If you want my 0.2€ you are over complicating things.
Setup a US LLC, remit US LLC profits to a personal bank account outside Malta and pay 5K year in taxes if that income is > 35K / year
End of the story.
You are paying taxes, Malta is happy.
If with VTZ you mean Georgia virtual zone then it doesn't make any sense for your actual level of income because developers must be hired in Georgia for the virtual zone status to be recognized and unless you want to move there, you can't afford a developer salary.
Even in Georgia.
I would go...
You should speak with a tax lawyer because there's a one year old double tax treaty between GIB and Spain so maybe even if GIB is still in blacklist double taxation could be eliminated.
If you don't want any complications move to Portugal, form a US LLC and wait until the time is right to move...
What about moving to Gibraltar?
You can spend all days in Marbella and be back home to sleep in Gibraltar.
GIB company's CIT is 15%
You'll then pay PIT on the amount you decide to take for yourself.
This is how i would start.
The next step would be to stop using the GIB company to be the...
I have very hard time understanding what do you want.
If you want to move to a country where you don't really want to live because what you really want is to stay in Spain you'll be miserable.
Been there, done that.
You don't think about creating substance in the US or running a MT or CY corporation from another country when you don't even get at 100K / year.
First you should be clear on your end goal because i don't understand if you want to stay in Spain or leave at some point.
If you want to stay in...
There all other alternatives, depending on your risk appetite.
For example you don't move from Spain and open an autonomo position.
With this automo position you offer your services through portals like freelancer.com to international clients.
At the same time you form a US LLC that you use...
You never heard of it becaue it's the strategy used by all hotels chains in the Canary Islands to restructure and build hotels for free.
Then you can't use RIC since the exemption from CIT depends on you investing in the Canary Islands.
If you don't plan to use exempt income to buy real...
You are correct. I remembered 1-3 people in the less populated islands but the minimum is 3 so yeah with your income level you will be basically only paying salaries.
Instead of ZEC maybe you could use RIC (reserva inversiones Canaria) which basically exempts up to 90% of your revenue from...
What if instead you don't refrain from moving abroad and relocate to Canary Islands?
In the less populated islands with a 50K investment and 1 hire you can get taxation down to 4% thanks to the Zona Especial Canaria.
You could then reinvest all the profits in buying real estate.
If you want...
You are putting the cart before the horse.
With such low income level it would probably make sense to go with the NHR 2.0 where you pay a flat 20% on your professional income. I'm not sure how to structure this since i didn't explore the new NHR rule after they closed the original program but...