Destinations and visas
Countries without a digital nomad visa: what to use instead
France, Germany, the UK, Ireland, Canada and Vietnam have no digital nomad visa. What each one offers instead, how long you can stay and where remote work fits.
Nomad Hub editorial team · Editorial update:
Many of the most searched countries for remote work have no visa designed for it. That doesn't mean you can't go: it means you travel on general visitor rules, which set how long you can stay and say more or less clearly whether remote work is allowed. Here is what each country's official sources say.
Does France have a digital nomad visa?
No. For short trips, France applies the Schengen rule: up to 90 days in any 180-day period, counting back 180 days from each day of your stay. To stay longer without a job in France, the usual status is "visitor", which allows more than three months but requires resources of at least €1,477.93 net a month and a handwritten statement that you will not work in France as an employee, trader, self-entrepreneur, craftsman or liberal professional. The rules do not specifically address remote work for an employer abroad: ask the consulate before you apply.
- Comisión Europea · Short-stay calculator (Schengen)
- Service-Public.fr · Carte de séjour temporaire « visiteur » (verificada el 01-06-2026)
Does Germany have a digital nomad visa?
No. Short stays follow the same Schengen rule of 90 days in any 180. To live in Germany while working for yourself, there are residence permits for freelancers in the liberal professions, which may require a licence to practise depending on the profession, and for self-employment, which requires secured financing and lasts up to three years at first. Both mean working from Germany as a freelancer or business, not just passing through.
- Comisión Europea · Short-stay calculator (Schengen)
- BAMF · Self-employment and freelancing (01-03-2024)
Does the UK have a digital nomad visa?
No. A Standard Visitor can usually stay up to six months. The Immigration Rules let a visitor employed overseas work remotely for that job from the UK, as long as it is not the main purpose of the visit. You can't do paid or unpaid work for a UK company or as a self-employed person, and you can't live in the UK through frequent or successive visits. A long stay that mainly consists of working remotely may be refused.
- GOV.UK · Visit the UK as a Standard Visitor
- GOV.UK · Immigration Rules, Appendix Visitor: Permitted Activities (act. 8-10-2026)
Does Ireland have a digital nomad visa?
No. Ireland lets you visit for less than 90 days, with a short-stay "C" visa if your nationality requires one. To work there for more than 90 days you need a contract of employment and a work permission, such as the critical skills or general employment permits, or a business route like the start-up entrepreneur programme. None of the listed routes covers working remotely for an employer abroad.
- Immigration Service Delivery · Coming to visit Ireland (act. 25-04-2023)
- Immigration Service Delivery · Coming to work for more than 90 days (act. 14-10-2025)
Does Canada have a digital nomad visa?
Not as a visa, but Canada says it most clearly of all. According to IRCC, digital nomads who work remotely for an employer outside Canada can live and work there for up to six months at a time with visitor status, without a work permit. If you take a Canadian employer or stay longer than six months, you need a work permit, and if your nationality requires a visa to visit Canada, you also need a temporary resident visa.
- IRCC · Attracting tech talent to Canada (página del 24-04-2024)
- IRCC Help Centre · Business visitors and work permits (modificada el 28-09-2026)
Does Vietnam have a digital nomad visa?
No. What changed in 2023 is the e-visa: since 15 August 2023 it can be valid for up to 90 days, with a single or multiple entries, under Law 23/2023/QH15. It is a short-stay visa, not a residence route, so check the conditions with Vietnam's Immigration Department before planning months of remote work.
- Công an Nhân dân (Ministerio de Seguridad Pública) · E-visa duration extends to 90 days (01-09-2023)
If you want to stay longer, choose a country with a route
When the plan is months or years, a country with a specific remote-work route gives you a clear status, a residence card and rules on taxes. In Europe, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Croatia, Italy, Malta and Hungary have one. In Asia, Japan offers six months, South Korea up to three years, Malaysia up to two and Thailand the five-year DTV. In the Americas, Panama and Uruguay have their own remote-work routes. The Digital Nomad Visa Index compares income, duration, family and taxes across every country we cover.
Whatever you choose, Visa, residence and stay explains why entering a country, living there and being tax resident are three different questions.
Take this next step
- Check whether your nationality needs a visa, an eTA or nothing for a short stay.
- Count your days: 90 in any 180 in Schengen, up to 6 months in the UK and Canada.
- Read whether the visitor rules mention remote work for an employer abroad.
- Never take work from a local company or client on a visitor stay.
- For longer stays, compare a country with a dedicated nomad route.