20% of Spanish digital nomad customers: how to count on DNV

What the law says about 20% of Spanish clients

Article 74 bis.1 Ley 14/2013: In professional activity (actividad profesional), the permit holder Teletrabajo is allowed to work for "empresa ubicada en España" if the proportion of such work does not exceed 20% of his professional activity. [1]. The law allows the employee to work only for companies outside Spain [1].

UGE repeats this in explanations: working for a Spanish company is possible if there is a professional connection with the foreign company on which the application is based, it is a relation profesional (nunca laboral, never labour) and the proportion is not more than 20% [2]The consulate in Moscow writes the same thing. [4].

Percentage considered: not in official texts

Neither the law nor the FAQ UGE nor the document reference document answer three questions, from which to count the share: from the proceeds, working hours, the number of orders or customers, over which period: year, three months before the application, the entire validity of the permit. On which date we did not find the official method. [1][2][3].

Another is known. UGE is entitled to request additional documents at any time. [3], and when you renew Dirección General de Migraciones, you can request reports on whether the conditions [1]Our cautious approach is not an agency requirement: to look at the most stringent of reasonable options; to count the share of the proceeds (accounts) and working hours, to take the sliding twelve months and keep the reserve; if Spanish customers are 20% on both grounds, the objections are smaller.

Formula and example: 20% of the total, not the foreign part

Spain's share is the Spanish share of the total income of the trade (Spanish plus foreign).

With foreign earnings of 80,000, I can reach 20,000, or 25% of the foreign share. So the formula "20% of foreign earnings" understates the permissible amount (in the example of 16,000 I instead of 20,000 y): count the whole. If a large Spanish order is made within a year, it changes the share of the whole year, not just the months of payment.

One Spanish client, mediators and contentious cases

• One major Spanish client So if you're 20 percent, the rule is that the share is the rule, not the number of customers. [1].
• The client is a physical person. The article refers to "empresa ubicada en España" (a company located in Spain), which is not directly named; it is more cautious to consider it as a Spanish client.
• A foreign company with a Spanish branch. For the employees, UGE explains: if the company has a branch in Spain, it is already an intra-corporate translation of ICT, not a teletrabajo. [2]For a freelancer whose foreign client has a Spanish unit, there is no reply to the sources.
• A foreign agency or platform, an end-user in Spain. The contract and account are made with a foreign company, and the job goes to the Spanish employer.
• Income threshold. The evidence of income is based on professional relations with foreign companies and three months ’ accounts [3]We don't include Spanish revenue in the calculation of the threshold. How to count income.

What happens if you exceed 20% after approval?

The law requires that the conditions under which the permit is granted be maintained (additional provision 7 Ley 14/2013). Changes affecting these conditions must be reported to the UGE within 30 days. The authorities are entitled to verify compliance and, if the violation occurs, the authority may terminate the authorization by a reasoned decision after trámite de audiencia (hearings of the person concerned). [1]We have not found statistics on the application of these rules to Spanish clients.

Practical conclusion: It is better to fix the excess in advance than to explain it in a two-year extension that requires the maintenance of conditions [1]If the percentage has already exceeded 20%, before you go to UGE, discuss the situation with the lawyer: the qualifications are subject to the circumstances. Extension after three years.

How to keep records to confirm the share

Rule 20% only concerns the holder of the permit

The restriction applies to the teletrabajador itself. According to UGE (FAQ, question 17), family members who have been authorized to work without restrictions: both for employment and self-employment. [2]So, the husband may have a Spanish employer, and as it happens in practice and as it affects the supply, check separately. Digital Nomad family.

Typical Errors

• Read 20% as "minimum 20%" or "20% of foreign earnings".
• Count only on the proceeds and not look at the clock, or vice versa.
• Do not include a one-time Spanish order in the annual share.
• To have a contract with a Spanish client. [2].
• Not to keep the account register: if you ask for documents, you have to re-establish the receipt picture.
• The employee is prohibited from looking for "lymite 20%." [1].

Comparison with another base for a freelancer: DNV or autonomoIII. Contracts and Spanish clients: Digital Nomad for a freelancer.

When Individual Review Is Needed

A review before filing is necessary if the Spanish order already has a percentage of between 15% and 20%, if you are waiting for a major Spanish contract after obtaining permission, if you work through an agency or platform with an end client in Spain, or if the foreign client has a Spanish unit, in all these cases the answer depends on the contracts and the exact manner in which the payments are made and the official calculation method is not available.

What can we help you with?

The NEXO team in Barcelona is looking at your client structure, counting the percentage of Spanish orders for revenue and hours, checking contracts and preparing documents for UGE. The legal part is run by the team's lawyer, the tax hestor. First consultation: 30 minutes free, full consultation: 121 I in 45 minutes. ConsultationIII. Service page: Digital nomad ’s residence permit.

Frequent issues

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The source is viewed on 02.10.2026 · NEXO · Drafting Draft · Sources do not replace individual legal advice.