Most applicants assume that if the Administration goes silent, their case is stuck. This administrative silence digital nomad visa case proves the opposite: when the legal deadline passes without a decision, the law can work in your favour, if you know how to invoke it.
A Complete File From Day One
Our client, a Japanese entrepreneur and sole shareholder of his own company, needed a Digital Nomad residence permit built on solid corporate documentation.
We submitted a complete, well-structured application, including the articles of incorporation, a certificate of good standing, and the approved annual minutes and financial statements, all duly apostilled and translated.
A corporate applicant faces more scrutiny than an individual freelancer, since the Administration needs to verify the company’s legal standing abroad as well as the applicant’s own eligibility.
A Deadline That Passed Without an Answer
The application was filed in late November 2025, a period affected by public holidays and year-end closures. Other Digital Nomad cases we filed around the same time were resolved within the statutory 20 working days.
This one wasn’t. The legal deadline elapsed with no express decision and no request for additional documentation.
Why This Administrative Silence Digital Nomad Visa Case Worked
Unlike most Spanish residence permits, the Digital Nomad visa benefits from positive administrative silence, expressly provided for in Law 14/2013.
- Article 76.1 sets the maximum decision period for the Administration.
- Article 24.4 of Law 39/2015 allows the resulting silence to be invoked before the Administration and third parties, with legal effects from the moment the deadline expires.
Even when silence favours the applicant, the Administration is still obliged to issue an express decision once challenged.
This distinction matters: positive silence is a legal presumption in the applicant’s favour, not an automatic document. It still has to be formally recognised.
The Formal Request That Forced a Decision
Once the deadline had clearly passed, we filed a formal request for recognition of positive administrative silence, citing the applicable provisions and demonstrating the delay.
A favourable express resolution followed in approximately five working days, formally confirming the approval.
This administrative silence digital nomad visa case is a reminder that a missed deadline is not automatically bad news for the applicant, if it is documented and invoked correctly.
Stuck waiting past your own deadline? Silence isn’t always a dead end.
📅 Book Your Consultation →Why This Process Is Harder Than It Looks
- Assuming silence means rejection. For the Digital Nomad visa, silence is legally positive, not negative, if the statutory deadline has passed.
- Not tracking the statutory 20-working-day clock. Without an exact count, applicants miss the moment silence starts working in their favour.
- Waiting passively instead of filing a formal request. Positive silence still needs to be invoked; it rarely resolves itself without a filing.
- Submitting an incomplete corporate file. Missing apostilles or translations on incorporation documents invite delays that erase the benefit of silence.
Talk to a Lawyer Before You File
If your Digital Nomad application has passed the statutory deadline without a decision, that silence may already be working in your favour, but it needs to be formally invoked. At MigratioLex, we review your specific case, not a generic checklist. We respond within 24 hours, in English, French or Spanish.
Book Your Initial ConsultationThis article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Based on Law 14/2013, of 27 September, article 76.1, and article 24.4 of Law 39/2015, on the Common Administrative Procedure of Public Administrations.
