Bangladesh

Bangladesh has no digital nomad visa and no residence permit built for remote workers. Short stays run on a visa issued before travel or, for a narrower group, a visa on arrival. A longer base in the country means repeat trips on visitor visas rather than a single long-stay permit.

The visa on arrival is single entry and lasts up to 30 days. The Special Branch of Bangladesh Police, which runs immigration, issues it at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka to two main groups: citizens of listed countries (among them the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan and much of Europe) who travel from a country with no resident Bangladesh embassy or consulate, and foreign investors, exporters and seminar delegates with letters from bodies such as the Board of Investment (Special Branch).

Applicants pay the fee in cash in US dollars, euros or pounds sterling, carry at least $500 in cash or a credit card and hold a return ticket. The official page does not publish the fee amount, and it asks travelers to leave through the same port they entered. The UK government notes that officers issue the visa at their discretion and may grant 15 to 30 days (FCDO entry requirements).

Everyone else, and anyone who wants multiple entries or a longer stay, applies to a Bangladesh embassy or high commission before travel. Visa rules depend on nationality, so check with the nearest mission before booking.

Bangladesh uses the taka (BDT). Dhaka is the only city with a full Numbeo estimate; Chittagong has rent figures but too few entries for a monthly total.

Each total adds the average one-bedroom rent, outside the center and in it, to Numbeo's estimate of a single person's other monthly costs. The figures are averages of user reports (115 contributors for Dhaka and 22 for Chittagong in the past year), not official statistics.

At the Oct. 4, 2026 exchange rate, a remote worker renting a one-bedroom apartment in Dhaka should budget about US$470 to US$550 a month. Serviced apartments in the diplomatic and business districts, imported groceries and Western restaurants push that higher. Sylhet has no Numbeo estimate; rents there are generally below Dhaka levels.

Dhaka suits remote workers who want the most coworking spaces, the best-connected apartments and an expat and startup scene. Traffic is heavy, so living near the workspace matters. Gulshan and Banani are popular bases for foreigners.

Chittagong (Chattogram), the main port, costs less than Dhaka in rent and gives access to the coast and hills. It suits people who want a working city without the capital's crowds and can manage with fewer coworking options.

Sylhet, in the tea-growing northeast, is the quiet option: green, slower and cheaper, with little coworking. It suits independent workers who can work from home and want to save.

The UK government advises against most travel to some parts of Bangladesh, so check its regional advice before trips beyond the main cities.

Speedtest's Global Index for August 2026 puts the median fixed broadband download speed in Bangladesh at 70.97 Mbps and the median mobile speed at 38.67 Mbps (Speedtest). Connections in smaller towns and rural areas are generally less reliable than in Dhaka.

Dhaka has the widest choice of coworking spaces, clustered in Gulshan, Banani and Uttara, with day passes and monthly desks. Chittagong has a handful of spaces, and Sylhet has little beyond cafes and home offices. Power cuts and network slowdowns can interrupt work, so a local SIM with a data plan makes a sensible backup.

Under the Income Tax Act 2023, an individual becomes tax resident in Bangladesh after 183 days or more in an income year, which runs from July 1 to June 30. A second test also applies: 90 days or more in the income year after a total of 365 days or more over the four preceding years (Income Tax Act 2023, Section 2(45)). The days do not need to be continuous.

Bangladesh has no tax regime for foreign remote workers, and no visa route changes the residence test. Residence can bring income earned abroad into the Bangladesh tax net, so the day count matters for anyone who returns year after year on visitor visas.

Before a long stay, check three things with the National Board of Revenue or a licensed adviser: the day count across both tests, whether the home country has a tax treaty with Bangladesh and whether a tax residence certificate from the home country is needed to claim treaty relief.

• Arrival: Bangladesh has introduced online arrival and departure cards for foreign nationals. Get an entry stamp, carry a return or onward ticket and keep track of the visa's end date, since overstays bring fines (FCDO).
• Money: The visa on arrival fee is paid in cash in US dollars, euros or pounds sterling, so arrive with enough foreign currency (Special Branch).
• SIM cards: Buying a local SIM usually requires a passport and registration at an operator shop. A local data plan doubles as a backup when home broadband drops.
• Health: Check that local hospitals can provide the care needed before a long stay. Travel insurance should cover treatment and medical evacuation; the emergency number is 999 (FCDO health advice).
• Safety: Demonstrations and strikes (hartals) can turn violent with little warning, and the terrorism threat is high. Female travelers often face harassment, so avoid isolated areas, especially at night (FCDO safety advice).