Entrepreneur Visa in Spain: An Alternative After the Abolition of the Golden Visa

Spain has announced the end of the Golden Visa program. According to Law 1/2025 of January 3, 2025, applications will only be accepted until April 3, 2024. After this date, the possibility of obtaining a residence permit through investment will be closed to all forms of investment.

However, the abolition of the Golden Visa will not affect Articles 68-70 of Law 14/2013, which regulate the entrepreneurial visa and residence permit.
This visa is likely to become popular thanks to the simplifications introduced with the adoption of Law 28/2022, which entered into force on December 21. Entrepreneurs can now apply remotely through the portal of the Ministry of Migration.

The main conditions for obtaining an entrepreneurial visa:
- Business plan. It is necessary to provide a detailed project of an innovative start-up. The document is uploaded to the portal when submitting an application.
- Investments. There is no minimum amount, but successful projects typically involve investments of €150,000 to €200,000 and create 5-6 jobs in Spain.
- Timeframe. Applications are now processed within 3-4 weeks instead of the previous three months.

Visa features:
- Residence permit is issued for 3 years with the possibility of extension for another 5 years.
- To maintain resident status, it is necessary to reside in Spain for at least 6 months a year (unlike the “golden visa”, which did not have such a requirement).
- Visa holders can take advantage of tax benefits under the “Beckham rule”, paying personal income tax at a rate of 19 to 28%, depending on the level of income.

The new entrepreneurial visa format opens up prospects for businessmen interested in developing startups in Spain.