News brief · Nomad visas

Estonia: one of Europe's most demanding nomad visas

Estonia's visa for remote workers requires one of the highest incomes in Europe for a one-year stay. This ratio between requirement and duration makes it a very selective scheme, and one that is little used.

By Editorial team · on May 6, 2026

View of Estonia — Photo: Hiiumaamudeliklubi — Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA)

What the visa requires

Estonia issues a visa for remote workers, reserved for people working for an employer or clients located outside the country.

The minimum required net monthly income is about €4,500¹, and the permit allows a stay of up to one year.

This threshold should be compared with those of competing schemes: €3,622.5² in Croatia for a stay of up to 18 months³, about €1,500⁴ in Cape Verde, about $1,400⁵ in Colombia for up to 2 years⁶.

Estonia therefore asks for more, for a shorter period. This ratio explains why it is less used than its media profile would suggest.

The scheme also does not concern European Union nationals, who enjoy freedom of movement and need no visa.

This high requirement reflects an explicit policy choice: Estonia is not looking for volume but for a specific profile, that of a qualified professional likely to contribute to its digital ecosystem and, in time, to settle there permanently through another route.

The reasoning is understandable: a country with a small population has nothing to gain from hosting a transient population, and much to gain from retaining a few of them. The nomad visa is therefore designed as a point of entry, not as an end in itself.

The confusion to avoid

This visa is distinct from Estonian e-Residency, with which it is systematically confused.

e-Residency is a digital identity for setting up and running an Estonian company remotely. The official portal is unambiguous: it confers no right of residence, no tax residency and no travel document.

The nomad visa, by contrast, gives the right to stay. It does not give the right to work for an Estonian employer, and it does not in itself confer tax residency.

A one-year stay does, however, cross the usual tax residency threshold, and the holder then becomes an ordinary Estonian taxpayer.

Income tax for 2026 stands at 22%⁷, compared with 20%⁸ in 2024, with a general allowance of €8,400⁹ per year. Social tax, payable by the employer, is added at a rate of 33%¹⁰.

What else Estonia offers

Tax deferral is Estonia's distinctive feature. Undistributed profit is not taxed, at a rate of 0%¹¹; tax is due on distribution, at about 22%¹² of the gross amount.

This mechanism strongly favours a growing company that retains its earnings, and brings nothing to a business that distributes all of its profit every year.

Estonia's digital administration is also remarkable, and the land register is fully searchable, which significantly reduces the cost of due diligence.

The climate, on the other hand, is the factor comparisons never take into account: daylight in December and January is very short, and it is the main reason expats from the south leave.

We publish neither the number of nomad visas issued, nor processing times, nor application fees: we have not been able to verify them in an up-to-date official Estonian source.

Key points

The about €4,500¹ threshold is one of the highest in Europe for a one-year permit.
The visa does not concern European Union nationals.
It is not the same as e-Residency, which gives no right of residence.
A one-year stay entails Estonian tax residency and ordinary taxation.
Corporate tax deferral is the country's real asset, independently of the visa.

The practical conclusion fits in one sentence: Estonia rewards those who settle and work there, and the nomad visa is just one point of entry among others, neither the widest nor the most useful. For a French national it is of no use at all — and it is tax deferral, not the residence permit, that deserves examination.

Please note

General information, as of the date shown. A draft reform is not a rule in force: check the conditions with the authorities or a professional before deciding. Terms of use and disclaimers

Sources and verification dates

1.
Estonia: minimum net monthly income for the digital nomad visa : €4,500
« Your income meets the minimum threshold of €4,500 net/monthly »
e-resident.gov.eeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
2.
Croatia: means of subsistence required of the digital nomad : €3,622.5
« […] državljanin treće zemlje koji regulira privremeni boravak u svrhu boravka digitalnih nomada mora raspolagati sredstvima u visini od najmanje 2,5 prosječne mjesečne neto isplaćene plaće za prethodnu godinu […] U ovom trenutku iznos potrebnih sredstva na mjesečnoj osnovi je minimalno 3.622,50 EUR […] ako je namjeravani period boravka 18 mjeseci stanjem na bankovnom računu je potrebno dokazati da raspolažete sredstvima u iznosu od minimalno od 65.205,00 EUR. — Ministarstvo unutarnjih poslova, « Privremeni boravak u svrhu boravka digitalnih nomada » (Uredba NN 14/21). »
mup.gov.hrVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
3.
Croatia: maximum duration of temporary stay for digital nomads : 18 months
« Privremeni boravak odobrava se do maksimalno osamnaest mjeseci (moguće i kraće). Ako je privremeni boravak odobren na rok važenja kraće od 18 mjeseci, državljanin treće zemlje može najkasnije 60 dana prije isteka važenja privremenog boravak podnijeti zahtjev za produljenje privremenog boravka. Produljenje privremenog boravka će u tom slučaju biti odobreno za još maksimalno 6 mjeseci. — Ministarstvo unutarnjih poslova (ministère de l'Intérieur), « Privremeni boravak u svrhu boravka digitalnih nomada ». »
mup.gov.hrVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
4.
Cape Verde: reference average monthly income required of the remote worker : €1,500
« Proof of Income — You'll be required to present your proof of income as an individual or as a family, regarding at least the last 6 months. Individual: minimum average bank balance of 1.500€ on the last 6 months; Family: minimum average bank balance of EUR 2.700 — Turismo de Cabo Verde, page « Remote working Program in Cabo Verde ». »
visit-caboverde.comVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
5.
Colombia: reference monthly means required of a digital nomad visa applicant : $1,400
« 4. En el caso de los solicitantes de Visa V para Nómadas Digitales, Emprendedores y Trabajadores remotos, […] el solicitante deberá demostrar mediante extractos bancarios que cuenta con ingresos mínimos equivalentes a tres (3) Salarios Mínimos Legales Mensuales Vigentes (smlmv). — Resolución 5477 de 2022 del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores. Salaire minimum 2026 : 1 750 905 COP → 3 smlmv = 5 252 715 COP par mois. »
cancilleria.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
6.
Colombia: maximum duration of the visa for digital nomads and remote workers : 2 years
« ARTÍCULO 46. Visa V Nómadas digitales — Alcance: Para prestar servicios de trabajo remoto o teletrabajo, desde Colombia, a través de medios digitales e internet, exclusivamente para empresas extranjeras […] Vigencia: Hasta por dos (2) años. — Resolución 5477 de 2022 (22 de julio) del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, art. 46. »
cancilleria.gov.coVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
7.
Estonia: personal income tax rate (2026) : 22%
« 2026 The rate of withheld income tax is 22%. »
emta.eeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
8.
Estonia: personal income tax rate applicable in 2024, since replaced : 20%
« 2024 — The rate of withheld income tax is 20%. — Estonian Tax and Customs Board (EMTA), « Tax rates ». Le taux est passé à 22 % au 1er janvier 2025. »
emta.eeHistorical value, applicable until December 31, 2024
9.
Estonia: annual general income tax allowance (2026) : €8,400
« The basic exemption is 700 euros per month, i.e. 8,400 euros per year, or 776 euros per month, i.e. 9,312 euros per year at pensionable age. »
emta.eeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
10.
Estonia: rate of social tax payable by the employer : 33%
« The rate of social tax is 33 per cent. »
emta.eeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
11.
Estonia: taxation of undistributed profits : 0%
« Corporate income tax is 22/78. From 1 January 2025 […] only the standard rate of 22/78 applies. — EMTA, « Tax rates ». L'impôt sur les sociétés estonien ne frappe que les bénéfices distribués (Income Tax Act § 50) : les bénéfices réinvestis ne sont pas imposés. »
emta.eeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source
12.
Estonia: taxation of distributed profits, 22/78 of the net amount paid out : 22%
« Corporate income tax is 22/78. From 1 January 2025, the tax calculation of regularly distributed dividends, i.e. the lower tax rate of 14/86, was abolished and only the standard rate of 22/78 applies. »
emta.eeVerified on Nov 2, 2026Verified source