🇦🇱 Albania Digital nomad visa

All requirements in detail

Official name

Unique Permit (Leje Unike) for Digital Mobile Workers / "Punonjës Digjital i Lëvizshëm"

Visa type

Digital nomad visa

Status

Active

Income basis

Salary / employment contract

Legal basis

No single statutory income threshold is published for the digital-mobile-worker category. Law 79/2021 'On Aliens' (as amended, incl. Law 43/2025) and its implementing decrees (DCM 858/2021, refined by DCM 413/2023 and 414/2023) require proof of 'sufficient income / solvency' and a valid foreign employment or service contract, not a fixed figure. DCM 413/2023 replaced upfront income/contract/bank-statement proof with an initial self-declaration (originals submitted within 30 days of approval). Fragomen (immigration law firm) reproduces the legal requirement only as 'sufficient income to support their stay and that of any dependents' with no amount. The widely circulated '~USD 9,800/year (~USD 815/month)' figure is the threshold for the RETIREE/PENSIONER category, not for digital nomads; aggregator sites conflate the two. Other secondary figures range from ~ALL 40,000/month (~EUR 420) to ~EUR 1,600/month with no agreement, confirming the absence of an official published number. EUR conversion basis: 1 EUR ≈ 95 ALL (June 2026, Wise mid-market); 1 USD ≈ 0.93 EUR.

Proof of funds

Required

Family surcharges

Family members (spouse, minor/dependent children) can be included via family reunification under Law 79/2021; no separate official per-dependent income surcharge is published for the digital-nomad category. Applicants must show income 'to support their stay and that of any dependents' (Fragomen).

Working for local clients

Not allowed

Path to citizenship

Via permanent residence

Where to apply

Online, Embassy / consulate, In country

Processing time

4–12 weeks

Tax residency trigger

183 days

Insurance requirement, verbatim intent: Valid health insurance (international/private or an Albanian local policy) covering the applicant in Albania for the full intended stay is a mandatory application document under the unique-permit / digital-mobile-worker rules (confirmed as a required document by Fragomen). A minimum coverage of EUR 30,000 is cited by some secondary guides as a Schengen-style benchmark; this figure is NOT confirmed as a statutory minimum in any published decree read for this review, so treat the amount as indicative only — several sources state only that 'comprehensive medical coverage incl. emergency care and hospitalization' is required, with no euro minimum. Once a foreigner is legally resident, enrolment in the public health-insurance scheme (FSDKSH, ~3.4% contribution) is also possible.

Tax notes: Under Law 25/2022 (as amended), individuals working remotely from Albania using digital devices are NOT classified as Albanian tax residents for the first 12 months from obtaining the permit, regardless of physical presence; the relief covers foreign-source remote-work income only (Albanian-source income, local clients and local rentals are taxable from day one). Law 36/2023 reinforces that a non-resident company hiring/contracting a digital nomad does not create a permanent establishment in Albania. After 12 months, normal residency rules apply: PwC confirms a person is a tax resident if present in Albania >183 days in a calendar year (consecutive or intermittent), OR if they maintain a permanent home in Albania; residents are then liable on worldwide income. NOTE: Albania reformed personal income tax effective 1 January 2025. Current employment-income brackets (per PwC, annual basis): 13% on taxable income up to ALL 2,040,000/year and 23% above; a tax-free/relief band applies at lower incomes (commonly cited ~ALL 600,000/year exempt). Self-employed/business income up to ALL 14,000,000/year is taxed at 0% (incentive through 2029), 23% above. The older monthly-bracket figures (0% to ~ALL 30,000, 13% to ~ALL 200,000, 23% above) are pre-2025 and no longer current. Figures from PwC and tax-firm sources; verify with a tax adviser. Not legal/tax advice.

Beyond the visa

Albania — the rest of the move

The visa is step one. Here is the rest of what it takes to live here — each researched and sourced.