Tanzania

Tanzania has no digital nomad visa. Remote workers usually come on the ordinary visa, a short-stay visa, and anyone planning to live in the country longer needs a residence permit.

Short stays

The single-entry ordinary visa allows a stay of up to 90 days and costs $50 for most nationalities, according to the High Commission of Tanzania in Malawi. The same page lists higher rates for some passports: $100 for US and Irish citizens and $200 for Pakistani citizens.

A multiple-entry visa costs $100 and is valid from three months to one year, with no single stay longer than 90 days. Visas are applied for through the official online visa portal, and some nationalities can also get one on arrival. Nationals on the mission's visa-exempt list, which includes Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda, need no visa. A visa does not guarantee entry: the immigration officer at the border decides.

No official source says whether remote work for a foreign employer is allowed on an ordinary visa, so it is a gray area rather than a permitted activity.

Travel insurance at the border

Foreign visitors must buy the state inbound travel insurance, which costs $44 per visitor and is valid for up to 92 days. It has applied on the mainland since Oct. 1, 2026, according to a Ministry of Finance notice, and in Zanzibar since Oct. 1, 2024, according to the Embassy of Tanzania in Japan. Law firm summaries of the regulations add that EAC and SADC citizens are exempt and that visitors without cover can be refused entry; the official notices do not mention either point.

Longer stays

Stays beyond a visa need a residence permit applied for through the immigration e-services portal. Class A covers investors and the self-employed, Class B covers people with a Tanzanian employer and Class C covers retirees and other groups. None is designed for remote work for foreign clients, and this site has no page on them yet.

No current, sourced monthly budget for Tanzania was available for this update: Numbeo pages for Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar and Arusha could not be read in October 2026.

Housing drives the budget. Furnished, short-let apartments in the expat areas of Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar cost far more than local long-term rentals, and imported goods carry a premium over local food and transport.

Fixed costs worth adding before arrival: the visa, the $44 inbound insurance for each 92-day stay, international health cover and a backup power or data plan.

Dar es Salaam is the practical base; Arusha and Zanzibar trade services for scenery.

• Dar es Salaam: the commercial capital and largest city, with the most coworking spaces, embassies and flights. It suits anyone staying for months or handling paperwork.
• Arusha: a cooler highland town near Mount Meru and the northern safari parks. It suits nomads who want a slower pace and weekend trips into the parks.
• Zanzibar City and Stone Town: the island's main town and its historic core, a ferry or short flight from Dar es Salaam. They suit beach-focused stays where internet backups matter more.
• Mwanza: a city on Lake Victoria with lower visitor numbers. It suits nomads who prefer a local city to a tourist hub.

Fixed broadband in Tanzania had a median download speed of about 41 Mbps in August 2026 and mobile about 33 Mbps, according to the Speedtest Global Index. That is enough for video calls in the main cities; speeds and reliability drop in rural areas.

Coworking spaces are concentrated in Dar es Salaam, with smaller scenes in Arusha and Zanzibar. Power cuts happen, so a workspace with backup power and a local SIM with a data bundle are both useful.

Under section 86 of the Income Tax Act, an individual is tax resident in a year of income after 183 days or more there. A person is also resident with a permanent home in Tanzania and any presence in the year, or with presence in the year and each of the two before it averaging more than 122 days a year.

Residents are taxed on their worldwide income. No official source describes a special tax regime for remote workers.

Nomads planning long or repeated stays should count their days across years, because the 122-day average can apply well below 183 days in any one year, and check how their home country taxes the same income.

• Before travel: apply for the visa through the official portal and buy the inbound travel insurance; keep both on paper as well as on a phone.
• Visa fees: check the rate for the passport held, since some nationalities pay more than the standard $50.
• Phone and data: buy a local SIM after arrival and expect to register it with a passport.
• Money: mobile money is widely used alongside cash; card acceptance is patchy outside hotels and larger businesses.
• Health: the state inbound insurance is limited cover for visitors, so add international health cover with medical evacuation for longer stays.
• Safety: check the traveler's own government advice before booking, especially for border regions.