Question
What are the recommended health insurance Spain options that cover pre-existing conditions and can be used for the digital nomad visa application?
Is it permissible to stay in Spain while waiting for a visa response after the initial 90-day visitor visa expires, and can missing documents be submitted later if the application is initially incomplete?
Answers
These are the answers of Spainguru’s Facebook group members:
”If you’re a freelancer, you just need to submit a statement that you’ll register as autónomo once approved for the visa and you’ll get health coverage by paying into social security. No private health insurance needed. I’m pretty sure your spouse is covered if you pay into Social Security, but I could be wrong”
”Do the application now and apply for healthcare when you can. We were told by our lawyers that technically, yes we shouldn’t need health insurance due to being freelancers and having access to Spanish health service but to get healthcare as a back up in case they ask. Try DKV, AXXA or Adeslas, the largest health insurance company in Spain”
”As commented above you need you NIE and digital certificate/clave permanente, otherwise an advisor/gestor can do it for you, with a declaration of representation (legal advisor recommended but not needed, but anyone in Spain with your authorization and with digital certificate/clave can do it). No travel insurance is accepted, and it has been said before, it is supposed that health private insurance is not needed for a freelancer. It is needed when you are an employee, there is an agreement between countries and a coverage certificate is required but such a certificate does not cover healthcare, in order to supplement it you have to provide a private health insurance. I am confirming with the Spanish Public Admin when this private health insurance is needed because I think many people are providing it just in case”
”An employed person only needs private health insurance if the Bilateral SS Agreement doesn’t include health cover. The one with the UK does, for instance, and the multilateral in place with the EU does too”
”So in case of an employee from a company in the UK, a private health insurance is not needed, correct? Could you please confirm (if you know) that a freelancer/contractor/self employed (from anywhere) does not need to provide Certificate of Coverage as they need to commit to register to RETA in Spain? I am confused here because I saw self employees (freelancers) sending screenshots of the request of certificate (not the actual certificate) and the responsible declaration/commitment letter to register as ‘autónomo’ in Spain. And also any self employed (freelancer) does not need to provide private health insurance as they will have the Spanish public one with the registration in the Spanish system, is this correct? I am also confused because many self employed are providing private health insurance, they even state that in commitment letter to register as ‘autónomo”
Based on the discussion among members of the Spainguru Facebook Group, it has been concluded that freelancers applying for the Spanish Digital Nomad Visa may not need private health insurance if they register as autónomo and contribute to social security. However, having healthcare coverage as a backup is recommended. Popular options mentioned include DKV, AXXA and Adeslas. Specific requirements may vary, so confirming with the Spanish Public Administration and hiring immigration lawyers is advisable. Employees may have coverage through bilateral social security agreements, while freelancers can rely on the Spanish public health system by registering as autónomo.
