Family reunification with the digital nomad or highly qualified visa

One of the great advantages of the Ley 14/2013 authorisations (digital nomad, highly qualified, entrepreneur or intra-company transfer) is that they let you bring your family to Spain through a much faster procedure than the family reunification of the general regime. In this guide we review who can accompany you, what requirements must be met and why this route is so quick, so that you plan the arrival of your loved ones with the right information.

A reunification route faster than the general one

Holders of Ley 14/2013 authorisations (known as the Entrepreneurs Law) can reunite their family through a faster procedure than the family reunification of the general regime. The difference is not minor: instead of going through the immigration offices with the ordinary deadlines and requirements, the application is processed by the Large Companies and Strategic Groups Unit (UGE-CE), the same unit that resolves your own authorisation.

This applies whether you hold the digital nomad residence or the residence for highly qualified professionals, as well as the entrepreneur and intra-company transfer forms.

When can your family apply for the authorisation?

Here is one of the keys to this route's flexibility. Your family can apply for the residence authorisation in two ways:

• At the same time as the holder, that is, filing the family application together with yours in a single procedure.
• At any later time, once you already have your authorisation granted and reside in Spain.

In both cases it is processed by the UGE-CE and the procedure benefits from positive administrative silence: if the Administration does not resolve within the legal deadline, the application is deemed granted. You can learn more about how this mechanism works in our guide on administrative silence in immigration.

Which family members can you reunite?

The rule clearly defines the family circle that can accompany you or join you. The family members included are:

• The spouse or duly accredited unmarried partner.
• The minor children or dependent adult children who are unable to provide for their own needs.
• The dependent ascendants, that is, parents or grandparents who are financially dependent on the holder.

This scope is broad and allows you to reunite the closest family nucleus without having to resort to other different migration figures for each member.

Requirements: proving sufficient financial means

The central financial requirement is to prove that you have sufficient financial means for the whole family unit. It is not only about your own income as the holder, but about the group of people who are going to reside in Spain having adequate economic coverage.

That is why it is advisable to prepare documentation proving recurring income, savings or the professional activity that generates your earnings, scaled to the total number of family members you are going to reunite. The more people you include, the higher the level of solvency you will have to justify.

In practice, if you file your family's application at the same time as yours, the file is assessed jointly and the financial means are examined with the whole family unit already in mind. If you choose to reunite later, you will have to prove that solvency again at the time of the new application, with updated documentation reflecting your situation at that moment.

Family members can work from day one

Another very relevant advantage of this route over others is that reunited family members can work without any additional procedure. They do not need to apply separately for a work authorisation or wait for a residence period: the authorisation itself granted by the UGE-CE entitles them to carry out an employment activity as an employee or self-employed.

This marks an important difference from some reunifications of the general regime, where the family member's access to the labour market may be more restricted. For a spouse or an adult child who wants to join the workforce, this flexibility is decisive.

Key differences from reunification of the general regime

Compared with the family reunification of the general regime, the Ley 14/2013 route removes two of the most common obstacles:

1. A prior year of residence of the sponsor is not required. In the general regime, as a rule, the sponsor must have resided legally for one year and hold an authorisation to reside for at least another year. Here that requirement does not apply.
2. You do not need to have renewed your authorisation. You can reunite your family from the outset, without having to wait for the first renewal of your own card.

To these advantages are added the processing centralised in the UGE-CE and positive silence, which together make this one of the most efficient routes in the Spanish immigration system for reuniting a family. In practical terms, this means that a professional who has just arrived in Spain with their digital nomad or highly qualified authorisation does not have to resign themselves to living apart from their family for months or years: they can organise everyone's move almost in parallel.

It is worth remembering, in any case, that each file is assessed individually and that the documentation proving the family tie (marriage, unmarried partnership, filiation or dependency of ascendants) must be duly legalised or apostilled and translated where appropriate. Careful preparation of these documents is what most speeds up the procedure in practice.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to wait a year before bringing my family?

No. Unlike the reunification of the general regime, the Ley 14/2013 authorisations do not require a prior year of residence of the sponsor or having renewed the authorisation. Your family can apply for the authorisation at the same time as you or at any later time.

Can my spouse work once reunited?

Yes. Family members reunited through this route can work without any additional procedure, both as an employee and self-employed, from the moment they obtain their authorisation.

Which family members are included in this reunification?

The spouse or unmarried partner, minor children or dependent adult children and the holder's dependent ascendants. It is a scope designed to reunite the closest family nucleus.

Who resolves the application and how long does it take?

It is processed by the UGE-CE, the same unit that resolves the holder's authorisation, and the procedure has positive administrative silence: if it is not resolved within the legal deadline, the application is deemed granted.

What do I have to prove financially?

You must prove that you have sufficient financial means for the whole family unit. The level of solvency required increases depending on the number of family members you reunite.

This guide is for guidance only; before starting any procedure, confirm the requirements and deadlines in force in the official sources of the Administration or with a professional specialised in immigration.