Latvia

Latvia offers two main routes for a longer stay, and they suit different people. Remote employees and freelancers paid through OECD countries use the remote work visa, a long-stay visa that can't turn into residence. Founders and investors who want to settle look at the share capital investor permit, which can lead to permanent residence.

Short stays

Latvia is one of the 29 Schengen countries. Non-EU visitors, visa-exempt or holding a short-stay visa, can spend up to 90 days in any 180-day period in the Schengen area, and that allowance is shared across every member country. Days on a long-stay visa or residence permit don't count toward it.

The remote work visa

The visa is for employees of companies registered in OECD countries and self-employed people registered in one, with income of at least €4,537.50 a month. That threshold is 2.5 times Latvia's average gross wage for the previous year, so it rises with wages. The visa runs up to 1 year; one repeat visa brings the total to 2 years, after which the holder waits six months before another long-stay visa on the same ground.

Holders can't work for Latvian employers, and Russian citizens are excluded. Because it's a visa rather than a residence permit, the time doesn't count toward permanent residence. The remote work visa rules cover documents and fees.

Investor residence

Since the new Immigration Law took effect on Sept. 15, 2026, investor residence works only through share capital: €50,000 in a company with up to 50 employees or €100,000 in a larger one, plus €10,000 to the state budget. The property and bank routes closed to new applicants that day, and permits now run for up to 2 years.

After five years of continuous stay with residence permits, holders can apply for permanent residence with A2 Latvian and a history and culture course. The investor permit page explains the company tax conditions that keep a permit valid.

Which route fits

• Remote employee or freelancer with OECD-based income: the remote work visa, for up to 2 years in total.
• Founder or investor planning to settle: the share capital permit, the one investor route still open.
• Startup founder: the new law widened residence permits for startup founders, and OCMA's notice on the new law is the place to start.
• Short trip or scouting visit: the Schengen short-stay allowance.

Everyday spending, not rent, takes the bigger share of a budget in Riga. In Numbeo's crowd-sourced prices for Riga, updated September 2026, a one-bedroom apartment averaged about €517 a month in the center and €344 outside it, while a single person's other monthly costs came to about €871.

That puts a single remote worker's budget at roughly €1,215 to €1,390 a month ($1,390 to $1,580 at the European Central Bank's reference rate of $1.1411 on Sept. 23, 2026), depending on where the apartment is.

• Outside the center: about €1,215 a month with rent.
• In the center: about €1,390 a month with rent.

Numbeo's figures are averages of prices its contributors report, not quotes, so they're a guide rather than a budget.

What the totals leave out

• Health insurance: remote work visa applicants need a policy with at least €42,600 of cover, and premiums depend on age and insurer.
• Visa costs: the €90 state fee, plus any service provider fee.
• Coworking: a desk comes on top, and prices vary by space.
• Liepaja: Numbeo publishes no cost page for the city, so budgets there need local checks.

Riga is the natural base: the capital, home to Riga International Airport and the widest choice of rentals and coworking spaces. It suits nomads who want city life and easy flights. Numbeo's September 2026 prices put a central one-bedroom at about €517 a month.

Liepaja, on the Baltic coast in the west, suits nomads who want a smaller city by the sea and are happy to trade Riga's choice of coworking spaces for a quieter pace. Numbeo publishes no cost data for it, so rents need checking locally.

Connections are fast. Speedtest's Global Index for August 2026 put Latvia's median fixed broadband download at about 266 Mbps and the median mobile download at about 179 Mbps.

Those are national medians. Speeds in a given apartment depend on the building's connection, so it pays to ask the landlord which provider and plan serve the flat before signing.

A local SIM or eSIM makes a sensible backup line. LMT, one of the national operators, offers new numbers on eSIM, activated with a QR code.

Coworking

Coworking spaces cluster in Riga, the capital. Liepaja has fewer dedicated spaces, so home broadband, cafes and mobile data do more of the work there. Day passes and monthly desks are the usual formats, and prices vary by space.

Latvia has no special tax regime for remote workers or investors. The general test applies: under Section 14 of the Law on Taxes and Duties, a person who stays 183 days or more in any 12-month period that begins or ends in the tax year, or who declares a place of residence in Latvia, is tax resident.

Residents file an annual income tax return that covers income earned abroad on a separate annex, according to the State Revenue Service (VID). A visa or permit doesn't set tax status by itself; the day count and a declared residence do.

What nomads should check

• The 12-month window: the 183 days are counted in any 12-month period that starts or ends in the tax year, so a stay split across two calendar years can still pass the test.
• A declared address: declaring a place of residence in Latvia makes a person resident regardless of days.
• Both countries: anyone likely to become resident should get advice in Latvia and at home before passing the threshold.

Arrival

• Entry/Exit System: since Oct. 12, 2025, non-EU nationals on short stays register at the first Schengen border with fingerprints and a facial image under the EU's Entry/Exit System. Holders of a long-stay visa or residence permit aren't registered.
• ETIAS: Not yet operating and no official start date. The EU says it will announce the date several months before launch. The earlier official target, the last quarter of 2026, was removed from the official ETIAS website on July 14-17, 2026. Once it starts, visa-exempt visitors will pay €20 for an ETIAS authorization valid for 3 years.

Money

Latvia uses the euro, so anyone paid in euros avoids currency conversion.

Phone and data

LMT sells eSIMs as well as physical SIM cards, so a phone that supports eSIM can be set up without a card swap.

Health and emergencies

• Insurance: remote work visa holders must carry a policy valid in Latvia and the Schengen states with at least €42,600 of cover.
• Emergencies: 112 works across the EU, free of charge.

Language

Latvian is the state language. The new Immigration Law adds a duty for foreigners to learn it and take a course on Latvian history and culture, which OCMA says takes effect Dec. 31, 2027.