Spain's Beckham Law in 2026: The 24% Flat Tax, Who Qualifies After the Startup Law, and How to Apply

The Beckham Law is the nickname for Spain's special regime for inbound workers (régimen especial para trabajadores desplazados, Article 93 of the Personal Income Tax Law). It got the name in 2005, when David Beckham moved to Real Madrid. The regime lets someone who becomes Spanish tax resident be taxed as if they were a non-resident: a flat rate on Spanish income, and nothing on most foreign income.

The Startup Law (Law 28/2022) reopened and widened it from 1 January 2023. It now covers remote workers on the digital nomad visa, company directors, entrepreneurs and their families. It's one of the best expat tax deals in Europe, but only if you meet the conditions from day one and file on time.

How does the Beckham Law tax you?

Under Beckham you pay tax on Spanish-source income and on all employment income, wherever you're paid. Everything else from abroad stays outside the Spanish tax net. That's why the regime is so valuable for people with large investment portfolios, rental property abroad or a foreign holding company.

There are two catches. You can't claim most personal deductions or allowances. And because you're treated as a non-resident, you generally can't use Spain's tax treaties to get foreign tax relief.

Who qualifies for the Beckham Law after the Startup Law?

You must become Spanish tax resident because of one of these:

• An employment contract with a Spanish employer, or a posting to Spain by a foreign employer
• Remote work for a foreign employer while holding Spain's international telework (digital nomad) visa
• Becoming a director of a company. Since 2023 any shareholding is allowed, unless the company mainly holds passive assets
• An entrepreneurial activity that ENISA has certified as innovative
• Highly qualified professional work for a startup, or training, R&D or innovation work, where that income is more than 40% of your total income

You also have to meet these conditions:

• You must not have been Spanish tax resident in the previous 5 tax years. Before 2023 it was 10.
• You must not earn income through a Spanish permanent establishment, except where the regime was granted for an entrepreneurial activity.
• Professional athletes are excluded. So the Beckham Law no longer applies to footballers.

Family members can be included too. That covers your spouse and children under 25 (any age if disabled), and also the other parent of your children if you're unmarried. They must move with you, or by the end of your first year, and not have been resident in the last 5 years. Their combined taxable income has to be lower than yours.

Freelancers with Spanish clients don't qualify, unless ENISA certifies the activity as innovative. That's the most common reason applications are rejected.

How long does the Beckham Law last?

The regime lasts for the tax year you become resident plus the following 5 years, so up to 6 tax years. Arriving early in the year gets you the most out of it. If you arrive in November, you still use up a full year of the regime.

You can give it up early by filing a waiver in November or December, and it then ends from the following January. Once you leave the regime, or stop meeting the conditions (for example by losing the job that qualified you), you're taxed as a normal resident on worldwide income from that year on.

How does the Beckham Law interact with Spanish wealth tax?

Spain has two net-wealth taxes, and both are charged on assets held on 31 December:

• Wealth tax (Impuesto sobre el Patrimonio): regional, with a basic €700,000 allowance plus €300,000 for your main home, and rates of 0.2% to 3.5%. Madrid and Andalusia give a 100% relief.
• Solidarity tax on large fortunes: national, on net wealth above €3 million, at 1.7%–3.5%. Regional wealth tax already paid is credited against it. That means the Madrid and Andalusia relief doesn't help above €3 million.

Beckham taxpayers are subject to both, but only on assets located in Spain. An investor with €8 million in a foreign brokerage account and a €1.5 million flat in Madrid is assessed on the flat alone. Under the normal regime, the full €9.5 million would be in scope. See countries with no wealth tax for comparison.

Worked example: €200,000 salary

A software engineer moves from London to Barcelona in January 2026 on a €200,000 salary. They also earn €40,000 a year in dividends from a US brokerage account.

Normal resident:

• Salary: roughly €75,000–€80,000 of income tax after the standard deductions. The exact figure depends on the region, and Catalonia is one of the higher ones.
• Dividends: €40,000 on the savings scale, roughly €8,300. The US withholding credit reduces it a little.
• Total: around €83,000–€88,000

Beckham Law:

• Salary: €200,000 × 24% = €48,000
• US dividends: €0 of Spanish tax. Only the US withholding applies.
• Total: €48,000

That's a saving of roughly €35,000–€40,000 a year, or more than €200,000 over six years. And they don't have to file Modelo 720 for the US account.

How do you apply for the Beckham Law (Modelo 149)?

1. Get your NIE and register with Spanish social security (alta en la Seguridad Social). For digital nomads and some postings, this step is replaced by the document that keeps your home-country social security cover. This date starts the clock.
2. File Modelo 149 online within 6 months of that date. You'll need a digital certificate or Cl@ve. Attach your employment contract, director appointment, ENISA report or telework visa as evidence.
3. The Tax Agency issues a certificate confirming the regime, usually within 10 working days. Give a copy to your Spanish employer so it withholds at 24%.
4. File Modelo 151 each year instead of the normal Renta return (Modelo 100).
5. Family members file their own Modelo 149 within 6 months of arriving, or of your social security registration if later.

The 6-month deadline can't be extended. If you miss it, the regime is lost for good, since you can't requalify until you've been non-resident for another 5 years.

Beckham Law vs other European regimes

If you're looking at Spain's digital nomad visa route, check our digital nomad visas list and the digital nomad taxes guide. Full Spanish rates are on the Spain country page. And if Spain is your plan, keep in mind its exit tax on large shareholdings when you eventually leave (see exit tax).

Not tax advice. Rules are from the Spanish Personal Income Tax Law and the Tax Agency as of November 2026. Confirm eligibility with a Spanish tax adviser before you move.