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This is another short post, but I wanted to give you an example of the other major document that I was really stuck on during our Non Lucrative Visa Application process to move to Spain.
This document is the Letter of Intent, which is a personal letter required for most visa applications. There's not a lot of information about what the letter of intent should look like, so I thought I would write about our experience with this letter for our own non lucrative Spanish visa application. (Note: In recent years this has also been called a Non Working visa, but the process and requirements seem to be the same as when we applied.)
If you're also going through the visa application (or even the non lucrative visa Spain) process, you've probably already googled a few things like:
What IS the letter of intent for a non lucrative visa application?
A letter of intent is a personal letter, written by you, that explains why you (and your family, if you're moving abroad with children) want to apply for a visa and live in the new country.
In many cases, the Letter of Intent helps the visa approval process by giving the approval board/review committee/etc important information about your motives, hopes, and plans for becoming part of a new country.
Never fear, this post is here to help!
The Letter of Intent is an important part of your visa application process, which I think sometimes gets overlooked.
The purpose of this letter is to explain why you want to move to the country you have chosen, and briefly outline your ability to do so.
Depending on how much research you've done (and expat groups you've joined) you might have already heard horror stories of families being denied because the consulate didn't like their letter of intent.
I certainly did, and let me tell you I gained a few grey hairs stressing about what to write in a letter that seemed to carry so much weight!
Despite this, our letter (and non lucrative visa application to Spain) was accepted just fine! 😅
What should the letter of intent say for a non lucrative visa?
Based on all of the research I have done, including speaking to many other expat families who made this journey before me, the Letter of Intent should demonstrate that you will be an asset- and not a burden- on your new country if they approve your non lucrative visa.
To do this, the Letter of Intent for your visa application should include the following information:
1. Why you want to move to a new country (be specific but not too long)
2. How you plan to support yourself in the new country (especially for a non lucrative visa, where there may be working restrictions in place)
3. Specify that you are relatively healthy, have a clean background, and have obtained the proper health insurance. (Or in other words, meet the other requirements for your visa application.)
Here is our example Letter of Intent, which I also provided in Spanish (thank you again, Google Translate):
Feel free to use my example as a template to get started on what you want to include in your letter for your own family's visa application.
Make sure you create a letter that is UNIQUE to your situation. You really want the consulate to see you as people, and as a family, instead of just another paper application. 🥰
It's also important that this be translated into the native language of your destination country.
I know this seems repetitive since I mentioned it already, but I was surprised to hear that some visa applicants don't do this- and it is an important detail that shows you really do want to become a part of the culture and the country you are requesting to live in.
It also prevents any issues with translation errors, because sometimes translations can change the meaning of certain words or phrases, and you will want to make sure that you are actually saying the right things.
(You can read our post about visa document translation services for more helpful information about translating your visa documents into the language of your destination country.)
You want your Letter of Intent to make a great statement about yourself and your family, explaining why you want to move abroad with family and how you will be a contribution to your new country of residence.
Lastly, I want to talk about what NOT to include in the Letter of Intent for your visa application.
What should I NOT include in a Letter of Intent for my visa application?
There are some things that are unnecessary to add in, and could possibly hurt your chances of being approved.
For example, if your plan for moving overseas with kids (or without kids) is so that you can start exploring family world travel, you DON'T want to mention this in your letter.
Even though traveling the world is a very big part of why most expats move abroad, the purpose of applying for most visa applications is to assimilate into a new country and be an asset.
The approval commitee wants to hear about how you will contribute to the new country- NOT how you will be going in and out of the country to see other places.
And it might be a bit taboo- but I'm going to just say it- I personally think that a lot of these visa programs are engineered to help countries attract new residents who will PAY INTO their government programs and boost economic stability.
That means things like paying taxes, shopping locally, etc.
So your Letter of Intent shouldn't say anything that detracts from their goal of adding valuable members to their country's residency.
Frequent travel could mean you might not need to pay local taxes, and definitely won't be contributing to local economy as much, which makes your application MUCH less appealing.
You also DON'T want to talk about moving back to your home country after a certain period of time, or your plans to move to another country after the visa period is over.
This is for the same reason as above- countries want to add valuable residents that can contribute to their country's stability long term. Even if your visa is only valid for 1 year, it can often be renewed and eventually you can apply for permanent residency.
You don't want to give the visa approval commitee ANY reason to think you are just going to jump into their country for a little while and then leave without making any real contribution to society.
So just play it safe and focus your Letter of Intent on the country you're applying for, without mentioning any additional goals you may have (such as travel) outside of living in and enjoying the country itself.
As you can see in the Letter of Intent example above from our Non Lucrative visa Spain applicaiton, I talked about choosing Spain because it was rich in culture and history, which was important because I am an ancient history grad.
I didn't mention that we wanted to start traveling Europe with kids, or talk about any other places or future plans.
I kept our letter focused on why we chose Spain, and how our financial and health circumstances were stable and strong. (This means we would contribute to, and not be a burden on, the Spanish government and/or society.)
That's it! That's the main gyst of what to consider when writing your own Letter of Intent for the visa you are applying for. Hopefully it helps give you some ideas as to how to form your OWN letter.
Now you've just got to get busy writing! You've totally got this!
Check out our main Applying for A Non Lucrative Visa- What's Needed post to see a list of the other documents that are usually required, and be sure to download our free visa prep checklist to help you stay organized! 😉
Oh! I also wanted to mention the other major document I really struggled with for our initial non lucrative Spanish visa application, in case it saves you a bit of time.
As I mentioned in the first paragraph of this post, I really pulled my hair out over the 'Medical Health Certificate' requirement because the information about it was quite vague and I couldn't find many clera answers online as to what it was or how to format it. (And what the heck even was this document, anyways?!)
You can check out our medical health certificate example if you haven't seen it already, and hopefully it will help save you a few google searches! 😅 (It's actually the document I decided to start this entire blog over, because it stressed me out so much!)
That's it- for real this time- but please comment below if you have any other questions or if I am not clear about anything above! I'm here to help! 🥰
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