Extremadura, Spain To Lure Digital Nomads With €15,000 Grants To Stay

Do you want to move to Spain as a digital nomad? While many areas won’t make you welcome, one region is luring you with a generous grant. Moreover, Extremadura is more than welcoming remote workers.

Extremadura to lure digital nomads with a €15,000 grant

With overtourism rearing its ugly head in many European nations, digital nomads have become unwelcome and accused of pricing out the local population. While cities like Barcelona might say no thank you, one Spanish region is keen to welcome remote workers while offering financial aid to those who relocate there.

Bordering Portugal, Extremadura is an autonomous community and one of the country’s less-visited areas. However, the region offers beautiful nature reserves and mountainous scenery, while its capital features impressive Roman ruins. Now, digital nomads are being paid to move to Extremadura with a grant of up to €15,000 ($16,790).

About the grant to move to Extremadura

As noted by Schengen News, Extremadura features one of the lowest populations in Spain and is one of the least-developed regions. Meanwhile, the autonomous community has one of the lowest GDPs per capita. It also has one of the highest unemployment rates at 17.6 percent compared to Spain’s national average of 11.9 percent.

In an effort to boost the population and the economy, officials in Extremadura has put aside €2 million towards the relocation of 200 digital nomads and remote workers to the region.

Besides receiving a generous grant, digital nomads will enjoy a low cost of living as compared to other regions in Spain. According to local authorities, Extremadura lacks in transport infrastructure. However, the region does boast above-average fiber optic and mobile coverage, essential for remote workers.

Who is eligible for the digital nomad grants?

The Spanish region is targeting remote workers who are highly qualified professionals in the tech industry. They must be able to work completely remotely and online “through the exclusive use of media and IT systems, telematics and information fields.”

Anyone wishing to apply for the grant will need to commit to maintaining a remote job while living in Extremadura for at least two years.

Those digital nomads living in other Spanish regions and those living internationally are eligible for the grant as long as they haven’t lived in Extremadura in the previous six months. Meanwhile, applicants must be legally resident in Spain and have a foreign identity number (NIE) on their green EU certificate or non-EU TIE card.

How does the grant work?

Women and young people under the age of 30, relocating to towns in Extremadura with populations of less than 5,000 will be eligible for a €10,000 ($11,193) grant, while others will receive €8,000 ($8,954).

Those in the first category who decide to stay for another year will receive a second payment of €5,000 ($5,596) after two years. Meanwhile, others will receive €4,000 ($4,477).

Authorities have yet to reveal the date when applications open, but say it will be the day after publication of the scheme in the Official Gazette of Extremadura, likely around mid-September. Meanwhile, applications will stay open until all funds to cover approximately 200 digital nomads have been allocated.

How can remote workers apply?

Applicants must submit their applications electronically using the Extremadura General Electronic Access Point. They must be in possession of a digital certificate or electronic Spanish ID card for electronic identification.

Moreover, the application must be submitted with an official document issued by the digital nomad’s country or other region of Spain to prove current place of residence. It must also be accompanied by a certificate from the applicant’s employer to authorize them to work in Extremadura. For those who are self-employed, a document detailing the terms and conditions in which they carry out their professional activity on a remote basis.

Meanwhile, documents in a language other than Spanish must be accompanied by a sworn legal translation by a professional.

If successful, applicants will be contacted within three months. If successful, they need to register with a municipality in Extremadura to get a padrón certificate (local record for people residing in a Spanish municipality) within three months.  From there on, applicants have a month to request payment of the grant, which will be made in a single transaction.