to the tax man on a non lucrative visa because to be a legal freelancer in Spain you must register as an Autonomo(self employed) which I don't believe you can on a NL visa. 
There is an option after 1 years residency to modify the visa to a self employed one which involves much hoop jumping and trips back to the USA but as far as I can tell that would be the only real legal way to do it.

That said the Spanish consulates in the US must be looking to meet quotas to stay in business as it seems you can find some that will tell you the exact opposite sooo like most things it depends on who you ask until it doesn't.

I don't know if you can find an exact answer here by asking without being referred back to your local consulate but surely if anyone would know it's these guys. http://www.agenciatributaria.es/AEAT.internet/en_gb/Inicio.shtml


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Pazcat said:


> Legally I really don't think you can declare an income as a freelancer to the tax man on a non lucrative visa because to be a legal freelancer in Spain you must register as an Autonomo(self employed) which I don't believe you can on a NL visa.
> There is an option after 1 years residency to modify the visa to a self employed one which involves much hoop jumping and trips back to the USA but as far as I can tell that would be the only real legal way to do it.
> 
> That said the Spanish consulates in the US must be looking to meet quotas to stay in business as it seems you can find some that will tell you the exact opposite sooo like most things it depends on who you ask until it doesn't.
> ...


You can declare the income.

I know someone who was here on a non-lucrative visa for two years, issued on the back of working remotely - though not freelance admittedly. He did have to submit tax returns here in Spain.

I suspect that freelance work might not achieve a visa. The income isn't guaranteed, & that's what they look for.


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## Pazcat (Mar 24, 2010)

xabiachica said:


> You can declare the income.
> 
> I know someone who was here on a non-lucrative visa for two years, issued on the back of working remotely - though not freelance admittedly. He did have to submit tax returns here in Spain.
> 
> I suspect that freelance work might not achieve a visa. The income isn't guaranteed, & that's what they look for.


Yeah it is the freelance thing where the issue is as far as I can see unless there is a way around not registering as an autonomo, it should apply to all in the same way no matter where they come from.


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## lashend (Dec 6, 2015)

Thank you all! 

It looks like my well-laid plan is falling apart … 

But I really want to “make it work”: I really want to make this into a permanent move. Given what you’ve helped me figure out (the plan as it lies isn’t going to work), what would be your best recommendation for living, complying, renewing, renewing, renewing to permanent residency? 

I guess it’s a different topic, now, so I made a new post: http://www.expatforum.com/expats/sp...ify-visa-type-non-lucrative.html#post14077138 - in case it seems better to reply there. 

Again, I’m grateful, thank you!


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## adi700 (Apr 26, 2018)

lashend said:


> But I really want to “make it work”: I really want to make this into a permanent move.!


Did you make this work? I am in the same exact situation as you. Would be really grateful to hear about your experience.


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