Hungary Digital Nomad Visa: Requirements, Income & How to Apply (2026)

You qualify if you are a non-EU/EEA citizen who works remotely for an employer registered outside Hungary, or who owns a share in a foreign company and runs it remotely, with your income coming from that foreign activity. Freelancers with foreign clients fit the same pattern. The hard exclusion is any local economic activity: you cannot work for a Hungarian employer, cannot hold a stake in a Hungarian company, and cannot earn Hungarian-source income while you hold the card.

There is no degree requirement written into the White Card. Citizens of Hungary and other EU/EEA states have no use for it, since they already hold residence or free-movement rights.

The threshold is €3,000 net per month, and it is a flat figure fixed in the rules rather than a percentage of any Hungarian wage. You have to show you earned at least that much in each of the six months before you enter Hungary, and you must keep meeting it for the whole time you hold the card. Because the number is stated in euros rather than forints, a weak home currency does not change what you owe.

Read the word "net" carefully: applicants who quote gross pay sometimes fall short once tax comes off. There is no family uplift for the simple reason that the White Card does not admit dependants at all.

You can apply two ways: at a Hungarian consulate in your home country, or online through the Enter Hungary portal if you are eligible to file from within the country. The consular route carries a visa fee of roughly €110 plus a €64 administrative charge, while the online residence-permit fee is lower, around 24,000 forints. The National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing decides the case and is meant to rule within about 30 days of a complete submission.

The official checklist does not require an apostilled criminal-record certificate, which keeps the file lighter than a Spanish or Portuguese application, though the authority can still run its own background checks before it decides.

Hungary applies a flat 15% personal income tax and treats you as a tax resident once you spend 183 days or more in the country in a year. Stay under that line and you are generally not a Hungarian tax resident, so your foreign income stays outside the Hungarian net. Cross it and worldwide income comes into scope, possibly with social contributions on top. Since the card can run two years, long-stay holders should take advice before they drift past the 183-day mark.

The White Card's weak spot is family. Where Spain, Portugal and Estonia let you bring a spouse and children, Hungary explicitly refuses family reunification to White Card holders. On money it is mid-range for the region, higher than Croatia's threshold and below Estonia's €4,500, and its two-year ceiling is far shorter than Spain's five-year, residency-track permit. If you are single, want a cheap EU base and do not need a settlement path, it competes well. If you have a family or want permanent residence, Spain or Portugal are the better bets.

The two things applicants underestimate are the six-month income history and the net-versus-gross trap. The €3,000 has to appear in each of the six months before entry, so a recent raise or a fresh contract will not paper over a thin earlier month, and people quoting gross pay sometimes miss the line after tax. The other common surprise is the no-family rule: applicants plan to bring a partner and only later learn the card blocks dependants, the single exception being a child born in Hungary while the card is valid. Sort your accommodation proof and health insurance early, because a missed address registration is a frequent reason files stall after arrival.