On August 5, 2025, the General Directorate for Migration Management published Criterio de Gestión 1/2025 — a document that clarifies a number of important issues related to residence permit modifications. In particular — the transition from permits issued under Ley 14/2013 (digital nomads, startups, investors, etc.) to the general regime.
Let's examine one of the key points:
Podrán solicitar ante la Delegación o Subdelegación del Gobierno competente la modificación al régimen general previsto en el artículo 191 del RLOEx en el plazo de los tres meses siguientes a la fecha en que se produzcan los cambios durante su residencia que impidan el mantenimiento de la autorización de residencia obtenida conforme a la Ley 14/2013, de 27 de septiembre
Translation:
Applicants will be able to ... request a modification to the general regime, provided for in Article 191 RLOEx, within three months from the date when changes occurred during residence that prevent the maintenance of the residence permit obtained in accordance with Law 14/2013 of September 27
What these changes mean in practice
Based on the text of the criterion, modification from a startup visa or nomad residence permit to cuenta propia under the general regime implies the presence of changes in circumstances, for example:
loss of remote employment
closure or suspension of a startup
non-compliance with established income requirements, etc.
At the current moment, it is difficult to say definitively how individual Oficinas de Extranjería will interpret this provision — in Spain, actual practice often differs from the letter of the law.
However, one thing can be stated with certainty: the presence of documented changes in circumstances increases the chances of approval for your residence permit modification.
