Spain

How do Chinese citizens apply for the Spain Digital Nomad Visa?

Worth knowing: Chinese ordinary passport holders are visa-required for the Schengen area, so there is no arrive-first option by default, but Spain is one of the few programmes with two genuine doors. Article 74 bis of Ley 14/2013, as amended by Ley 28/2022, lets anyone already in legal stay in Spain apply to the UGE-CE for a 3-year residence authorisation, which a Chinese national can reach by first getting a Schengen C visa and filing during the 90-day stay; the consular route through BLS in China produces a 1-year visa instead. Two China-specific items sit on the Beijing document list that most nationalities do not see: residence in the consular district must be proved by hukou or residence permit, which locks you to a demarcation you cannot choose, and a NIE certificate must already be in hand before the visa application is filed, making this a two-stage process rather than one appointment. The social-security item is where a Chinese applicant is better placed than an American one: the Spain-China social security convention has been in force since 20 March 2018, and China's MOHRSS issues certificates of coverage free through the national social insurance platform at si.12333.gov.cn, whereas US applicants have been refused the equivalent certificate by the SSA and rejected on that basis. That convention is narrow, covering contributory pensions and unemployment for posted employees for up to 6 years and excluding healthcare, so private insurance covering all risks under the Spanish public system is still required separately. The Spain-China double taxation convention signed in Madrid on 28 November 2018 has been in force since 2 May 2021 and replaced the 1990 treaty, so the tie-breaker you will need against a live hukou domicile is the current one.