In short: Spain suits remote workers, Greece suits people hired by a local employer and those thinking about citizenship. Spain gives a three-year permit with no Spanish employer, but in big cities the process takes 5-8.5 months. Greece admits employees from €920 a month and grants citizenship after 7 years, but your family can join only after two years. In our ranking Spain is 32nd of 97 and Greece 34th.
If you have an offer from a Greek employer or are thinking about citizenship: the income threshold is the minimum wage, €920 a month, citizenship comes after 7 years and you keep your own, and a new resident pays tax on only half the salary for 7 years. The price is waiting for your family: you can apply for reunification only after two years. Before filing, you go through the quota and a consulate, and rules for residents changed twice in two years.
If you work remotely or have clients abroad and earn at least €2,849 a month: the permit is issued for three years at once, the Beckham regime is 24%, and family rights are almost complete. Expect 5-8.5 months of waiting for appointments and the card in Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia, audits of remote workers after the permit is issued, and giving up your previous citizenship when you naturalise after 10 years.
Greece is stronger in 3 of 7 areas, Spain in 3, tied in 1.
The harsh 2025 laws target people without status; we found no documented pressure on people living on a work or family permit over the past 12 months, and Law 5275/2026 openly aims to attract legal workers. Delivery is what breaks: 273,900 applications were waiting in September 2024, and the state publishes no refusal statistics at all. Rules for residents changed twice in two years: since February 2026 you cannot change the purpose of stay inside the country, and permit time counts from issue, so delays push permanent residence further away.
The state wants newcomers: residence and work applications rose by almost half after the reform, an extraordinary regularisation of about half a million people runs in 2026, and there are no integration courses. Bureaucracy gets in the way: fingerprint appointments in big cities take 3-6 months, and even after a yes people can live half a year without a residence card. Since 2026 remote-work permits are audited after issue and ended without social security registration.
It depends on your work. With a local job offer, Greece: the income threshold is €920 a month. For a remote worker, Spain: from €2,849 a month, no Spanish employer and a three-year permit at once, while the Greek nomad visa asks for €3,500 a month.
The decision itself takes 2-3 months in Greece, but before filing you need quota approval and a consular appointment. Spain's law promises about 2-2.5 months, while in Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia the whole process takes 5-8.5 months.
Spain: about €460 in fees for a family of three over five years. In Greece the same family pays about €1,540-1,600, not counting translations, apostilles and mandatory health insurance.
Greece: after 7 years, with a Greek B1 exam and a civics test, and dual citizenship is allowed. Spain takes 10 years, with DELE A2 and CCSE exams and giving up your previous citizenship.
Greece: up to 3 months of unemployment in total, or up to 6 if the permit is over two years old, is not grounds for withdrawal. Spain has no grace period: you must notify the agency within 30 days and the permit may be ended.
It depends on what matters to you. Spain is easier to enter, keeps your status safer and is more generous to families, but slow to hand out documents. Greece puts less pressure on legal residents, is easier for everyday life and leads to citizenship faster, but your family waits two years and the rules change often.
Every fact on this page comes from the country pages, where the sources are listed. Checked 01/10/2026.