Digital Nomad Visa Guide for Australians

Working holiday visas are a great option for young people who want to experience life in another country. But if you’re self-employed or work online, a digital nomad visa could be ideal!

With a digital nomad visa, you can live in another country for an extended period – usually a year or two. During that time, you can continue to work remotely in your existing job, or for your own online business with international clients.

In many cases, you won’t need to pay local income tax in the destination country – though this varies.

The UAE, Estonia, Barbados and the Cayman Islands were among the first countries to introduce special visas for remote workers in 2020.

Initially, these were a way to support struggling tourism industries during the COVID-19 pandemic. But as more people began working remotely and discovering the benefits of the digital nomad lifestyle, more countries started adapting to this new trend.

In just a few years, the concept has really taken off! In 2025, there are now over 50 countries offering digital nomad visas in some form. Australian citizens are eligible for many of these.

Some of the countries to most recently introduce new digital nomad visas include Thailand, Japan, South Korea, South Africa, Kenya and Kazakhstan.

Why digital nomad visas?

For governments, these visas are a way to attract visitors with a stable income who will stay for a longer time, spend money in the local economy and develop connections with locals. They’re great too for remote workers who now have more opportunities to live in more countries. It’s a win-win!

Unlike working holiday visas, digital nomad visas don’t have an age limit. You may also be able to bring your children and/or family with you.

However, digital nomad visas do not give you the right to work for an employer based in the destination country. They are not traditional work visas.

Typical digital nomad visa requirements

Remote worker and digital nomad visas are aimed more towards educated professionals with relatively high incomes, rather than backpackers. So, the requirements to get a digital nomad visa are a bit different to working holiday visa requirements.

The good news is that the countries offering digital nomad visas genuinely want to encourage people to move there. In fact, in many cases, these visas are actively promoted by the country’s tourism authority. Therefore, most – but sadly not all – countries make the application process as easy as possible.

To get a digital nomad visa, things you might need include:

A minimum level of savings and/or monthly income (this threshold is generally much higher than the minimum savings required to get a working holiday visa)
You must be self-employed or work remotely for a business based outside of the country (by comparison, you are not required to have a job to apply for most working holiday visas)
Health insurance to cover your stay
In some cases, proof of accommodation in the destination country

You’ll usually need to pay a visa fee as well, but not always. Mauritius and Georgia don’t charge anything to apply for a remote worker visa!

Do you need to pay local income tax with a digital nomad visa?

The tax rules for digital nomads vary by host country.

You would generally need to pay income tax in the country where you earned the money (i.e. where your employer or business is based). But digital nomad visa holders often don’t need to pay income tax in the host country where they’re living temporarily.

There are exceptions! For example, if you stayed for more than six months in a country such as Mauritius, Spain, Greece or Albania, you could become a tax resident in that country. This list of countries is not exhaustive. So, check the rules for each country and consult a tax professional if in doubt.

Even if you do have to pay income tax in the country where you’ll be living, your tax liability may be limited if Australia has a tax treaty preventing double taxation with that country.

Which countries offer digital nomad visas?

The countries shown on the interactive map below offer digital nomad visas to Australian citizens working remotely:

The list of eligible countries is constantly growing as more introduce digital nomad visas!

Summary of key visa information by country

The table below contains a summary of digital nomad visas available to Australian citizens, in alphabetical order by country.

Note: If you’re reading this article on a smartphone, the table below might be easier to read if you rotate your phone and view it in landscape.

You can click on any of the links above for more information about the digital nomad visas, remote worker visas or residence permits offered by each country. Where possible, we’ve provided links to official government websites.

You can also see our separate guide to digital nomad visas for Bali & Indonesia.

Other countries may offer digital nomad visas for other nationalities

There are a few other countries that also offer remote worker visas to people from specific countries, but not to Australians.

For example, Cabo Verde’s Remote Working Program is available only to people from Europe, North America, Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) or Economic Community of West African States (CEDEAO).

Türkiye now offers digital nomad visas to citizens of over 30 countries including European Union nations and Russia. Australians are not on the list of eligible nationalities.

Countries that no longer issue digital nomad visas

Anguilla and the Cayman Islands (both British Overseas Territories) previously offered digital nomad visas. However, nomad visa applications for these destinations do not currently appear to be open.

Countries planning to introduce digital nomad visas in the future

Other countries that have announced or are currently implementing digital nomad visa programs include Peru, Sri Lanka, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Egypt and The Philippines.

The Indian state of Goa is also considering this.