Portugal and Spain both court remote workers and location-independent income earners, but their visas are built for genuinely different applicants. Confusing them — especially Portugal’s D7 with its own D8 — is the most common mistake people make when choosing between the two. Here’s how the three actually compare for 2026.
The three visas at a glance
| Portugal D7 | Portugal D8 (Digital Nomad) | Spain Digital Nomad Visa | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Built for | Passive income (pensions, rent, dividends) | Active remote work income | Active remote work income |
| 2026 income floor (single applicant) | ~€920/month | ~€3,680/month | ~€2,442/month |
| Can work for foreign employer? | Not the visa’s purpose | Yes | Yes (employee) |
| Can work for local clients? | No | Limited | Freelancers: up to 20% of activity |
| Typical validity | Renewable residence permit, path to citizenship | Residence permit route | Up to 3 years |
Portugal D7: for passive income, not remote workers
The D7 is frequently marketed as a “digital nomad visa,” but it isn’t one. It’s designed for people living off passive income — pensions, rental income, dividends, or other income that doesn’t require active work. The 2026 income floor is €920 per month for a single applicant, rising by 50% for an accompanying spouse/partner and 30% per dependent child (so a couple needs about €1,380/month, and a couple with one child about €1,656/month).
If your income comes from actively logging in and working for a remote employer or clients, the D7 is the wrong tool — it isn’t structured to evidence or authorise that kind of income, and using it that way risks problems at renewal.
Portugal D8: the actual digital nomad visa
Portugal’s D8 is the visa built for remote workers and freelancers with active income. The 2026 threshold is four times Portugal’s minimum wage — €3,680 per month for the main applicant, plus 50% of minimum wage (€460) per additional adult and 30% (€276) per dependent child. Applicants generally need to show this average income sustained over at least three months before applying.
The trade-off: Portugal’s AIMA (the agency that replaced SEF for immigration processing) has been running significant backlogs. As of mid-2026, converting your entry visa into a residence permit after arrival was taking 6–9 months in many cases — factor that into any relocation timeline, since you’re technically waiting on your permit for a large chunk of your first year.
Spain’s digital nomad visa: the middle ground
Spain’s visa sits at a lower income threshold than Portugal’s D8 — €2,442 per month for a single applicant in 2026 (200% of Spain’s minimum interprofessional salary), plus €916/month for the first additional family member and €306/month for each further one. Two structural requirements make Spain’s version distinct:
- You need either a university degree (or equivalent) or at least 3 years of relevant work experience in your field.
- If you’re an employee, your employer must be based outside Spain. If you’re self-employed, you can work for Spanish clients too — but that work can’t exceed 20% of your total activity.
Visas are granted for up to three years, generally longer runway per approval than Portugal’s initial grants.
How to choose
- Living off pensions, rental income, or investments, not active work? Portugal’s D7 is purpose-built for you and has the lowest income bar of the three.
- Remote employee or freelancer who wants the lowest income threshold among the active-work visas, and can tolerate Portugal’s current permit-conversion backlog? Spain is currently the faster, lower-threshold route for the same category of applicant.
- Set on Portugal specifically despite the backlog, and comfortably clear €3,680/month? The D8 gives you Portugal’s residency path (with its own trajectory toward permanent residence and citizenship) — just plan your first year around a slow permit conversion.
Both countries require you to evidence income with real documentation — employer letters, contracts, or audited freelance income — not just bank balances, and both require private health insurance and a clean criminal record check. Neither application is one you want to rush; gather your income evidence and translations well before your target move date.
Frequently asked questions
Can I switch from Spain’s visa to Portugal’s D8, or vice versa, later? There’s no direct conversion between the two — you’d need to apply for the new country’s visa from scratch, including meeting that country’s income threshold and documentation standards.
Do either of these lead to citizenship? Portugal’s residence permits (D7 and D8) sit on a path that can lead to permanent residence and, after the qualifying period, citizenship. Spain’s route also builds toward long-term residence, but the qualifying timelines and requirements differ — confirm current rules for your specific situation before assuming a timeline.
Which is cheaper to apply for? Government application fees are broadly comparable across both countries; the bigger cost difference in practice tends to be legal/relocation-agent support given Portugal’s AIMA backlog and Spain’s documentation requirements — budget for professional help either way.
Both routes are genuinely different products dressed up in similar marketing language — matching your actual income type to the right visa upfront saves months of wasted paperwork. Join the VisaMet waitlist for AI-assisted eligibility screening across both.
This guide is preparation information, not legal advice. Always confirm current thresholds with Spain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs consular services or Portugal’s AIMA before applying, as income floors are typically indexed to each country’s minimum wage and change annually.