10 Best Countries With Digital Nomad Visas

If you are a professional digital nomad, there’s a big chance that you’re going to look into the digital nomad visa requirements. Right now, there are quite some countries that either implemented a fully formed Digital Nomad visa or have some sort of a substitute to one (e.g., start-up visas, temporary residency, or else).

Digital Barbaros gathered 10 countries with digital nomad visas in action. Let’s see where you can go for your next adventure!

Georgia

Not a very obvious choice, especially for those living in Europe or the US. However, Georgia is positively amazing for digital nomads.

For residents of over 95 countries, Georgia grants a visa-free stay of up to 365 days. A whole year without any sort of visa requirements — that’s a welcome gift worth mentioning.

During COVID-19 the government introduced the Remote from Georgia program that was supposed to help bypass the restrictions for foreign travelers. Now, the program is phased out, and all of the 95+ countries’ residents can come over for one year in Georgia.

Georgia is low-cost, extremely beautiful, and very hospitable. Also, Tbilisi is a very hip place, so if you’re a fan of art spaces, craft beer, and fusion cuisine alongside traditional food and winery at every house, you’ll love it.

• Length: 365 days
• Application fee: $0
• Local Tax: 0% if you live there less than 183 days
• Min Annual Income per person: $24,000
• Internet: ●●●○○
• Community: ●●●●●
• Cost of life: ●○○○○

Barbados

Another not-so-obvious destination for digital nomads, Barbados offers a thing called Barbados Welcome Stamp. The application is pretty straightforward and takes place online here.

This visa gives one the right to stay in Barbados for a year with a chance to prolong the stay. The best thing about this visa is that even though life costs quite a lot, remote workers pay 0% personal income tax.

Sounds almost too good to be true, so here comes the fly in the ointment. To apply for the visa, a nomad must provide proof that their annual income is $50,000+, and also the application fee is $2000 for individuals. A good thing is that you only have to pay it if you get the visa, right?

• Length: 365 days
• Local Tax: 0%, oh dear
• Application fee: $2000
• Min Annual Income per person: $50,000
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●○○
• Cost of life: ●●●●○

Portugal

For a long time now, Portugal has had its D7 visa — a visa for a stable passive income. But in 2021, the government changed it to fit the digital nomad requirements. Now, anyone who has any sort of stable income can apply for a visa. Besides the D7 option, Portugal has visas for individual workers, start-up creators, and entrepreneurs.

The visa provides you with 1 year in Portugal and can be prolonged for up to 5 years. After that, you can apply for permanent residency.

It might be a more complicated option than other visas but it has one major strong suit — unlike other visas, this one is actually a step to permanent residency, so if you’re looking for an opportunity to gain a foothold in the EU, a Portuguese visa might be just the solution you need.

• Length: 365 days + up to 5 years prolongation
• Local Tax: 25% for non-residents
• Application fee: €83 for visa
• Min Annual Income per person: €10,000 (the min monthly income is €740)
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●●
• Cost of life: ●●●○○

Greece

In October 2021, Greece introduced a digital nomad visa for non-EU/EEA citizens. The visa allows you to work remotely in Greece for 1 year. It suits those who work for a foreign employer or have their own company registered outside Greece.

If you are an EU citizen, you can get to Greece with no special visa, but bear in mind that you’ll become a tax resident after 183 days in the country within 1 year.

Greece is famous for its great beaches, historical sights, and modern culture. It quickly becomes one of the hubs for digital nomads, so if you’re ok with the summer heat and a lot of tourists during the season, you might find Greece a great base! Plus, think of all the Insta pictures you can take there if you come during low season.

• Length: 365 days + up to 3 years renewal
• Local Tax: 0% up to 183 days, after 184 days up to 2 years — full Greek taxation
• Application fee: €75
• Min Annual Income per person: €42,000 (€3,500 per month)
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●○
• Cost of life: ●●●●○

Hungary

Following Greece, Hungary implemented its White Card in November 2021. Hungary offers 1 year-long stay and requires a minimum of €2,000 of monthly income and is suitable mostly for solo travelers.

Since technically it is a D visa (a residence permit), you have to apply for it in the consulate or visa center in Hungary. There is a list of required documents to apply for this kind of visa, and it’s a bit more extensive than one in Barbados, for example.

• Length: 365 days + 1 additional year
• Application fee: €110
• Min Annual Income per person: €24,000 (€2,000 per month)
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●○
• Cost of life: ●●○○○

Croatia

Technically, Croatia offers a 1-year temporary nomad residency rather than a visa. If you’d like to prolong your visa, you’ll have to leave Croatia for 6 months after your first year and then reapply.

It’s a great option for any non-EU resident who earns at least €2,232 per month and works remotely for a foreign company or runs their own. You can apply for the visa either in the consulate or embassy of Croatia outside the country or at the embassy or consulate or a police station inside Croatia.

Croatia is warm, welcoming, and quite versatile. Zagreb and Dubrovnik have lots of coworking spaces and a driven community, while smaller places like Split or Pula offer beaches and more secluded options.

• Length: 365 days + 1 additional year after 6 months away
• Local Tax: 0% for the Digital Nomad income
• Application fee: €55 for the temporary permit, €61 for the Croatian visa if you need one, and €41 for the resident card.
• Min Annual Income per person: €26,790 (€2,232 per month)
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●○
• Cost of life: ●●●○○

Czech Republic

A place worth mentioning in the list, even though it might be a harder visa to get — but maybe you’re into Prague just enough to go an extra mile! Czechia has a visa called Zivno that offers you 1 year with an opportunity to extend it and is technically free.

The only trouble is that if you’re applying for the program, you have to get a license for performing one of the trades mentioned here. English teachers, IT specialists, tattoo artists, and other freelancers or business owners are actively using this kind of visa to move to the Czech Republic.

It sounds like a harder option for many travelers, however, it works for a wider variety of professions, so even if you work in a sphere other than digital, you have a good chance to obtain a nomad visa for the Czech Republic.

• Length: 365 days
• Local Tax: classic Czech taxes (Czech Income Zivno Tax, Czech Social Insurance, Czech Health Insurance)
• Application fee: free
• Min Annual Income per person: not specified, but you need at least €5,536 in your bank account
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●○
• Cost of life: ●●●○○

Estonia

Estonia is one step ahead of other countries when it comes to digital progress. Estonia introduced its digital nomad visa in June 2020 — one of the first countries to ever do that officially.

Estonian digital nomad visa allows you to spend up to one year there. The rules are the same as for many other countries: working remotely for a company registered abroad, running your own company — also registered abroad, or freelancing for non-Estonian clients.

One can apply for a visa at the Estonian Embassy or from inside the country at the Police and Border Guard Board office. The process is pretty straightforward. The only trouble is, that practice shows that some nomads run into troubles with taxation.

Estonia is a great place for IT start-ups and tech freelancers. The tech scene is extremely powerful here, so the networking will be worth it!

• Length: 365 days
• Local Tax: 0% up to 183 days spent, after that — local business tax
• Application fee: €100 long-term, €80 short-term
• Min Annual Income per person: €46,495
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●○
• Cost of life: ●●○○○

United Arab Emirates

If you're looking for something luxurious rather than downshifting, here’s your option! The UAE offers its Virtual Working Programme for one year for foreigners.

This visa grants you a right to live and work remotely from anywhere in the UAE with no local taxes or contributions and no compliance issues. It’s suitable for those working remotely for a foreign company or entrepreneurs who run their own company abroad.

The application process is quite a pain in the neck, but the infrastructure for remote workers and the community may outweigh it. The UAE and Dubai in particular is yet another powerful tech playground, so if you’re not easily scared out by such a lifestyle and high prices, you should give Dubai a run!

• Length: 365 days
• Local Tax: 0%, yay!
• Application fee: $350
• Min Annual Income per person: $42,000
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●○
• Cost of life: ●●●●●

Spain

In fact, Spain is still to release its digital nomad visa, but the project looks very promising. With Spain becoming more and more popular as a nomad destination, the implementation of a visa is only a matter of time.

Meanwhile, there’s also a Spain Non-Lucrative visa that is available now. It’s created for non-EU citizens who can live in Spain without working, aka, have enough money. Nomads have been using it as a substitute for a long time even though technically you can’t really work with this kind of visa.

Crossing our fingers and waiting for a fully finished project of a Digital Nomad Visa!

• Length: 365 days
• Local Tax: 24% tax for the first €600,000 earned
• Application fee: no info yet
• Min Annual Income per person: not stated but lies somewhere in between €1,000– €3,000 per month
• Internet: ●●●●○
• Community: ●●●●○
• Cost of life: ●●●○○

The digital nomad trend is growing, so more and more countries are coming up with the idea of how to provide remote workers with visas and a more or less stable position legally.

Popular nomad destinations such as Mexico, Thailand, Cyprus, Bali, and more are either offering a temporary residency or an extended tourist visa. Nevertheless, it looks like all of them are getting there eventually — we’ll keep an eye on that!