After the Golden Visa: How Foreigners Buy Property in Spain Without Residency

After the Golden Visa: How Foreigners Buy Property in Spain Without Residency

For over a decade, Spain's Golden Visa was one of the most popular routes for non-EU buyers to combine a Mediterranean property purchase with residency rights. That door has now closed. The programme was formally abolished by Ley Orgánica 1/2025, and the property-based investor visa ceased accepting new applications on 3 April 2025.

If you're a US, Canadian, UK, or other non-EU buyer, this changes the why of buying in Spain — but almost nothing about the how. You can still buy property freely. You simply need a different plan for spending time here.

This guide walks you through what changed, what didn't, and how to structure a purchase in the post–Golden Visa landscape. Laws and figures shift; always confirm current rules with a licensed independent Spanish abogado, a gestor or tax adviser, and the relevant authority (the Agencia Tributaria for tax, the Registro de la Propiedad for title) before signing anything.

What actually ended — and what didn't

The investor visa (Golden Visa) created by Ley 14/2013 offered residency to non-EU nationals who invested €500,000 or more in Spanish real estate. That specific route is gone. Applications filed before the cutoff continue to be processed, and existing Golden Visa holders keep their status and renewal rights under the transitional provisions.

What has not changed:

• Foreigners' right to buy Spanish property. There is no nationality restriction on ownership. EU and non-EU buyers hold the same property rights as Spaniards.
• The transaction process itself — NIE, notary, Land Registry, taxes.
• Other residency pathways — non-lucrative visa, digital nomad visa, work/study visas, family reunification, and the EU Blue Card.

In short: buying property in Spain after the Golden Visa is legally identical to buying before it. Only the automatic residency bonus disappeared.

Step 1 — Get your NIE (still mandatory)

Every foreign buyer needs a Número de Identificación de Extranjero (NIE). Without it you cannot sign a public deed, pay taxes, or register title.

You can obtain the NIE:

• In person in Spain at a Comisaría de Policía with a foreigner's office (Extranjería).
• Through a Spanish consulate in your home country.
• Via a power of attorney (poder) granted to your Spanish lawyer, who applies on your behalf — the most practical option for remote buyers.

Bring your passport, a completed EX-15 form, proof of the economic reason (typically a reservation contract), and the tax fee receipt (Modelo 790, code 012).

Step 2 — Open a Spanish bank account and prepare source-of-funds proof

You'll need a non-resident bank account (cuenta de no residente) to pay the notary, taxes, and utilities. Spanish banks are strict on anti-money-laundering compliance. Expect to provide:

• Passport and NIE
• Proof of address abroad
• Tax residency certificate
• Source-of-funds documentation: recent tax returns, sale contract of a prior asset, employer letters, or investment statements

For large international wires, your bank will file the Modelo S1 declaration for movements of funds. Plan for two to four weeks between opening the account and completing your first transfer.

Step 3 — Engage an independent abogado (not the seller's)

This is the single most important decision you'll make. The notary in Spain is a neutral public official who authenticates the deed — they are not your advocate. You need an independent abogado whose only client is you.

Your lawyer should:

• Run a nota simple at the Registro de la Propiedad to confirm ownership, boundaries, charges, mortgages, and embargoes.
• Verify the property has a valid cédula de habitabilidad or licence of first occupation.
• Confirm IBI (annual property tax) and community fees are paid current.
• Check for outstanding derramas (special HOA assessments) and urban planning infractions.
• Review the energy performance certificate and, for coastal property, any Ley de Costas encroachment.

Step 4 — Reservation and Arras contract

Once you've chosen a property, the typical sequence is:

1. Reservation agreement with a small deposit (often €3,000–€6,000) taking the property off market for a short period.
2. Contrato de arras (deposit contract, Article 1454 of the Código Civil) — usually 10% of the purchase price. If you back out, you forfeit it; if the seller backs out, they owe you double. Have your lawyer draft or review this — never sign a developer's template unchecked.

Step 5 — Signing at the notary and registering title

On completion day, buyer, seller, and (if applicable) mortgage lender meet at the notaría. The notary reads the escritura pública de compraventa, verifies identities, confirms payment, and authenticates the deed. You receive a copia autorizada.

Your lawyer or gestor then:

• Pays the transfer taxes within 30 days
• Registers the deed at the Registro de la Propiedad
• Updates the catastro and utility contracts

Who pays what — buyer's closing costs

Budget roughly 10%–14% of the purchase price on top of the price itself. Exact percentages vary by region and property type — confirm with your abogado.

• ITP (Impuesto sobre Transmisiones Patrimoniales) — resale property, set by each autonomous community. Ranges roughly 6%–10% depending on region and price band.
• IVA + AJD — new-build from developer. IVA is currently 10% on residential (21% on land/commercial), plus Actos Jurídicos Documentados at roughly 0.5%–1.5% depending on the community.
• Notary fees — regulated tariff, typically 0.1%–0.5%.
• Registro de la Propiedad — roughly 0.1%–0.3%.
• Legal fees — commonly 1%–1.5% plus IVA.
• Gestoría and bank charges — variable.

Sellers pay the estate agent commission (typically 3%–6% plus IVA) and the plusvalía municipal (municipal capital gains on urban land value increase), plus their own income-tax capital gains.

Buying remotely with a power of attorney

You do not need to be physically in Spain to close. A poder especial signed before a Spanish consulate abroad — or before a foreign notary with an apostille under the Hague Convention — lets your lawyer sign the deed, register title, and set up utilities on your behalf. Have the poder drafted by your Spanish abogado, not translated from a generic template.

Ongoing tax obligations for non-resident owners

Owning in Spain without residency triggers annual filings you must not skip:

• IBI — municipal property tax, billed annually.
• IRNR (Impuesto sobre la Renta de No Residentes) — non-resident income tax. If you don't rent it out, you still owe imputed-income tax on the cadastral value. If you do rent, you're taxed on net rental income (EU/EEA residents can deduct expenses; non-EU residents currently face a less favourable regime — confirm the current rate and deductibility with a Spanish tax adviser).
• Basura and community fees — municipal waste and HOA charges.
• Wealth tax / Impuesto de Solidaridad — may apply above regional thresholds on Spanish-situs assets.

Rules and thresholds change frequently. Verify with the Agencia Tributaria or a Spanish tax adviser before each filing.

Residency alternatives now that the Golden Visa is gone

If your original plan was property-plus-residency, look at:

• Non-lucrative visa (NLV) — for buyers with passive income who won't work in Spain. Requires proof of substantial monthly income and private health insurance.
• Digital Nomad Visa — for remote workers employed by non-Spanish companies, with favourable tax treatment under the Beckham-style regime for qualifying applicants.
• Schengen 90/180 rule — non-EU nationals can spend up to 90 days in any 180 without any visa. Many second-home owners simply plan around this.

A licensed immigration abogado can map which route fits your profile.

Common pitfalls

• Signing the developer's or seller's paperwork without independent review.
• Under-declaring the price at the notary — illegal, and it inflates your future capital-gains tax.
• Overlooking coastal-zone (Ley de Costas) setbacks on beachfront property.
• Assuming a rural plot has building rights — check the Plan General de Ordenación Urbana.
• Forgetting the annual IRNR filing because "nobody sent a bill" — the obligation is self-assessed.

Short FAQ

Can Americans still buy property in Spain? Yes. Nationality has never restricted ownership, and the end of the Golden Visa does not change that.

Does buying property give me any residency now? No automatic residency. You'll need to qualify under the non-lucrative, digital-nomad, or another visa route.

Do I need to travel to Spain to close? No — a properly drafted power of attorney lets your Spanish lawyer handle everything.

Will the Golden Visa come back? There is no announced plan to reinstate a property-based investor visa. Don't buy on that speculation.

Laws, tax rates, and visa rules in Spain change regularly. Treat this guide as an orientation, not legal advice — confirm every figure and requirement with your independent Spanish abogado, tax adviser, and the relevant public authority before you commit funds.