The Spanish Golden Visa is no longer available. Spain ended the investor visa route in 2025, with the change officially taking effect on 3 April 2025.
This article explains what the Spanish Golden Visa was, why it became especially relevant after Brexit, what benefits it offered, and what changed when the programme came to an end.
Brexit raised many uncertainties for British citizens and, among them, the question of how they would be able to travel, work and establish residency in Spain, or other EU countries, after leaving the European Union.
Until 31 December 2020, British citizens had freedom of movement in Spain and the rest of the EU. After Brexit, British citizens became non-EU citizens for Spanish immigration purposes. That meant they could no longer stay in Spain for as long as they wished, or work in Spain, unless they had the proper authorisation to do so.
For non-EU citizens, the general rule is that stays in the Schengen Area are limited to 90 days in any 180-day period unless they have a visa or residence authorisation.
For a period of time, one of the most flexible options available to non-EU nationals who could afford it was the Spanish Golden Visa.
The Spanish Golden Visa was a residence route for non-EU nationals who made a significant investment in Spain.
For many international buyers, the best-known route was the purchase of Spanish real estate with a value of at least €500,000. This did not have to be a single property. The investment could be made across one, two or more properties, provided the total qualifying investment reached the required threshold.
The Golden Visa allowed eligible applicants to live in Spain and also included the right to work, start a business, or manage companies in Spain under broadly similar conditions to Spanish or EU citizens.
It became particularly attractive to British buyers after Brexit because it offered a way to regain a level of long-term flexibility in Spain that had previously been available through EU free movement.
The most common form of investment was the purchase of Spanish property worth at least €500,000.
The key point was that the first €500,000 of the property investment had to be free of charges or mortgage debt. Any part of the purchase price above that amount could potentially be financed.
It was also possible to qualify through other forms of investment, including:
In addition to the investment itself, applicants also had to meet general requirements, including being over 18, having suitable health insurance, proving sufficient financial resources, paying the relevant fees, and having no relevant criminal record.
The Golden Visa was attractive because it combined residence flexibility with investment in Spain.
One of its main advantages was that it could cover family members. The investor could include a spouse or partner, minor children, and in certain circumstances adult children or dependent parents.
Another important benefit was the right to work. This made it more flexible than some other visa categories, such as the non-lucrative visa, which is aimed at people who have sufficient means to live in Spain without working there.
The Golden Visa was also more flexible than ordinary residence routes when it came to physical presence in Spain. It did not generally require the investor to spend most of the year in Spain to maintain the authorisation, although applicants and holders still needed to comply with the specific legal requirements that applied to their situation.
For property buyers who wanted the option to spend long periods in Spain, but did not necessarily want to become Spanish tax residents, this flexibility was one of the reasons the Golden Visa became so popular.
Spain ended the Golden Visa programme in 2025.
The change was made through Organic Law 1/2025, which removed the legal provisions that had allowed residence visas and authorisations for investors under Law 14/2013.
The change came into effect on 3 April 2025. From that date, Spain no longer granted new residence visas for investors under the Golden Visa route.
This means that buying a property in Spain, even for more than €500,000, no longer gives a non-EU buyer the right to apply for Spanish residence through the Golden Visa scheme.
You can still buy property in Spain as a foreign buyer, but the purchase itself no longer creates a special residence route.
The Spanish government presented the end of the Golden Visa as part of a wider response to housing affordability and pressure in certain property markets.
The majority of Golden Visas had been linked to real estate investment. The government argued that this type of investment was concentrated in areas where housing supply was already under pressure, including cities and coastal markets with high international demand.
The Golden Visa also came under pressure in a wider European context. Investor residence and citizenship schemes across Europe had faced criticism because of concerns around housing markets, transparency, money laundering, tax evasion, corruption and security risks.
Spain’s decision reflected both domestic housing politics and a broader European move away from residence routes that are primarily based on passive investment.
The end of the programme did not automatically cancel existing Golden Visas.
Applications submitted before the law came into force could still be processed under the rules that applied when the application was made.
Existing valid visas and residence authorisations also kept their validity for the period for which they were issued. In the case of renewals for property-investor authorisations, the law provides for them to be handled under the rules in force when the initial authorisation was granted.
Anyone who already has, or previously applied for, a Golden Visa should take individual legal advice before making assumptions about renewals, family members, tax residence, property sales or time spent in Spain.
No, not through the Golden Visa route.
A property purchase can still be part of a wider plan to live in Spain, but it is no longer enough on its own to create a right of residence.
Non-EU nationals who want to move to Spain now need to look at other visa or residence options, depending on their circumstances. These may include the non-lucrative visa, digital nomad visa, work-related routes, self-employment options, entrepreneur routes, or family-based residence, where applicable.
The correct route depends on your nationality, income, work situation, family circumstances, tax position and long-term plans.
The Spanish Golden Visa was one of the most flexible residence routes available to non-EU property buyers in Spain. For British buyers after Brexit, it offered a way to recover some of the freedom and certainty that had been lost when the UK left the EU.
However, it was also controversial. The scheme was closely linked to high-value property investment, and the Spanish government ultimately decided that residence rights should no longer be granted on the basis of buying expensive real estate.
For buyers today, the key point is simple: Spain remains open to foreign property buyers, but buying a property no longer gives you a Golden Visa.
If you are planning to spend more than 90 days in Spain, work in Spain, retire in Spain, or eventually become resident, you should speak to an independent Spanish immigration lawyer before you buy. The right legal route now needs to be planned separately from the property purchase itself.
Written by
Nick StoreyNick Storey is the Operations Director at tumaklata.sbs, where he leads platform operations, product delivery, and commercial strategy.
Having lived and worked in Spain for 14 years, Nick began his career as an estate agent on the south coast of Granada and brings first-hand market experience to his work.
He joined Kyero in 2007 and has since played a central role in scaling the business, shaping its product direction, and strengthening how international buyers connect with agents across Spain, Portugal, France, and Italy
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