Question
I am going to renew Spain non lucrative visa for year 3-5. But i was not in Spain last year. Have lived for only 20 days.
Also, my health insurance got expired 22 May 2024. So it was not there for few months. But I was not in europe as well. I am going to renew it now.
Expiration date of TIE is 9 June 2025. I am planning to submit docs around 20th May.
Will these things violate conditions for renewal of NLV”
Answers
These are the answers of Spainguru’s Spanish Non Lucrative Visa group members:
“Maybe yes, maybe no. Last year, in May 2024, Spain passed a law (now rescinded and will start again in May 2025) that it was not required to be in Spain more than 183 days (hence Spain tax resident) in order to renew NLV.
I am now renewing my 1st year NLV and hope to receive it prior to May 2025, and I only stayed in Spain 110 days in 2024. According to my attorney, I will be able to renew NLV this time before needing to become a tax resident and reside more than 183 days by years 4,5 renewal.
So, if your TIE renewal falls during that May 2024 and May 2025 temporary window, you might be ok. I suggest you consult with an attorney and not take my word for your situation. Best wishes.”
“You may submit 60 days before expiration. So aim for mid April to be on safe side.”
“Think you will find the lack of continuous health care will be a problem as that’s in breach of visa requirements.”
“Correct. He may need to start from the beginning.”
“Yes, here it is from Article 64 on renewal.”
“In cases where the start date of the existing policy is not in line with the previous policy on the initial application or previous renewal, immigration can and have asked for proof of maintenance of continuous health insurance during the past years.”
“(Professional answer) We only have ever shown the following for health coverage:
- Letter certifying coverage for the UPCOMING/current year. Sin copago, full coverage etc.
- Particular conditions for good measure because they ask in some provinces
- Proof of last payment be it annual or monthly for the policy.
So any prior lapse in coverage wouldn’t reflect when showing these documents. Could someone share how/why they would even know there was a lapse? Are people showing PRIOR insurance coverage? In theory there is a whole year where they don’t ‘see’ your insurance coverage in each renewal period.
Example. You apply to renew in with a policy dated March 1 2026–2026. Then you have another renewal March 1 2027. If you had a policy gap in December 2026 because you changed policy, how would they know?
I’m not advocating policy gaps, just trying to understand when people have this issue how it comes about.”
“Exactly my thoughts. My renewal gap was also by mistake. After one year passed in the year 2–3 (after 1st renewal).”
“Yes, the newly enforced law was published in BOE-A-2024-24099 on Nov 20th 2024, and comes into force on May 20th, so if you renew before you may still be ok.”
“The lapse in private health insurance will cause the NLV renewal to be denied, regardless of time outside of Spain.”
“Healthcare is your problem. Someone recently posted about a denial, where they accidentally had a short lapse..didn’t matter, they were denied.”
“If you can get it in before May you might be ok. Good luck to you.”
“I’ve seen two refusals over lack of health insurance. One for 2 months, the other 3 months.”
“So you breached 2 of the visa requirements.”
“If you haven’t been following the rules, why are you trying to renew? Looks like the lack of a health policy and absence from the country will be a breach for grantation.”
Conclusion
Based on input from the community, renewing the Spain non lucrative visa with gaps in health insurance and minimal time spent in Spain could lead to complications or even denial.
The lack of continuous private health insurance remains a major risk factor. Multiple members cited cases where renewals were denied solely due to insurance lapses, even as brief as 2–3 months.
Some suggest that unless immigration specifically requests proof of past insurance coverage, it may not come up during renewal. Nonetheless, others confirm that immigration authorities do sometimes check for continuous coverage, particularly if the start and end dates of policies don’t align.
To minimize the risk of denial, applicants are strongly advised to consult with a qualified immigration lawyer.
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