Last Updated on March 18, 2026 by Bruno Bianchi
Question
Remote work while on literally any kind of Spanish visa: yikes what a mess. I’m trying to figure out what, if any, taxes I owe while on a student visa. I would also love to hear from you if you’re an autonomo filing taxes — I want to go this route but the insane tax rate is a bit shocking. Or, alternatively, can anyone recommend a gestor? I can do my US expat taxes just fine but Spanish tax law gives me a headache.
Answers
These are the answers of some Facebook group members:
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Start the Moving to Spain Hub →“if you don’t have any income, which I assume you do not because it’s difficult to work on a student visa, then you don’t have to do anything. If you have income, then the threshold is 22 000 euros annually if you have one employer or 14 000 if you have two employers. Lower than that, you are not required to file anything.”
“if you are autónomo, you are required to declare any income per quarter. It is modelo 130 or 131, pago fraccionado. You pay 20% of your net income for the quarter+the other three quarters.”
“I didn’t find the tax as an autónomo to be too bad. I paid 20% (I think) each quarter, but that was on net income — I deducted the cost of social contributions, accountant fees, business travel, professional memberships, computer purchase, etc, etc. Then at the end of the year you do a household return and then you either have to pay a bit more or you get a refund (often my case). My husband paid a lot more tax on his pension than I paid.
What does hurt if you don’t earn muchcas autónomo is the social contributions: it’s a flat rate of €300 a month after a staged entry, even if you have a very lean month. But there are plans to reduce that for low earners.”
“I used an accountant. I really think it would be a bad idea to try it on your own. He knew all the allowances and other ways to legally reduce the tax bill. The laws change so often. And their fee is tax deductible. (I’m retired now)”
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