- Visa-free stay
- Up to 90 days within any 180-day period, counted from the date of first entry
- Digital nomad visa
- Yes
Digital Nomad Visa, established under Law 144/2025
Overall7/10Easier visas than about 75% of cities
Good to know
Good to Know
- Moldova is a separate visa jurisdiction from the EU/Schengen area — a Schengen visa alone will not get you into Moldova, and days spent in Moldova don't count against your Schengen 90/180 allowance (useful if you're bouncing between the two).
- The 90-day visa-free clock resets only after 180 days have passed since your first entry — a quick day trip out and back does not restart it.
- If you're planning to stay longer than 90 days, start the residence-permit or digital nomad visa paperwork at the Bureau for Migration and Asylum well before your 90 days run out, since visa-free time cannot simply be extended at the border.
- Passport validity requirements are cited inconsistently across sources (some say 3 months beyond your stay, others say 6 months) — to be safe, travel with at least 6 months of validity remaining.
- The digital nomad visa is legally a temporary residence permit, not a separate 'visa stamp' — it lets you live in Moldova long-term but you cannot take any Moldovan-sourced job or income while holding it.
- You must register in person with the Bureau of Migration and Asylum in Chișinău within 30 days of arrival, including biometrics — missing this deadline can jeopardize your permit.
- The income threshold is recalculated every year against the forecast average Moldovan salary, so the exact MDL figure will change annually — check the current-year number before applying rather than relying on older guides.
- If you stay past 183 days in a calendar year (or your 'center of vital interests' shifts to Moldova sooner), you can become a Moldovan tax resident on worldwide income — track your days carefully if you want to stay a non-resident.
- Foreign documents generally need certified translation into Romanian (English and Russian contracts are often accepted as-is for tax residency certificate purposes, but confirm current requirements case by case).
- The cheaper 7% IT Park tax rate is a completely separate regime that requires setting up a local Moldovan company — it is off-limits to digital nomad visa holders, so don't assume you'll get that lower rate.
Visa Free Entry
- Process
- No advance application, registration, or fee is required for visa-exempt nationals arriving for tourism or business. Entry is verified against the official exempt-nationality list at the border. Citizens of countries not on the list must obtain an eVisa in advance or apply at a Moldovan embassy/consulate.
- Summary
- Moldova is not an EU or Schengen member and operates its own independent visa policy — a Schengen visa does not grant entry to Moldova, and time spent in Moldova does not count toward the Schengen 90/180 limit. For most nomads from eligible countries, entry is visa-free for short stays.
- Duration
- Up to 90 days within any 180-day period, counted from the date of first entry.
- Who Qualifies
- Citizens of all EU member states, plus the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Iceland, Japan, Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Norway, San Marino, Israel, Switzerland, Georgia, the Holy See, and CIS member states (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan).
- Extending Stay
- The 90-day visa-free period cannot be extended or reset by a short border hop. Anyone needing to stay longer must apply for a residence permit (e.g. via Moldova's digital nomad visa, work, study, or family-reunion routes) at the Bureau for Migration and Asylum in Chișinău before the 90 days expire.
- Conditions At Border
- Border officers can still ask for a valid passport, proof of accommodation, an onward/return travel document, and evidence of sufficient funds, even for visa-exempt travelers. The visa-free regime is for tourism/business only and does not authorize employment.
- Total Countries Covered
- Roughly 100 countries and territories are on Moldova's visa-exempt list (sources vary between 90 and 102 depending on date of publication).
Digital Nomad Visa And Tax
- Status
- Operational since September 20, 2025; administered by the Bureau of Migration and Asylum (BMA) within the Ministry of Internal Affairs
- Visa Name
- Digital Nomad Visa (temporary residence permit for remote workers), established under Law 144/2025
- Renewal Path
- Initial residence permit is issued for 1 year and can be renewed once for an additional year, for a maximum of 2 years under the DNV route, provided the applicant still meets the income and documentation requirements.
- Restrictions
- DNV holders may not take local Moldovan employment or earn Moldovan-sourced income. The visa is a temporary residence permit tied to remote work, not a standalone tourist/entry visa.
- Visa Ease Tier
- moderate
- Application Fee
- MDL 1,730
Government fee schedule is denominated in EUR (roughly EUR 80–100); MDL/USD figures here are converted at current exchange rates and are approximate.
- Processing Time
- Typically 30–45 calendar days from submission of a complete application
- Application Paths
- Submit via Moldova's online state portal (where available for your nationality), the BMA in Chișinău, or a Moldovan embassy/consulate abroad.
- Income Requirement
- MDL 52,200
Set by law at 18 forecast average Moldovan salaries per year (effectively 3x the average monthly salary), recalculated annually; must be evidenced across the 6 months prior to filing.
- Eligible Applicants
- Foreign nationals earning income from outside Moldova: employees of foreign-registered companies, freelancers/independent contractors with foreign clients, and shareholders or partners in foreign companies. Any Moldovan-sourced employment or income disqualifies an applicant.
- Visa Ease Tier Rationale
- Moldova now has a dedicated, workable digital-nomad residence route with a simple 12% flat tax and no local-company requirement, but the roughly €2,700–2,800/month income bar (about 3x the national average salary), 6-month bank-history evidencing, document legalization/translation burden, and the program's very short operating history (since September 2025) keep it from being classified as easy.
- Post Arrival Registration
- DNV holders must complete mandatory in-person registration (including biometrics) with the BMA in Chișinău within 30 days of arrival.
- Baseline Visa Free Entry Context
- Separately from the DNV, citizens of the EU, US, UK, Canada and many other countries can enter Moldova visa-free for up to 90 days for tourism, and this stay does not count toward Schengen 90/180-day limits since Moldova is not in the Schengen area; however, this visa-free stay does not authorize remote or local work, which is the legal gap the DNV is designed to close.
Tax Regime
- Flat Income Tax Rate
- 12% flat personal income tax on foreign-sourced income (Fiscal Code, Art. 15)
- Residency Consequence
- Becoming a tax resident makes worldwide income potentially subject to Moldovan tax and reporting, subject to relief under Moldova's double-taxation treaties; non-residents are only taxed on Moldova-sourced income.
- Tax Residency Trigger
- An individual becomes a Moldovan tax resident by being physically present in Moldova for more than 183 days in a calendar year, counting all days including arrival day; a secondary 'centre of vital interests' test (permanent home, family, main economic activity) can also trigger residency even with a shorter stay.
- Double Taxation Relief
- Foreign tax credit mechanisms are available under Moldova's double taxation treaty network to avoid taxing the same income twice, but a formal Moldovan tax residency certificate from the State Tax Service (SFS) is typically needed to claim treaty benefits abroad.
- Social And Health Contributions
- DNV holders are exempt from mandatory social security contributions and the state health insurance premium on foreign-sourced income (a separate private/international health insurance policy is required for the visa itself).
- IT Park Regime Note
- The separate 7% Moldova IT Park preferential tax rate is not available to DNV holders, since it requires registering a local Moldovan company, which DNV terms prohibit.
Documents Required
- Valid passport (issued within the last 10 years, valid well beyond intended stay)
- Completed application form
- Proof of stable foreign-sourced income meeting the threshold (contracts, invoices, or 6 months of bank statements)
- Proof of remote work relationship (employment contract, freelance client agreements, or company ownership documents)
- Valid health insurance covering the full stay, including hospitalization and repatriation
- Proof of accommodation in Moldova
- Clean criminal record certificate from home country
- Passport-style photos
- Certified translations/legalization of foreign documents into Romanian where required
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
Sources cited for this category
These are the sources cited in this visas research for this city. Individual figures may not each trace to one of them.
More About Chișinău
Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.