Part one · 2 steps
Visa & residency
Start the Non-Lucrative Visa (NLV) path
Spain's route for retirees. Plan on roughly $2,786/month of provable income — pension, Social Security, dividends — and expect the consulate to want it documented. The current read:
From our Valencia research
NLV income requirement (2026) is EUR 2,400/mo (~USD 2,740) for the main applicant — 400% of Spain's IPREM — plus EUR 600/mo per dependent, so a couple needs ~EUR 3,000/mo (~USD 3,420) in passive income or equivalent savings (~EUR 36,000+/yr). Key catch: income must be truly passive (pensions, Social Security, dividends, rental, investments) — remote work/employment does NOT qualify. Renewable 1+2+2 yrs; path to permanent residency at 5 yrs. Spain's Golden Visa (investment route) was abolished in April 2025, so the NLV is now the main passive-income door. Apply at a US consulate before moving; consulates are tightening documentation scrutiny.
Read the full Valencia profile →Get key documents apostilled + certified-translated
Birth/marriage certificates, background checks — start early; it's slow, and every residency application wants them.
Our visa paperwork guide →Part two · 3 steps
Healthcare
Map your care in Valencia
Know where you'd go before you need it — the hospital for something serious, the specialist, the pharmacy that speaks English. Here's our current read:
From our Valencia research
Among the best in any retire-abroad destination. Acute care is excellent at Hospital Universitario y Politecnico La Fe (a world-class public referral hospital) plus strong private hospitals (Quironsalud, IMED Valencia, Vithas). English-speaking doctors are common in the private system (clinics like Clinica Caro cater to expats) and less reliable in public clinics. NLV holders aren't on public healthcare initially, so most carry private insurance at roughly EUR 50-150/mo (rises with age). Nearest world-class care is in-city; Madrid/Barcelona add depth if ever needed.
Read the full Valencia profile →Know what Medicare does — and doesn't — cover abroad
Original Medicare generally doesn't cover care outside the US. Whatever your plan becomes, it has to answer that gap.
Medicare abroad, explained →Compare international / expat health insurance
See what international health plans actually cover — and what they cost.
Part three · 5 steps
Money & taxes
Pressure-test your Valencia budget
A comfortable month in Valencia runs about $3,376 for a couple, at current exchange rates. Build your own version on top of that base — your rent tier, your healthcare, your flights home — and see what's left over.
Build the real monthly number →Understand US taxes as an expat in Spain
You still file US taxes abroad, and FBAR applies once foreign accounts pass $10,000. The country side matters just as much:
From our Valencia research
Honest downside. Spanish tax residents (183+ days/yr) are taxed on WORLDWIDE income at progressive rates ~19-47% (varies by region), and Spain levies a wealth tax / "solidarity" tax on large fortunes. A US-Spain tax treaty exists and prevents most double taxation via foreign tax credits. US Social Security is treaty-assigned to the US, but Spain's tax authority has recently asserted a right to tax it with relief — genuinely disputed, get advice. Private pensions are generally taxable in Spain. The Beckham flat-24% regime is for inbound workers, not retirees. Budget for a Spanish gestor/tax advisor.
Read the full Valencia profile →Set up low-fee international money transfers
Bank wires quietly cost 3–5% in bad FX; specialists are far cheaper.
Have someone check the retirement math before you commit
Plan day-to-day cash + card access (and a backup card)
Check your cards' foreign-ATM fees before you go, and carry a backup card on a different network in case one gets swallowed.
Part four · 4 steps
The scouting trip
Book the Valencia reconnaissance trip
Not a vacation — a rehearsal. Rent in an ordinary neighborhood for a few weeks and live a normal week: groceries, buses, a doctor's appointment, a quiet Tuesday. Getting there and back:
From our Valencia research
No nonstop flights between Valencia (VLC) and the US. Realistic door-to-door is one stop via Madrid (45-min domestic hop) onto Iberia/American nonstops, or via European hubs (Lisbon, Paris, Frankfurt, Zurich), totaling roughly 11-15 hrs to East Coast. Madrid is also ~1h35m by high-speed AVE train. Manageable for once- or twice-a-year US visits, but not a quick hop for family emergencies.
Read the full Valencia profile →Compare trip insurance for the scouting trip
Read the safety picture for yourself
Valencia sits under a US State Department Level 2 (“exercise increased caution”) advisory. Check the current one before you book, then weigh it against the on-the-ground picture:
From our Valencia research
Very safe by big-city standards. Numbeo (Jun 20 2026, 382 contributors) puts Crime Index 37.5 / Safety 62.5; daytime walking safety "very high," nighttime "high." Violent crime is rare. The real, persistent issue is petty theft — pickpocketing and bag-snatching in crowded centres, at the train station, on transit, and during festivals (Las Fallas). State Dept advisory Level 2 is driven by Europe-wide terrorism risk, not local danger.
Read the full Valencia profile →Test the season, not the postcard
Every place has a month the brochures skip. If you can, scout in the worst one:
From our Valencia research
Classic Mediterranean: ~300 sunny days, hot summers (highs ~30C/86F, humid in Aug) and mild but real winters (Jan highs ~16C/60F, nights ~7C/45F). Not tropical or warm year-round, but among the mildest winters in continental Europe. Apartments often lack good central heating, so winter can feel chillier indoors than the numbers suggest.
Read the full Valencia profile →Part five · 6 steps
The move itself
Rent first — live a full season before you even think about buying
The single biggest regret-saver. The market isn't going anywhere.
Book a short-term furnished rental for your landing
Give yourself 1–3 months to find the right neighborhood.
Decide what to ship, store, or sell
Shipping a household is expensive; many movers regret over-shipping.
Re-home your US mail before you go
Banks, the IRS, Medicare — the mail keeps coming after you leave. Keep a US address you check from anywhere, or hand the whole job to a service.
Sort pet import + airline requirements early
Timelines for vaccines and paperwork can be months.
Our pet-move guide →Scan and cloud-back-up every key document
Passports, prescriptions, insurance cards, the marriage certificate — one folder you can open from any phone, anywhere.
Part six · 4 steps
Settling in
Find your people in Valencia
Loneliness is the #1 reason people move home — build the community before you build anything else. What's already there:
From our Valencia research
Large and fast-growing international community — ~130,000+ foreign nationals in the city (~16% of metro, 2023 city data), and Valencia repeatedly tops InterNations expat surveys for quality of life. Active anglophone groups (Valencia Information Exchange, Expats Living in Valencia, InterNations). Note the cohort skews toward digital nomads and younger Europeans plus retirees, rather than the dense US-retiree enclaves you find in Mexico or the Algarve.
Read the full Valencia profile →Join the expat community before you arrive
Start the conversations months before the flight.
Our community guide →Set up a local SIM + home internet
If your phone's unlocked, an eSIM can cover you from day one; sort home internet once you have an address.
Start the language — even 20 words changes everything
Spanish is what your daily life will run in — the clinic front desk, the market, the neighbors. A head start pays off from day one.
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