Costa Rica, Greece and 42 other countries with a digital nomad visa—the U.S. isn’t one of them

The U.S. job market has cooled off significantly since the “great resignation” brought on by the pandemic, but is in a relatively good place, according to recent reports. Still, it is harder for workers to find new jobs, which could be especially tough on recent college graduates.

According to a report from the National Association of Colleges and Employers, employers plan to hire about 5.8% fewer new college graduates from this year’s class than they hired from the class of 2023.

It’s why Vicki Salemi, a career expert at Monster, told CNBC, she suggests taking advantage of the flexibility currently being offered by companies and casting a wider net in your job search.

“In terms of the quality and quantity, they can pursue jobs beyond the constraints of a particular zip code,” Salemi said.

Whether you’re a recent college graduate entering the workforce or just looking for a change of scenery If you can land a job that let’s you work from just about anywhere, a digital nomad visa in a country like Costa Rica or Greece might be just what you’re looking for.

A digital nomad visa is a short-term permit that allows someone to stay in a country for an extended period of time and work remotely. The length of time a nomad can stay varies from place to place but most countries allow for six months to a year.

The biggest catch with a digital nomad visa is that you typically have to be either self-employed or working for an entity outside of the country in which you plan to stay.

And if you are an American living and working in another country and you make over the minimum amount required — which depends on your filing status — you must file a U.S. tax return, according to H&R Block.

The United States does not have a digital nomad visa, but does offer other visa options that might allow for someone to work in the country as a freelancer.

As of May 2024, the following countries are offering digital nomad visas or similar schemes geared toward bringing in remote workers.

• Length of stay available: up to 12 months
• Cost: $2,000 (per individual), families of up to four pay $3,000 with an extra $250 for each additional family member
• Minimum income required: None indicated
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to two years
• Cost: $1,500 per individual, $2,000 for couples and $3,000 for families of three or more
• Minimum income required: $50,000 for each year of the program
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to one year to either work or study remotely
• Cost: $25 application fee, $1,000 for individuals and families pay the same plus $500 for each dependent
• Minimum income required: None indicated
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to one year
• Cost: $2,000 for individual and $3,000 for families
• Minimum income required: $50,000 during the 12-month stay
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to six months
• Cost: $500 per adult and $200 per child
• Minimum income required: $75,000 per individual or $100,000 if the person is applying with dependents
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to 12 months
• Cost: $275 application fee per person
• Minimum income required: No minimum indicated but it is noted you must “have substantial means and/or have a continuous source of annual income.”
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: up to one year
• Cost: $290
• Minimum income required: $1,500/month or funds in the minimum amount of $18,000.
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage for treatment in Brazil.

• Length of stay available: up to six months
• Cost: Not found
• Minimum income required: None indicated
• Application

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to renew for an additional year
• Cost: $100 application fee
• Minimum income required: $3,000/month but up to $4,000 if applying with dependents
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: up to two years
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: at least 3 million Colombian pesos a month, or approximately $680 a month.
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: up to six months, with a maximum stay of one year
• Cost: around $294 with no family bundle fee
• Minimum income required: not found
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage and a return ticket equal to your stay once the visa has been approved

• Length of stay available: up to 18 months
• Cost: $100 application fee, $800 single or $1,200 family visa fee
• Minimum income required: $50,000/annually
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to two years
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: at least three unified basic salaries per month for the three months prior to the visa application
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to two years with the option to renew for two more years
• Cost: $2,825 with renewal fee of $450
• Minimum income required: $1,460/monthly
• Application

• Length of stay available: 12 months with the option to renew for another 12 months
• Cost: $1,500 per person, $2,000 for a family of four, $200 for each additional dependent
• Minimum income required: $37,000/annually
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to four years
• Cost: starts at $271
• Minimum income required: over $4,405 a month during the past six months or an average monthly bank balance of $75,082 over the previous 12 months
• Application

• Length of stay available: one year
• Cost: $500 for individual, $750 for family bundle fee with up to three dependents. Additional applications are $250 each.
• Minimum income required: $70,000/annually
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: nine months with a max of 18 months
• Cost: $300
• Minimum income required: $3,000/monthly or $4,000/monthly per family
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: up to one year
• Cost: $70
• Minimum income required: none found
• Application

• Length of stay available: six months with the option for a six-month extension
• Cost: around $10
• Minimum income required: none found
• Application

• Length of stay available: 12 months
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: not found
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to one year with the option to reapply after six months
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: about $3,091/month or $37,091 for the year already in a bank account
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: up to one year with the option to renew for two more.
• Cost: $150.78= $75.39 issuance and renewal fee and $75.39 registration to the Aliens’ Registry
• Minimum income required: $3,769/monthly
• Application

• Length of stay available: up to one year
• Cost: none found
• Minimum income required: 1.5 times the average gross annual salary announced by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs
• Application: reach out to digitalnomad@mpo.cz

• Length of stay available: up to one year
• Cost: The state fee for a D visa (long stay) is $108 and for a C visa (short stay) is $86
• Minimum income required: $4,846/month
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage, pass a background check, application must be submitted in person at an Estonian embassy or consulate

• Length of stay available: up to one year
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: not specified
• Application

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to extend for a maximum of three years
• Cost: $81 plus an administrative fee of $162 for each family member applying with you.
• Minimum income required: $3,769. For each spouse or partner, the minimum financial requirement will go up to $4,523. Additionally, for each child the requirement will increase by $565. 
• Application: Submitted at your local Greek consular authority. You can submit your request via email or registered letter.

• Length of stay available: up to one year with the option to extend for another year
• Cost: starts at $118
• Minimum income required: $3,230/month with that amount being the minimum for six months before the application
• Application: Make an appointment with your local Hungarian embassy or consulate
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: up to 180 days
• Cost: $87
• Minimum income required: $7,151/month or $9,296 if you apply with a spouse or cohabiting partner
• Application: can only be submitted in paper form at your local Iceland embassy or consulate

• Length of stay available: up to one year with the option to renew
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: three times the minimum level required for exemption from participating in healthcare costs. That amounts to just under €28,000 annually or $30,051 USD.
• Application: Book an in-person appointment at your local Italian embassy or consulate

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to renew for another year
• Cost: $65-$130
• Minimum income required: not found
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage, documents confirming the expected place of residence in Latvia

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to renew
• Cost: $323 application fee per person, $30 fee for issuance of residency card
• Minimum income required: $45,233/annually
• Application

• Length of stay available: two years
• Cost: $646
• Minimum income required: $38,468/annually
• Application

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to renew
• Cost: $89 and a resident permit fee of $78
• Minimum income required: must be at least the Portuguese minimum wage
• Application: Apply at your Portuguese local embassy or consulate
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to renew for another year
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: $3,985/month
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to renew
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: 200% of the monthly Spanish minimum wage, which is about $2,700/month with the amount increasing if applying with family members
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: up to 12 months with the option to renew
• Cost: $211 for a single applicant, $105 per additional dependent if applying as a family
• Minimum income required: not found
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to extend
• Cost: $45 application fee
• Minimum income required: $65,000/annually
• Application

• Length of stay available: not found
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: $36,000/annually
• Application
• Additional requirements: visit a Turkish visa center or consulate to receive the actual visa stamp once approved

• Length of stay available: one year
• Cost: not found
• Minimum income required: $3,500/month
• Application

Within the UAE, Dubai has its own separate virtual working program similar to the UAE’s remote work visa. In order to apply, applicants need to have valid health insurance and earn a minimum salary of $5,000 per month.

• Length of stay available: one year with the option to renew
• Cost: free
• Minimum income required: not specified
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: six months with the option to renew
• Cost: $22 per person and $37 airport fee
• Minimum income required: $1615 average bank balance in the last six months or $2908 for a family.
• Application

• Length of stay available: one year
• Cost: $48 application fee
• Minimum income required: not specified
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

• Length of stay available: six months
• Cost: $124 visa payment
• Minimum income required: $2000 for a single applicant, $1,000 with an accompanying spouse, $500 per accompanying child per month
• Application
• Additional requirements: valid health insurance coverage

Conversions to USD were done on May 13, 2024, using OANDA conversion rates. All amounts are rounded to the nearest dollar.

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