Nigeria

Nigeria has no digital nomad visa and no visa class for remote work. The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) groups visas into short stay, temporary residence and permanent residence classes (NIS), and none of them is built for someone working for a foreign employer.

• ECOWAS citizens: citizens of ECOWAS member states can stay visa-free for up to 90 days per visit and need an extension to stay longer (ECOWAS free movement protocol).
• Other visitors: the Tourism Visa (F5A) allows a single stay of 30 days. The visa is valid for 90 days from issue (NIS). How to get it: Online through the Nigeria Immigration Service e-Visa portal before travel; short visit e-Visa classes cannot be extended in Nigeria.
• Longer stays: temporary residence visas cover stays of up to two years, and long-term foreign residents hold a Combined Expatriate Residence Permit and Aliens Card (CERPAC). Each class has its own requirements on the NIS site.

Work on a visit: NIS lists the Tourism Visa as tourism only, with no employment. Remote workers should not assume a tourist stay covers their work, and should check with NIS or a Nigerian mission before planning to work from the country.

Tourism Visa documents: a passport valid for at least 6 months, a return ticket, a hotel booking or host address and 180 days of bank statements as evidence of funds (NIS).

Lagos is the most expensive city, mainly because of rent. Numbeo's crowd-sourced figures for September 2026 give these monthly totals for a single person, adding its estimate of living costs without rent to the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment outside or inside the city center:

• Lagos: about ₦1.25 million to ₦1.65 million (Numbeo)
• Abuja: about ₦830,000 to ₦1.4 million (Numbeo)

Rents in both cities vary widely by neighborhood, and Numbeo's ranges for them are broad, so these totals are rough guides. Imported goods, generators and fuel can add to the bill.

• Lagos: the commercial capital and center of the tech and startup scene, with the most coworking and nightlife and the highest rents.
• Abuja: the planned federal capital, calmer and more orderly than Lagos, with lower rents outside the center.
• Ibadan: a large university city near Lagos with a lower cost of living.
• Enugu: a smaller city in the southeast, known for a slower pace and a growing tech community.

Each city guide covers neighborhoods, coworking and day-to-day costs in more detail.

The Speedtest Global Index for August 2026 puts Nigeria's median fixed broadband speed at 36 Mbps and its median mobile speed at 43 Mbps, so mobile data is often the faster option (Speedtest).

Lagos has the largest choice of coworking spaces, with more in Abuja and a few in other large cities. Power cuts are common, so remote workers tend to pick spaces and homes with backup power and keep a mobile data plan as a second connection.

The Nigeria Tax Act 2025 took effect on Jan. 1, 2026. Under it, someone present in Nigeria for 183 days or more in any 12-month period is tax resident, counting annual leave and temporary absences. Domicile, a permanent home, a habitual abode or substantial economic and family ties can also make someone resident (NiDCOM guide to the 2026 tax reforms).

The Act also reset the personal income tax bands and leaves the lowest slice of income untaxed (NiDCOM). Nigeria's federal and state tax authorities publish the current rates.

What to check:

• A day count over every rolling 12 months, not only the calendar year
• Whether ties such as a home, family or a business in Nigeria could create residence on their own
• Whether the home country has a tax treaty with Nigeria

A tax adviser can confirm how the new rules apply to a specific case.

• Before flying: non-ECOWAS visitors apply online for a visa before travel and should keep a copy of the approval, the return ticket and the accommodation booking at hand (NIS).
• Safety: security conditions vary sharply between regions. Check the latest travel advice from a home government before booking, especially for travel outside the main cities.
• Money: the naira is the currency. Cards and bank transfers work in larger cities, but cash is still needed in many places.
• Mobile data: local SIM cards are cheap, and registration needs identification.
• Health: good private care is concentrated in the large cities, so travel or health insurance with medical evacuation cover is worth having.