Retire or live on your income
Non-Lucrative Visa for Valencia
The non-lucrative visa is for non-EU nationals who can support themselves in Spain without working. You apply at the Spanish consulate for your country of residence, and Spain decides within one month of receiving the file, silence meaning refusal (RD 1155/2024, art. 63.4). We build the file with you.
Step by step with us
- Check your means against the IPREM rule
- List what your consulate asks for
- Review every document before you submit
Paperwork checklist
- Passport and proof of income or savings
- The country where you live now
- Who is moving with you
The basics
This route suits people from outside the EU who can pay their own way in Spain, and that of the family they bring, with no job here. The application is made before the move, at the Spanish consulate that covers the country where you live.
Money is the requirement consulates look at hardest. Article 62 of Royal Decree 1155/2024 ties it to the IPREM index: at least 400 % of the monthly IPREM for you and 100 % more for each relative you support. On top of that you need a private health policy covering everything across Spain, with no co-payments left to you, a clean criminal record and a medical certificate.
After landing in Valencia, two local steps follow: registering on the padrón of your town and requesting your TIE. Later renewals are filed from here.
Who it is for
- Pensioners who want to settle in Valencia or on its coast.
- People living from savings, rents or investments.
- Couples and families relocating together.
- Anyone who has no plans to work in Spain for now.
Paperwork checklist
- A passport that remains valid for the whole stay.
- The national visa application form.
- Evidence of your means: bank statements, pension letters or rental income.
- Private health cover valid in Spain, without co-payments.
- A criminal record certificate, apostilled or legalised, with translation.
- A medical certificate.
- Payment of the fee your consulate asks for.
Every consulate publishes its own list and runs its own booking system. We shape the file to the one where you will apply.
Step by step with us
- The numbers. Your income and savings are measured against the current threshold for your household.
- Your consulate. We study what your consulate asks for and how it hands out appointments.
- The file. Forms are prepared and you get a precise list of what needs an apostille or translation.
- Submission day. You go to the consulate with everything complete and in order.
- Landing in Valencia. On arrival we can organise the padrón and the TIE for you.
Waiting times in Valencia
Once a complete file is lodged, consulates usually answer in one to three months. Apostilles and sworn translations may need a few extra weeks before that.
By law, once the consulate forwards your file, the immigration office has one month to decide on the authorisation, and silence after that month means refusal (article 63.4 of Royal Decree 1155/2024). Your entry stamp then starts a one-month countdown to ask the police for your TIE (article 63.5).
Fee for our help
From 300 € + VAT for the main applicant, plus 100 € + VAT for each relative. Consulate fees, translations and legalisations are not part of our price, and the padrón and TIE in Valencia are quoted on their own.
After you arrive, your first TIE carries a state fee of 16.08 € in 2026 (form 790, code 012). Consulate fees are charged in local currency and vary by country.
A typical case
Picture two pensioners from outside the EU who have chosen a flat in Gandia. The first thing we run is the money rule of article 62: 400 % of the monthly IPREM for the main applicant and another 100 % for the relative in their care. Next comes the checklist their consulate works with, so apostilles and sworn translations arrive on time, and a full review of the file before it is lodged. After landing, the padrón and the TIE are dealt with inside the one month that article 63.5 allows.
Frequently asked questions
What waiting times should I expect in Valencia?
Once the consulate forwards a complete file, the immigration office has one month to decide, and silence means refusal (article 63.4 of Royal Decree 1155/2024). Consulates usually answer in one to three months overall; apostilles and translations can add a few weeks before you submit.
What happens if the visa is refused?
The decision explains the reason. We go through it with you: a weak point in the proof of means or the insurance can often be fixed before applying again, and if an appeal fits better, we tell you.
Do I have to go in person?
Each consulate sets how the application is lodged, and many require you to attend. After arrival, the TIE is requested in person within one month of entry (article 63.5). We prepare both.
Could I keep a remote job on this visa?
No, it does not allow any work in Spain. Remote workers should look at the digital nomad route.
Must I live in Valencia city itself?
No. You may settle anywhere in the province, on the coast or inland, and register on the padrón of that town.
Will I have access to the public health system?
At first, private insurance is required. Later on, that can change depending on your situation.
What happens when the first year ends?
The authorisation is renewed from Spain in the two months before it expires (article 64.1), and we can take care of it here in Valencia.
Do you deal with me in English?
Yes. We work in English and Spanish, by WhatsApp, phone or email, and every step is explained in English before it happens.
Source: Royal Decree 1155/2024, articles 61 to 64 (BOE). Laws and fees change, so we confirm the current ones for your case before you pay.
Want to see how the whole process works first? Read our free guide: Living in Valencia as an expat: neighbourhoods and first steps.
You get a written quote with a closed fee before you pay anything. Official fees are listed separately.
Write on a working day and we reply within one business day, with a plan for your case.
WhatsApp, phone or email in English (or Spanish). No guessing what a form or an official letter means.
Expat Valencia is a service of Gestoría Beltrán Cifre SL, a gestoría registered in Spain.
Other services
Write to us
Planning your move to Valencia?
Tell us where your passport is from, what you need and which Valencian town you are heading to. A message that reaches us on a working day gets a reply by the next one, with the steps and a fixed fee in writing.
- Emailcontact@expatvalencia.com
- WhereOnline service for Valencia city and province. No walk-in office
- FormOr use the form: we reply within one working day
