Keeping the status, not just getting it: what is checked after three years

Keeping the status, not just getting it: what is checked after three years

An EU residence permit for remote work is issued on conditions that must stay alive every month for all three years. The permit in hand is half the work.
The other half is the structure, which the authority checks retroactively and has the right to revoke even after the card has been issued.

Why is a status already granted revoked retroactively?

Because the decision is made on the documents as of the filing date, and the right to the status lasts exactly as long as the conditions under which it was granted are maintained.
The authority has the right to return to the case after the card has been issued, request confirmation and, if there is none, start revocation proceedings.

The ground here is the authorization for international remote work. The jurisdiction in which Alliance handles this ground is Spain: Law 14/2013 as amended by Law 28/2022; the decision and subsequent oversight rest with the UGE-CE, the Large Companies and Strategic Categories Unit of the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration.

This applies to everyone who holds status on this ground: an employee of a foreign company, a self-employed person with foreign clients, and family members included in the case. The only difference between them is the mechanism of proof; the obligation is the same.

What must be active every month?

Registration with social security and the contributions under it. This is the first thing checked retroactively and the first reason an already-issued permit is revoked.

There are three mechanisms of proof, and one of them must be working:

•    a certificate of coverage under the agreement between Spain and Russia of 1994 — a document from the competent authority that expressly states coverage of remote work from the territory of the host country; a submitted application or an employer's letter is not such a document, and the practice of issuing it is checked as of the date;

•    registration of the foreign employer in the local social security system and payment of contributions for the employee;

•    your own registration under the autónomo regime with monthly contributions.

Alongside this, four more things must stay active: a valid contract with the foreign employer or clients; income not below the threshold as of the renewal date — it is recalculated based on the SMI, not on the figure from the first file; health insurance; and actual residence in the country. The permit was issued for living there, not for visits, and this is something that gets verified. The contract, contributions and income are active every month — it is exactly this continuity that is examined at renewal.

Which deadlines must not be missed over three years?

Four. Missing any of them hits not convenience but the status itself.

•    Card: obtaining the TIE within a month of the positive decision — a police appointment, biometrics, collecting the card.

•    Registration: registration with social security from the start of the activity.
If there is none, the authority sends a demand and gives 10 working days to provide proof, and then starts revocation proceedings.

•    Regime: an application within 6 months of registration — this is covered in the next section.

•    Renewal: 60 calendar days before the card expires. Filing within 90 days after expiry is formally possible but opens infringement proceedings.
Renewal is granted for 2 years if the conditions are maintained, and the filing itself keeps the permit valid until the decision.

What happens with taxes, and why do earlier calculations based on the treaty no longer work?

The special regime provides a flat rate of 24% on income up to €600,000 a year and applies for six tax periods. There is one strict condition: the application on Form 149 is filed within 6 months of registering with social security. Missing the deadline closes the regime entirely, regardless of whether all the other conditions are met. The general scale is not given here: it is calculated individually and depends on the composition of income.

The second change is more serious. The double taxation treaty between Russia and Spain has been partially suspended — by Decree No. 585 of August 8, 2023 and Federal Law No. 598-FZ. A calculation built on the treaty's former preferential provisions is invalid today, and figures from old consultations must not be carried into it.

The practical conclusion: the tax part of the structure is calculated before filing, not after the first tax return. An error in it surfaces a year later and costs more than calculating in advance.

What if your social security status has already lapsed?

Restore it before filing for renewal, not after a refusal. A gap in registration is a fixable discrepancy until it runs into a decision on the case.

The procedure is as follows.
First, pull up the dates: from what day the activity began, from what day registration was closed or never opened, what expiry date is on the card.
Second, choose the mechanism out of the three that applies now; a certificate obtained retroactively does not cover just any period.
Third, clear the contribution arrears: arrears that are settled and being paid on an agreed schedule do not usually become grounds for refusal in themselves, while unsettled arrears do.
Fourth, gather proof of the continuity of the contract and income for the entire period.
Fifth, file for renewal with an explanatory note in which the dates are closed one after another.

What does not work in this procedure: a submitted application instead of a document, an employer's letter instead of a certificate, and an intention to close the registration after a positive decision.
The authority looks at the period, not at plans.

How does Alliance handle keeping the status?

As a procedure with a named law and a named authority: Law 14/2013 as amended by Law 28/2022, oversight and renewal — UGE-CE. The company works under a contract that sets out the timelines, the fee and the procedure; the contract is concluded with an individual. Offices in Constanța and Mamaia-Sat, licenses publicly available on the website.

The entry point is a free compliance assessment.
It determines not the choice of country but whether the route applies to your situation: income and its structure, employer and length of service, family composition, education documents, planning horizon.
The result is a mapped-out route with the sequence, timelines and budget, or a reasoned refusal explaining why.
The order of work is strict: status first, then money, then the asset.
Buying real estate does not replace keeping the status and has no effect on the authority's decision.

Where do you start checking your structure?

With three dates: the date your activity began, the date you registered with social security and the card's expiry date.
If there is a gap between the first two, or less than six months remain until the third, the structure needs to be reviewed now, not a month before filing.

Alliance carries out a free compliance assessment with a written opinion. The first section of the opinion covers whether the status is attainable: whether it can be kept under the current requirements and what needs to be closed before renewal. And a straight answer: whether this structure suits you. The assessment is free, commits you to nothing and may end in a reasoned refusal explaining why.