Proof of income for a nomad visa when your freelance months are uneven

Fatou, I had exactly this worry when I applied in Portugal, because my income looks like a heart monitor. I'll describe what worked for me, with the usual caveat that each country reads the rules its own way.

What I submitted, in the end:

• bank statements for the full period they asked for, not just the good months, because a gap would have looked worse than a low month
• a simple one-page summary that I made myself: month, client, amount invoiced, amount received. It made the average visible without the officer doing maths
• signed contracts with my two biggest clients, showing ongoing work into the following months
• a letter from my accountant confirming my annual income, which carried more weight than I expected

The contracts mattered because they showed the income would continue, not only that it existed. I wasn't refused, but I was asked one follow-up question about a low month, and the summary page meant I could answer it in two lines.

My honest advice: check the official requirement for how the income is assessed (average or every month) before you choose the country. That single detail decides whether your uneven months are a problem or not.

Same situation when I applied in Spain. What helped me was applying after a strong run of months rather than when I first wanted to. I waited about three months longer than I'd planned so that the statements looked healthy, and it was worth the patience. The accountant's letter Isabella mentions is a good idea too. Mine was a single page and nobody questioned it.

For Spain they looked at the whole picture for me, not one month in isolation, but I've heard from friends that other countries are stricter. I also included a letter from my biggest client saying the work would continue. It felt strange to ask for it, but she wrote it the same day and it made me feel much more secure about the application.

the one-page summary is such a good idea, isabella. i've been sending messy screenshots to myself for months. making a proper table this weekend

From the business side, a letter from an accountant is worth the small fee. It turns an uneven list of payments into a clear annual figure from someone with a professional reputation to protect, and immigration officers seem to trust that far more than a self-made spreadsheet. Get both.

Good thread, and a common worry. Whether nomad routes assess an average, a minimum in every month, or savings as an alternative varies by country, and the accepted evidence varies too. Before choosing a destination, compare exactly how income is measured, because for freelancers that detail matters more than the headline threshold. The Visa section for Portugal is one example of where the digital nomad route and its evidence requirements are laid out, with links to the official source.

Uneven freelance months are the most normal thing in the world, and it helped me to hear that immigration offices know that too. I've been putting off my own application for exactly this fear, so this thread is a push.

Sounds like you've got a solid plan now, Fatou. The summary page plus the accountant's letter is exactly what I'd want to see if I were the one reading the file. Good luck with it.