Europe freelance and digital nomad visas — the complete 2026 regional guide

Disclaimer — YMYL content. Visa rules and figures change annually. Information current as of January 2026, except for the Italy, Greece, Croatia, Latvia, Cyprus, Romania, Iceland and Norway sections, which were re-checked against the issuing authority in August 2026 and carry that authority's own figures. Where a check did NOT succeed we say so in the section itself rather than leaving it to be inferred — see Cyprus (family uplift withdrawn: not on gov.cy) and Greece (a reported procedural change we could not confirm). The per-route outcome of every check is also machine-readable in the verification field of the Visa Threshold Index. Always verify with the consulate or official immigration website of the specific country before applying. This is not legal or tax advice — consult a qualified immigration lawyer and tax adviser for any country you are seriously considering.

Europe has the densest network of freelance, self-employment, and digital nomad residence routes in the world. Almost every EU member state and most non-EU European countries now offer at least one credible pathway for non-EU freelancers and remote workers. The maze is real — different thresholds, different durations, different tax shapes, different paths to permanent residence — and most readers' first question is simply "which countries are even on the list?".

This guide is the answer. Every confirmed-live route in Europe is here, with the threshold expressed as a formula or a range rather than a bare figure, and with a clear note on what the route is not (no pilots, no announced-but-not-launched programmes, no investor visas misclassified as freelance routes). The goal is a clean comparative starting point — from which you go deeper on the two or three countries that fit your profile.

For country deep dives across the region, see the country-specific guides linked in each section below. For the wider category background, read Digital Nomad Visa vs Freelancer Visa.

TL;DR

• 29 countries with confirmed-live freelance, self-employment, or digital nomad routes — EU/EEA, UK, Switzerland, and the West Balkans.
• Income thresholds sit on a wide spectrum — lowest in Portugal (D7), the Balkans, and Georgia; highest in Latvia (€4,213/mo), Croatia (€3,622.50/mo) and Switzerland. Iceland's remote-worker route closed in May 2026.
• Tax regimes for new residents are the most active differentiator — Spain (Beckham Law), Portugal (IFICI), Italy (impatriate, recently narrowed), Switzerland (lump-sum), and the absence of comparable regimes elsewhere.

The four families of European routes

European countries' routes group cleanly into four families. Knowing which family you are looking at simplifies the comparison.

Digital nomad visas (DNVs) — purpose-built for remote workers earning from foreign employers or clients. Income thresholds typically expressed as a multiple of a national reference (SMI in Spain, the salário mínimo in Portugal, IPREM). Examples: Spain DNV, Portugal D8, Italy DNV, Greece DNV, Croatia DNV, Latvia DNV, Cyprus DNV, Romania DNV, Hungary White Card and the Malta Nomad Residence Permit. Iceland's Long-Term Remote Worker visa belonged to this family until its legal basis was repealed in May 2026.

Freelancer / liberal-profession permits — for foreign nationals practising a registered self-employed profession. Germany Freiberufler (§21 AufenthG), France Profession Libérale, Netherlands DAFT (US-only), Czech Živno, Slovak self-employment, Belgium Carte Professionnelle, Austria Niederlassungsbewilligung, Norway self-employed permit — each with its own qualification and viability test.

Passive-income / financially-independent residence — for retirees or financially independent residents. Portugal D7, Spain Non-Lucrativa, Italy Elective Residence, Greece FIP, France long-stay visitor.

Entrepreneur / business-establishment routes — for people establishing a national business with local revenue. Portugal D2, Spain Autónomo, UK Innovator Founder, Estonia business permits, German Selbstständige (Gewerbe). Different shape from freelance routes — built around an active local business plan.

This guide focuses on the first two families (DNVs and freelancer permits) with notes on the third and fourth where relevant.

EU/EEA member states with confirmed-live routes

Portugal — D7 and D8

• D7 (passive income): threshold 1× minimum wage + family uplifts. Best for pensioners and dividend-takers.
• D8 (digital nomad): threshold 4× the guaranteed minimum monthly wage, averaged over the last three months (Decreto Regulamentar n.º 4/2022, art. 31.º-A(1)(c); revised each January). Active remote-work income. It is not pegged to the IAS — a widely repeated error that understates the bar by roughly €1,500/month.
• Tax: IFICI (NHR 2.0) for qualifying high-value professions — 20% flat on qualifying Portuguese-source income for 10 years.
• PR / Citizenship: 5 years (reform proposals exist).
• See the dedicated Portugal country guide for the operational detail.

Spain — DNV and Autónomo

• DNV: threshold 200% of Spanish SMI. In-country UGE-CE processing in 30–60 days.
• Autónomo: business-viability test, RETA self-employment social-security registration.
• Tax: Beckham Law — 24% flat on Spanish-source income up to ~€600k for 6 years.
• PR: 5 years. Citizenship: 10 years (2 for Ibero-American).
• See the dedicated Spain country guide for the operational detail.

Italy — DNV, Self-Employment, and Elective Residence

• DNV (launched April 2024): for highly skilled remote workers, as defined by art. 27-quater of Legislative Decree 286/1998. Income threshold: 3× the minimum income that exempts a resident from healthcare cost-sharing — the Italian consular network currently publishes that minimum as €8,500, so no less than €25,500 per year, from the work you will do in Italy (passive income does not count). The euro figure moves with the healthcare-exemption minimum and consulates have published different equivalents, so confirm the number with the consulate handling your application. Six or more months of prior experience in the field is also required.
• Lavoro Autonomo (self-employment): annual quota-based, business plan and contracts required.
• Elective Residence: passive income for non-workers.
• Tax: Impatriate regime — narrowed 2024 (50% exemption on qualifying income up to a cap, for 5 years, with conditions).
• PR / Citizenship: 10 years for citizenship (jure sanguinis is an alternative for Italian-descended applicants).

Greece — DNV and Self-Employment

• DNV (Law 4825/2021): income threshold €3,500 per month after tax for the main applicant, rising to €4,200 if a spouse or partner joins and by €525 for each child. The visa runs for one year; you then apply to the Ministry of Migration and Asylum for a two-year digital-nomad residence permit. Applications go through the Greek consular authority, which must acknowledge receipt within 10 days. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs directs applicants to the official programme site, workfromgreece.gr.
• Reported change to HOW you apply — unconfirmed as at 11 August 2026. Immigration practitioners and the Greek press have reported that Law 5275/2026 abolishes in-country applications for this route: on that reading you would have to apply from outside Greece rather than switch status while you are already in the country. We have not been able to confirm it. We could not reach the ΦΕΚ (Government Gazette) text of the law, and neither the Ministry of Foreign Affairs page nor the official programme site workfromgreece.gr states the change. We record it because if it is right it changes the mechanics of your application completely — not because we have verified it. Confirm with the Greek consulate for your country before you travel or change status. The €3,500 monthly net threshold above is separately sourced and is not affected either way.
• Self-Employment route also exists with business-viability assessment.
• Tax: Non-Dom regime — 50% personal income tax exemption for qualifying new residents for 7 years.
• PR: 5 years. Citizenship: 7 years for most.

Croatia — DNV

• DNV introduced 2021. Threshold: 2.5× the average monthly net salary paid in Croatia the previous year, published by the Croatian Bureau of Statistics under the Regulation on means of subsistence (Official Gazette 14/21 and 3/26). The Ministry of the Interior (Ministarstvo unutarnjih poslova, MUP) currently states €3,622.50 per month, increased by 10% of the average net salary for each additional family member or life partner. The savings alternative is €43,470 for a 12-month stay or €65,205 for 18 months.
• Duration: MUP grants temporary stay for up to 18 months. If it is granted for less, you may apply to extend it by up to a further 6 months no later than 60 days before expiry. A new digital-nomad application may be submitted 6 months after the previous stay expires.
• Applications are submitted online and decided by the competent police administration or station; visa nationals then collect a long-stay (D) visa from a Croatian mission.
• Tax: Croatia DNV-holders are explicitly tax-exempt under specific conditions during the visa period — a meaningful feature.

Estonia — DNV and e-Residency

• DNV (Type C / Type D): foreign-source income, ~€4,500/month gross.
• e-Residency: digital identity, not a visa; lets you register and run an Estonian OÜ remotely.
• Tax: 0% corporate tax on retained earnings; 20% on distributions.
• DNV does not lead to PR; e-Residency does not grant residence rights.
• See the dedicated Estonia country guide for the operational detail.

Latvia — DNV

• Latvian DNV (launched 2022). Threshold: 2.5× the previous year's average monthly gross salary published by the Central Statistical Bureau — €4,213 per month on the figure the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (Pilsonības un migrācijas lietu pārvalde, PMLP) currently publishes.
• OECD restriction: PMLP requires that your employer, or your self-employment, is registered in an OECD member state, and that employees evidence at least six months of prior employment with that employer.
• 1-year permit, renewable for one further year. The visa carries no right to work in Latvia.
• Riga is the centre — affordable Baltic capital with growing nomad community.

Hungary — White Card

• White Card (launched 2022): residence permit for non-EU digital nomads, valid for a maximum of one year and extendable once for a further year.
• Threshold: €3,000 net per month, evidenced for at least the six months before entry and maintained throughout the stay. The figure is published by Hungary's National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing (Országos Idegenrendészeti Főigazgatóság, OIF) in its White Card factsheet; it was raised from the launch-era €2,000 when the new immigration act took effect on 1 January 2024.
• Proof of accommodation (ownership, lease or a booking) is a separate condition (OIF).
• Does not lead to PR — the OIF factsheet states that a White Card holder "may not be granted a national residence card". Family members cannot join on family reunification.

Malta — Nomad Residence Permit

• NRP (launched 2021): 1-year permit renewable for up to 4 years total.
• Threshold: €42,000 gross per year (≈ €3,500/month) from non-Maltese sources — the Residency Malta Agency raised it from €32,400 for applications from 1 April 2024.
• Recent reforms tightened the tax position — verify before assuming favourable treatment.

Cyprus — DNV

• Cyprus DNV (Council of Ministers decision of 15 October 2021, ceiling raised from 100 to 500 permits in March 2022). Threshold: €3,500 per month net, after the deduction of contributions and taxes, from non-Cypriot sources. That figure is stated by the Migration Department on gov.cy.
• Family income uplift — we do not publish one. Until August 2026 this guide stated an uplift of "+20% for a spouse or civil partner and +15% per child". We could not find that uplift on the Migration Department's own page for digital nomads and family members, or anywhere else on gov.cy, so we have removed it rather than keep repeating a figure we cannot source. It may well be correct — it is widely quoted — but a family budget is not something to build on an unsourced multiplier. Ask the Migration Department what applies to your dependants before you file.
• 1-year permit, renewable for a further 2 years (3 years in total).
• The scheme is administered by the Migration Department (Τμήμα Μετανάστευσης) of the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection — not, as older write-ups still say, the Ministry of Interior's Civil Registry and Migration Department.
• Non-dom regime separately available for tax purposes (specific conditions).

Romania — DNV

• Romanian DNV (launched 2022). Threshold: 3× the average gross monthly salary in Romania, evidenced for each of the six months before the application and for the whole period covered by the visa (General Inspectorate for Immigration, Inspectoratul General pentru Imigrări, IGI).
• Structurally it is the long-stay visa "for other purposes" under OUG 194/2002: the visa itself is granted for 90 days and only after an IGI opinion, and you regularise your stay in-country from there. Self-managing your own foreign company qualifies only if that company has been registered for at least three years at the date of application.
• Bucharest is the centre; Cluj-Napoca has the strongest tech ecosystem.

Czech Republic — Živno (Trade Licence) + Long-Stay Business Visa

• Long-stay visa for business + Živnostenský list + long-term residence permit (2 years, renewable).
• Income threshold pegged to multiple of subsistence minimum; modest by European standards.
• Tax: paušální daň (flat-rate) for freelancers below specific revenue thresholds.
• PR: 5 years. Citizenship: 10 years.
• See the dedicated Czech Živno country guide for the operational detail.

Slovakia — Self-Employment Residence

• Long-stay visa + trade licence + residence permit for business.
• Structure broadly parallel to Czech Republic; lower cost of living than Prague.
• Bratislava is the centre.

Slovenia — Self-Employment

• Self-employment residence permit, with business viability assessment.
• Ljubljana is the centre.
• 5-year path to PR.

Bulgaria — Long-Stay D Visa

• Long-stay D visa allowing non-EU freelancers to register a Bulgarian sole proprietorship or single-shareholder LLC (EOOD).
• Lower threshold than most EU countries; cost of living among the lowest in the EU.
• Tax: 10% personal income tax (flat); 10% corporate.
• 5-year path to PR; not a direct nomad visa but functionally similar.

Iceland — Long-Term Remote Worker (CLOSED)

• Status: closed. Iceland's long-term visa for remote work no longer exists. The Directorate of Immigration (Útlendingastofnun) announced on 13 May 2026 that, with the entry into force of the new Visa Act No. 37/2026, "the provision in the Foreign Nationals Act concerning long-term visas has been repealed". Visa issuance itself moved from the Directorate of Immigration to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs at the same time.
• While it ran: a long-term visa for non-EEA remote workers earning from non-Icelandic sources, with an income requirement of ISK 1,000,000 per month (ISK 1,300,000 with an accompanying spouse, partner or children), for a stay of up to 180 days.
• The replacement is not a remote-worker route. The new short-term residence permit that took its place is granted only to close family members making an extended visit, and to artists, scientists or athletes. It runs for a maximum of 180 days, cannot be renewed, may be granted only once in any 12-month period, carries no right to work except under narrow listed exemptions, and cannot lead to a permanent residence permit. The means-of-support requirement is ISK 259,951 per month for an individual and ISK 415,922 for a married couple (from 18 May 2026).
• If you are planning an Iceland base as a remote worker in 2026, treat it as a 90-day Schengen visit, not a residence route.

EU/EEA — Norway self-employed permit

• Norway is EEA but not EU. There is no Norwegian remote-work or digital-nomad permit — UDI (Utlendingsdirektoratet, the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration) states that holders of its work permits "are not allowed to work remotely unless it is part of the job you have been granted a residence permit to do".
• The realistic route is the self-employed person with a company in Norway permit: it requires skilled-worker qualifications and a business — normally your own sole proprietorship, not a limited company — that is likely to yield a profit of at least NOK 341,373 per year before tax. You may work only in that business. Granted one year at a time; permanent residence after three years.
• A parallel self-employed person with a company abroad permit exists for contractors on an assignment for a business in Norway. It has no published NOK floor (the test is that your remuneration is not poorer than is normal in Norway), runs two years at a time to a six-year maximum, and does not count toward permanent residence. It is not a route for working with foreign clients from Norway.
• Oslo and Bergen as centres; very high cost of living.

Non-EU European countries with active routes

Switzerland — Self-Employment Residence

• Self-employed residence (Selbstständigkeit), with cantonal-level approval. Quota-based and demanding — Switzerland is not a low-friction freelance destination.
• Tax: Lump-sum taxation (forfait fiscal) for qualifying wealthy new residents in some cantons — narrower than it was historically.
• Geneva, Zurich, Basel as primary cities. Very high cost of living.

Austria — Niederlassungsbewilligung "selbständig"

• Settlement permit for self-employed activity. Business viability assessment, capital requirement, sector relevance.
• Vienna is the centre. PR after 5 years.

UK — Innovator Founder Visa

• UK Innovator Founder (replaced the older Innovator and Start-up routes) for entrepreneurs establishing an innovative UK business.
• Endorsement by a recognised endorsing body required.
• Threshold: business plan with innovation, viability, scalability tests. Not a generalist freelance route — closer to entrepreneur visa.
• 3-year initial grant; PR pathway with conditions.

Norway, Iceland — covered above (EEA category)

North Macedonia — Long-Term Stay for Freelancers / Business

• Long-term residence permit for non-EU freelancers or self-employed entrepreneurs.
• Modest financial threshold; among the lowest costs of living in Europe.
• Skopje is the centre.

Albania — Unique 1-Year Tourist Residence for Remote Workers

• Albania allows up to 1 year of visa-free stay for many nationalities, including the US, UK, Canada, and others.
• Specific residence permits for foreign self-employed are also available.
• Tirana and the coastal towns (Sarandë, Vlorë) are the centres.

Montenegro — Residence Permit for Foreigners

• Standard residence permit available for non-EU foreigners establishing a Montenegrin business or with sufficient passive income.
• Lower cost of living than EU averages; coastal towns and Podgorica as centres.

Serbia — Temporary Residence for Self-Employment

• Temporary residence permit for non-EU nationals registering a Serbian business or self-employment.
• Belgrade is the centre — well-established remote-worker community.
• Tax advantages for some categories (specific rules apply).

Georgia — Remote Worker / Individual Entrepreneur Programmes

• Georgia is geographically Caucasus but commonly grouped with Europe in nomad discussions.
• Visa-free stay for 365 days for many nationalities — one of the most generous policies in the world.
• Specific remote-worker programmes (Remotely from Georgia, etc.) have been periodically active.
• Tbilisi is the centre; very low cost of living; favourable tax regimes (1% individual entrepreneur scheme below specific thresholds).

Non-EU EEA / Schengen plus EU member states with traditional freelancer routes

Germany — Freiberufler

• §21 AufenthG paragraph 5 — residence permit for liberal professions (Katalogberufe list).
• No fixed income threshold; business plan + contracts + viability.
• Tax: progressive income tax; exempt from Gewerbesteuer (trade tax) — structural advantage.
• PR: 3 years (with B1) or 5 years. Citizenship: 5 years (3 with strong integration) under 2024 reform; dual citizenship now allowed.
• See the dedicated Germany country guide for the operational detail.

France — Profession Libérale

• Long-stay visa + residence permit for the exercise of a regulated or unregulated liberal profession (avocat, architecte, consultant, designer, etc.).
• Business plan and contracts evidence required; URSSAF self-employment registration on arrival.
• Tax: progressive PIT; the impatriate regime offers limited foreign-source-income exemption for qualifying new residents.
• Paris is the centre but multiple regional cities are viable.

Netherlands — DAFT (US only) and General Self-Employment

• DAFT: US citizens only, ~€4,500 working capital, 2-year permits.
• General self-employed: points-based system, materially harder.
• 30% ruling: narrowed in 2024 (phased to 30/20/10 across 5 years); for employees, with structuring options for some BV-structured DAFT cases.
• See the dedicated Netherlands DAFT country guide for the operational detail.

Belgium — Carte Professionnelle

• Professional card for non-EU self-employed activity in Belgium.
• Regional competence (Flanders, Wallonia, Brussels) — each region administers somewhat differently.
• Business plan, financial means, sector relevance assessed.

Comparison matrix — quick reference

Numbers are illustrative and should be verified country-by-country before any application.

Cities — the top 20 European bases for remote workers

Honourable mentions: Bucharest, Brno, Bratislava, Ljubljana, Vilnius, Tirana, Podgorica, Skopje, Reykjavik, Oslo, Zurich, Brussels, Paris, Madeira, Málaga, Seville, Bologna, Florence, Milan, Naples, Thessaloniki.

Three scenarios

Scenario 1 — Theo, 27, French-Canadian, freelance front-end developer, CAD 5,500/month

Theo wants Europe and is choosing between Spain, Portugal, Estonia, and Germany. He is single, has no European citizenship inheritance, and wants a clear citizenship path within 5–7 years.

Decision tree: Germany's 2024 citizenship reform (5 years, dual citizenship allowed) overlaps with Portugal's 5-year horizon. Spain's 10-year horizon (unless he marries an Ibero-American national) is structurally longer. Estonia's DNV doesn't lead to PR.

He shortlists Berlin (Germany Freiberufler) and Lisbon (Portugal D8). Berlin's tax structure (no Gewerbesteuer for Freiberufler) and the citizenship reform tip him toward Germany; Lisbon's lifestyle pull is stronger but the rents are now close to Berlin's. He chooses Berlin Freiberufler with a clean software-development plan.

Scenario 2 — Beth, 52, US citizen, semi-retired, USD 3,200/month from US investments and consulting

Beth wants Mediterranean Europe, has USD 240,000 in retirement savings, and works occasionally as a non-profit consultant for US clients. She has no plan for European citizenship — she wants a comfortable 10-year second life.

Decision tree: Portugal D7 (1× minimum wage threshold — she clears it easily), Spain Non-Lucrativa (passive-income only, can't do the consulting), Greece FIP (passive-income only, can't do the consulting), Netherlands DAFT (US-only, but Amsterdam is colder and pricier than what she wants).

She chooses Portugal D7 — Porto or the Algarve as a base, the consulting work happens informally for US clients while she's a Portuguese tax resident (with appropriate treaty filings). The 5-year PR horizon is interesting; citizenship is optional.

Scenario 3 — Mei, 36, Chinese national, e-commerce business owner with Chinese revenue RMB 800,000/year (USD 110,000)

Mei wants European residence for travel and lifestyle. Her income is from a Chinese e-commerce business; she does not need to relocate her work but wants Europe as a base.

Decision tree: Hungary White Card (€3,000/month net threshold, which her business income clears, mid-cost Budapest base), Latvia DNV (similar), Romania DNV (similar), Spain DNV (higher threshold but better lifestyle), Bulgaria long-stay D (10% flat tax attraction, very low cost), Czech Živno (5-year PR path, established expat infrastructure).

She chooses Hungary White Card — Budapest as a 2-year base (one year plus the single permitted extension). It is a hard stop, not a foundation: the OIF factsheet rules out a national residence card for White Card holders, so year three has to be a different permit type in a different country. The Schengen travel rights mean Berlin, Lisbon, and Athens are all weekend trips. She plans the exit from day one — a Czech or Spanish residence basis if she wants a citizenship path.

What this means for COLO users

Three patterns repeat across the European routes:

Pattern 1 — Tax-jurisdiction split. Most freelancers on European routes end up running revenue across two or more jurisdictions: their home-country structure (US LLC, UK Ltd) plus a local European entity (Spanish autónomo, German Freiberufler, Estonian OÜ). Colo's client management holds the contracting entity per client, so the split is visible without exporting raw data.

Pattern 2 — Multi-currency invoicing. EUR for European clients, USD for US clients, GBP for UK clients. Colo's invoicing holds the currency per invoice and the per-currency totals on the finance dashboard.

Pattern 3 — Annual evidence-of-income exports. Every European route requires annual or two-yearly evidence of continued qualifying income at renewal. Colo's reports generate the exportable revenue / client / jurisdiction summaries that the consulate or AIMA / UGE-CE / LEA will want.

For the broader pattern of running a multi-country freelance business, see our digital nomad solutions. For pricing, see our pricing page.

FAQ

Q: Which European country has the lowest income threshold?

Portugal's D7 (1× Portuguese minimum wage) is among the lowest in Western Europe. Several Balkans routes (North Macedonia, Albania, Serbia, Georgia) have even more permissive financial tests.

Q: Which European country has the fastest processing?

Spain DNV in-country (30–60 days), Netherlands DAFT (2–4 weeks for US citizens), Estonia (15–30 days).

Q: Which European country has the shortest citizenship path?

Portugal at 5 years (reform risk). Germany at 5 years (3 with strong integration). Spain at 2 years for Ibero-American nationals only.

Q: Where is the most generous tax regime for new residents?

Spain Beckham Law (24% flat to ~€600k for 6 years), Italy impatriate (recently narrowed), Portugal IFICI (narrower than original NHR), Switzerland lump-sum for qualifying wealth.

Q: Which European nomad visa is best for US citizens?

Netherlands DAFT (US-only treaty), plus Portugal D8, Spain DNV, Estonia DNV all viable.

Q: Which European country has the lowest cost of living?

Bulgaria, Romania, Balkans (Albania, North Macedonia, Montenegro), Georgia. Portugal and Spain are no longer cheap.

Q: Are any of these visas Schengen-wide?

National residence permits give Schengen travel rights (90/180) but not settlement rights elsewhere.

Q: Which European country allows dual citizenship?

Portugal, Germany (since 2024), Italy, Ireland, France, UK, the Balkans (mostly). Spain generally doesn't except for Ibero-American/Iberian nationals.

Q: Which European country has the best digital-nomad infrastructure?

Estonia (digital government), Portugal (Lisbon ecosystem), Spain (six-city map), Germany (Berlin density), Netherlands (Amsterdam English-default).

Q: Are there European countries offering 0% tax for new residents?

No. Reduced-rate regimes (Beckham, IFICI, impatriate, lump-sum) exist; 0% does not.

Q: Can I move freely between European countries on one visa?

For Schengen short visits (90/180), yes. For settlement years in another country, no — separate residence permit required.

Q: Which European visa is best for retirees?

Portugal D7, Spain Non-Lucrativa, Greece FIP, Italy Elective Residence, France long-stay visitor.

Sources

• European Commission — Residence permits for non-EU nationals
• Portugal — AIMA
• Spain — Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration
• Germany — Federal Foreign Office
• Estonia — Police and Border Guard Board
• Hungary — National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing (OIF): White Card factsheet
• Italy — Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI), "Il visto per l'Italia"
• Greece — Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Digital Nomad Visa
• Croatia — Ministry of the Interior (MUP): temporary stay of digital nomads
• Latvia — Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (PMLP): obtaining a long-stay visa for remote work
• Cyprus — Migration Department, Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection: digital nomads and family members
• Romania — General Inspectorate for Immigration (IGI): long-stay visa for other purposes
• Iceland — Directorate of Immigration: visa services transferred to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (long-term visa repealed, 13 May 2026) and short-term residence permit requirements
• Norway — UDI: self-employed persons with a company in Norway

Start narrow, then go deep

Twenty-nine countries is a long list. The realistic approach is: shortlist three based on tax shape, climate, language, and citizenship horizon — then go deep on each with the country guides. The two or three that emerge as serious candidates warrant proper conversations with immigration lawyers and tax advisers in those jurisdictions.

For the country deep dives, see the dedicated guides linked in each country section above — Portugal D7/D8, Germany Freiberufler, Spain DNV/Autónomo, Estonia DNV/e-Residency, Netherlands DAFT, and Czech Živno. For the non-European routes, see the Asia, Caribbean, Latin America and Africa roundup.

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