The employer letter is the document in a digital nomad application that gets redone most often. Not because it is difficult, but because it is written by someone — an HR manager, often in another country and another language — who has no way of knowing what exactly it has to prove to a Spanish authority.
What follows is an indicative annotated template: the fields usually asked for, and why. Two warnings first: this is not an official template from any authority, and no letter guarantees that a visa will be granted. It is a basis, so your company does not have to guess.
What this letter proves, and what it does not
The letter answers one very specific question: does the company know you will be working from Spain, and does it authorise it?
An ordinary contract does not say that. A contract signed three years ago in Dublin proves your employment relationship, but says nothing about working from Valencia. Hence both documents being asked for, and hence their not being interchangeable:
| Document | What it proves |
|---|---|
| Employment contract | That an employment relationship exists, since when, in what role and on what terms |
| Authorisation letter | That the company knows about and authorises remote work from Spain |
| Experience certificate | Prior professional track record, where the route requires it |
The third serves a different purpose and has its own requirements. And if you are still unsure which documents apply depending on whether you are employed or self-employed, start with which documents apply to your professional situation: this guide assumes you are a company employee.
The details the employer has to confirm
Grouped into blocks, this is what a complete letter usually has to state:
Company identification. Registered name, address, registration or tax identification number in the country of incorporation, and the contact details of the signatory, with their position. The signatory has to be someone who can authorise: a team colleague authorises nothing.
Employee identification. Full name exactly as it appears in your passport, nationality and document number. If your passport carries two surnames and the letter one, that becomes a request for correction.
The employment relationship. Role, duties, start date, contract type and length of service. If the applicable route requires a minimum period with the company, this is the detail that evidences it.
The express authorisation. The sentence the document is named after: the company authorises the employee to carry out their work remotely from Spain. Make it explicit, and make it mention Spain.
The remote working conditions. That the work can be performed entirely at a distance, the remuneration, and the working hours or schedule arrangement. Remuneration is the sensitive figure: it has to match what the contract and your payslips say.
An indicative template
With entirely fictional data, so your company can see the shape:
Northwind Analytics Ltd. 14 Harbour Road, Dublin 2, Ireland — Company registration no. 000000
To whom it may concern:
Northwind Analytics Ltd. hereby confirms that Ms Alex N. Fictitious, an Irish national, passport no. X0000000, has been employed by this company since 3 March 2023 as a Senior Data Analyst, on a permanent, full-time contract of 40 hours per week.
Her duties consist of data analysis and reporting, and can be performed entirely remotely, with no requirement for physical presence at our offices.
The company expressly authorises Ms Alex N. Fictitious to carry out her role on a remote working basis from Spain, with all the terms of her contract remaining unchanged.
Her gross annual remuneration is EUR 48,000.
We remain available for any verification you may require.
Signature — Morgan Example, Director of Human Resources morgan.example@northwind-analytics.test · 1 October 2026
Usage notes: the letter goes on company letterhead, with a recent date — some destinations set a maximum age — signed by someone with authority to authorise, and with a real contact route in case the authority wants to verify it.
Make sure it does not contradict the rest of the file
This is the failure that triggers the most requests for correction, and it is a failure of consistency, not of content. The letter, the contract and the payslips are read together. Check that these match:
- The company name, identical across all three documents. If the contract is with a subsidiary and the letter is signed by the parent, explain it.
- The start date of the employment relationship.
- The role. If your internal job title has changed, have the letter state the current one and, if needed, the previous one.
- The remuneration, in the same currency and over the same reference period. An annual figure in the letter and a monthly one on the payslip must multiply out.
If something changed along the way — a raise, a change of role — it is better for the letter to say so than for the authority to find the discrepancy.
Language, translation and the final check
Before ordering anything, find out where you are filing: the consular route and the UGE route inside Spain have their own instructions, language and legalisation included. We cover it in filing with a consulate or with the UGE.
Once you know the letter is final and your destination requires Spanish, you need a sworn translation. The rest of the application file and its particulars, in the digital nomad visa guide.
And check your destination's instructions on the same day you file. They change, and the list you downloaded two months ago may not be the one applied to you.
Send us the final letter, the consulate or authority it is addressed to and your deadline, and we will give you the exact price and turnaround.