If your company has no Spanish entity and hires you through an Employer of Record (EOR), the company that appears as your formal employer, the question is not whether the EOR is provided for in the Beckham Law: it is not. Article 93.1.b).1.º of the Personal Income Tax Law treats the employment contract condition as met in three cases, and what decides your situation is which of the three your contract fits into. None of the 354 binding rulings that the DGT classifies under Article 93 raises the case of an EOR, and in ruling V1953-25 the DGT itself warns that whether or not an employment relationship exists with an entity is "a matter outside the scope of the powers of this Directorate General".
Key points
- The law does not name the EOR. It sets out three routes: an employment relationship with an employer in Spain, a displacement ordered by the employer with a displacement letter from the employer, or remote work through the exclusive use of computer and telematic means.
- If the EOR hires you through a Spanish entity, the route is the first one. If you remain employed by your company abroad, it is the remote work route. Do not mix the requirements of one with those of the other.
- The DGT makes its answer conditional on the employment relationship existing and adds that this is not a matter for it to decide. Exactly where the EOR doubt lies, the tax authority does not rule.
- The deadline runs from the activity start date shown in the Spanish Social Security registration, or in the documentation allowing you, where applicable, to maintain the Social Security legislation of origin, or, if registration were not compulsory, in the document evidencing that date. Six months, Article 116.1.a) of the income tax regulations.
- The election is exercised through an individual communication from each taxpayer. You ask the EOR for data and documents; the election is yours to exercise.
The three routes the law admits
Article 93.1 of the Personal Income Tax Law, in the wording in force since 1 January 2023 that rulings V1953-25 and V0476-26 transcribe, requires three conditions at the same time: not having been resident in Spain in the five tax periods before the one in which the displacement takes place (letter a), that the displacement occurs for one of the circumstances it lists, "whether in the first year in which the regime applies or in the year before" (letter b), and not obtaining income that would be classified as earned through a permanent establishment in Spain, except in the cases of letters b).3.º and 4.º (letter c). On the employment contract, letter b).1.º treats the condition as met in three cases:
- Where "an employment relationship begins, whether ordinary or a special one other than the one indicated above, or a statutory relationship, with an employer in Spain".
- Where "the displacement is ordered by the employer and there is a displacement letter from the employer".
- Where, "without being ordered by the employer, the work activity is performed remotely, through the exclusive use of computer, telematic and telecommunication means and systems".
The EOR is neither in that list nor in the doctrine: we have reviewed the question raised in all 354 Article 93 rulings and none of them mentions an Employer of Record, an umbrella company, a temporary employment agency or an assignment of workers. That does not mean an EOR rules out the regime: it means the fit has to be looked for in the route that matches your contract, and that nobody can offer you a ruling that validates the arrangement.
The two usual setups
1. The EOR hires you through a Spanish entity
An EOR entity incorporated in Spain signs a Spanish contract with you and registers you with Spanish Social Security. The route is the first one, beginning an employment relationship "with an employer in Spain". Social Security registration is done by the employer, so if the EOR appears as your formal employer, it falls to the EOR. We do not take it for granted that every EOR does this the same way, nor that they all have a Spanish entity: it is worth confirming in writing, because the applicable route and the date from which the deadline runs both follow from it. The documentation specific to this route is in letters a) and b) of Article 119.2 of the regulations, which the rulings we have read do not transcribe, they appear as "(…)", so we do not set it out.
2. There is no Spanish entity and you remain employed by your company
The route is the third one, remote work, and it is the one analysed in the two rulings on which this article rests: V0476-26, of 2 March 2026, on a Swedish engineer who agrees with his employer to telework from his home in Spain, and V1953-25, of 16 October 2025, on a Spaniard resident in the Dominican Republic who moves to Spain while keeping his employment relationship with the Dominican company. In both, the DGT concludes that he will be able to opt for the regime to the extent that such an employment relationship with the entity exists and the activity can be carried out remotely through the exclusive use of computer, telematic and telecommunication means and systems, if he acquires his tax residence in Spain as a result of that displacement and also meets letters a) and c).
Neither of the two cases involves an EOR: the worker remains hired directly by the company abroad, as we explain in our article on teleworking for a foreign employer. No source says what happens when a third party stands between you and your company as your formal employer, and we do not claim it either. What we do know is the document this route calls for, because Article 119.2.c) is transcribed in both rulings: "a supporting document issued by the employer stating the acknowledgement of the employment relationship with the taxpayer, the activity start date shown in the Spanish Social Security registration or in the documentation allowing, where applicable, the maintenance of the Social Security legislation of origin, as well as the estimated duration of the work activity to be performed in Spain".
3. If it is your company that sends you
That leaves the second route, which requires the displacement to "be ordered by the employer and that there be a displacement letter from the employer". If your company sends you and issues that letter, the EOR is not the piece that settles your access to the regime, even if it runs your payroll.
Where the DGT stops
It is worth reading it literally: both V1953-25 and V0476-26 make their answer conditional on the employment relationship existing, "a matter outside the scope of the powers of this Directorate General". The DGT rules on whether an activity performed remotely fits within Article 93; it does not rule on whether your contract with an EOR is an employment relationship, nor on who you have it with. A favourable ruling on teleworking therefore does not validate an EOR setup. Both of them also answer the specific facts of the person who raised them.
What to ask your EOR for, in writing
All of this comes from the law transcribed in the rulings, not from any provider's practice:
- The contract, showing who appears as your formal employer and in which country. It decides which of the three routes you are in.
- The activity start date shown in the Spanish Social Security registration, or in the documentation allowing the legislation of origin to be maintained. It is the date from which the six months run and one of the items of data in the communication (Articles 116.1.a) and 119.2).
- The supporting evidence of that registration or of that documentation; if registration were not compulsory, the document evidencing the activity start date. It is attached to the communication (Article 119.2).
- In the remote work route only, the employer document of Article 119.2.c), with the acknowledgement of the employment relationship, the start date and the estimated duration of the activity in Spain.
- Article 116.3 excludes from the election anyone who has opted for the special withholding procedure of Article 89.B). The rulings do not explain what it consists of, but if a third party runs your payroll, it deserves a question.
Deel, Remote, Oyster, Rippling, Globalization Partners and Lano are the names that come up most often in our calls. We do not describe each one's setup, because what decides your case is your contract, not the provider, and each of them offers different arrangements depending on the country. We have no agreement with any of them and we have not verified their structure in Spain.
The deadline, which is what slips most often
Article 116.1.a) of the regulations, transcribed in both rulings, gives "a maximum period of six months from the activity start date shown in the Spanish Social Security registration or in the documentation allowing the taxpayer, where applicable, to maintain the Social Security legislation of origin or, where Social Security registration is not compulsory, in the document evidencing the activity start date". It does not run from signature, nor from your arrival in Spain, and with an EOR in the middle the EOR knows that date before you do. The filing is Modelo 149, the communication form of Article 119, and Article 116.1 provides that the election is exercised "through an individual communication from each taxpayer addressed to the tax authorities". If you have never done it, the step by step guide goes through the procedure.
If your contract with the EOR ends
These contracts usually have a fixed term, so this part matters. Ruling V1374-26, citing V0432-17 and V1739-17, sets out the doctrine under which, once the relationship that genuinely and effectively caused the displacement has ended for reasons beyond the taxpayer's control, a short period of inactivity followed by a new relationship that also meets the Article 93 conditions does not prevent you from staying in the regime. The two conditions are inseparable, and the ruling does not say what happens if you leave the job by your own decision, nor what duration it considers "short": we look at that in our article on changing jobs without losing the regime.
Summary
| Your situation | Route under Article 93.1.b).1.º | Document specific to the route |
|---|---|---|
| The EOR hires you through a Spanish entity and registers you with Spanish Social Security | An employment relationship, ordinary or special, or a statutory one, with an employer in Spain | Letters a) and b) of Article 119.2 RIRPF, not transcribed in the rulings we have read |
| Your company abroad sends you to Spain | Displacement ordered by the employer, with a displacement letter from the employer | The same: not transcribed in the rulings we have read |
| You remain employed by your company abroad and work from Spain using only telematic means | Activity performed remotely, through the exclusive use of computer, telematic and telecommunication means and systems | The employer document of Article 119.2.c): employment relationship, start date and estimated duration |
Frequently asked questions
Can I use the Beckham Law if an Employer of Record hires me?
The law does not name the EOR. Article 93.1.b).1.º of the Personal Income Tax Law treats the employment contract condition as met in three cases: beginning an employment relationship, ordinary or special, or a statutory one, with an employer in Spain; a displacement ordered by the employer with a displacement letter from the employer; or, without the employer ordering it, performing the activity remotely through the exclusive use of computer, telematic and telecommunication means and systems. What decides your case is which of the three your contract fits into, together with letters a) and c) of Article 93.1.
Is there any DGT ruling on the Employer of Record?
Not among those we have reviewed. None of the 354 binding rulings that the DGT classifies under the rules of Article 93 of the Personal Income Tax Law raises, in the question put to it, the case of an Employer of Record, an umbrella company, a temporary employment agency or an assignment of workers.
Does the DGT confirm that my contract with the EOR is an employment relationship?
No. In rulings V1953-25 and V0476-26 it makes its answer conditional on the employment relationship with the entity existing and adds that this is "a matter outside the scope of the powers of this Directorate General". Both of them also answer the specific facts of the person who raised them.
From when do the six months to apply for the regime run?
Under Article 116.1.a) of the income tax regulations, transcribed in rulings V1953-25 and V0476-26, the maximum period is six months from the activity start date shown in the Spanish Social Security registration or in the documentation allowing you, where applicable, to maintain the Social Security legislation of origin or, if registration were not compulsory, in the document evidencing the activity start date. It does not run from the signing of the contract, nor from your arrival in Spain.
Does my EOR have to file Modelo 149?
Article 116.1 of the regulations provides that the election is exercised through an individual communication from each taxpayer addressed to the tax authorities. The EOR can provide you with the data and documents listed in Article 119.2, among them the evidence of Social Security registration; the election is yours to exercise.
Before you sign with an EOR
The ruling that deals with this arrangement is still missing, and until there is one what can be reviewed is the concrete detail: your contract, who appears as the employer, how and when Social Security registration is done, and what document your company can issue. If you have just signed with an EOR, the sensible thing is to look at it before the six months run. DPLL Tax & Legal, an AEAT Social Collaborator firm based in Barcelona, reviews these setups one by one. A free 10 minute call is enough to know which route applies to you.