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The latest news to circulate the digital nomad side of the internet is that Kyrgyzstan has launched a new digital nomad visa, allowing remote workers to stay in the country for up to a year in the first instance.
While we get excited about every new DNV announcement, they can sometimes be hard to verify, and Kyrgyzstan is one such case. You will often see with DNV announcements the same information, almost word-for-word, published on a variety of digital nomad websites, However, when you try to track back to the original, “official” information, it is almost impossible to find, as is the case with Kyrgyzstan.
In this article, we’ll take a look both at what we know about the visa, and how and why his kind of misinformation happens, and therefore why you need to be careful when researching new DNVs.
Spoiler Alert! In case you just want to know about the visa, while Kyrgyzstan has a DN visa, which isn’t really for digital nomads, it has very recently announced a more comprehensive DNV, which isn’t available yet, but should be available by the middle of 2025.
WeProject Visa Announcement
The first outlet to drop the news that Kyrgyzstan had launched the visa was WeProject, a media agency active in Central Asia including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.
They reported that the visa was actually launched in early 2024 and is targeted at IT specialists, freelancers, and entrepreneurs who want to spend an extended period in the country while conducting internationally oriented activities.
They suggest the visa is issued for up to 12 months in the first instance and can be extended. They record that applicants must:
- Confirm their remote work status using an either a letter from their employer or other documentation verifying their activity, such as freelance contracts.
- Provide proof of financial solvency to support themselves while in the country, though no specific figures are given.
The application fees are around US$250 but vary depending on the length of stay requested. Applications can be made online or through the consulate, and there is a roughly two-week turnaround time.
Their report was then repeated literally word-for-word on a variety of digital nomad-oriented websites, leading to the spread of the news.
Official Kyrgyzstan Website
Since WeProject told us that applications can be made online through the official Kyrgyzstan government website, that is where we went next. But the information provided there is very different. It confusingly states:
Digital nomad (type “DN”) is issued by the DCS to a foreign citizen or a stateless person engaged in activities in the field of information and communication technologies and engaged in the development of software products, at the request of the authorized state body for the implementation of state policy in the field of digitalization and electronic management or the owner of the status “Digital nomad” for up to 6 months.
Since this would not be the first official government website to offer relatively unhelpful information, we went ahead and started making an application. We found that we could select to apply for a digital nomad (DN) visa for up to six months, but that in order to proceed with the application, we needed to provide information about a “inviting organization” with a state registration number.
This suggests that the visa is not for digital nomads, but for digital professionals who have obtained work in Kyrgyzstan.
So, What’s Going On?
So, what’s going on? It looks like the digital nomad news might be conflating two separate visas, an existing visa that allows digital workers to apply for a visa to work for companies in the country, and a new visa for remote workers that was approved only weeks ago, but still isn’t live, making it difficult to find official information.
According to the Ministry of Economy and Commerce Kyrgyz Republic website, the president of the Kyrgyz Republic, Sadyr Japarov, signed into law a proposal on external labor migration on October 9, 2024. It says that the amendment is aimed at attracting highly qualified specialists from abroad and strengthening the country’s position as a global IT enter.
The amendment establishes the status of “digital nomad” for foreign citizens working in high-tech areas such as information and communications technology, software development, creative industries, and other related areas. The benefits listed for holders include:
- Exemption from mandatory registration of a please to stay
- The possibility of obtaining a personal identification number (PIN) for access to services like opening a bank account
- Exemption for the need to obtain permits to carry out work
- The right to engage in entrepreneurial activity as an individual entrepreneur or legal entity
The announcement also specifically states that they are hoping to attract talent and innovative projects to the country, as well as increase tax revenues, create jobs, and develop tourism.
It seems that while this amendment was approved back in 2024, it was only signed into law on 30 April 2025, according to Kyrgyz media outlet Akchabar. It suggests that what came before was a pilot project, including the limited release of digital nomad visas for citizen of neighboring Russian speaking countries in late 2022 which is no longer available. This new bill creates a permanent mechanism for granting digital nomad status. It says that the initiative aims to simplify and legalize the activities of foreign specialist working remotely. It adds the information that:
- The Ministry of Labor and Social Protection will monitor the states and evaluate the activity of nomads
- The tax service will re-register all foreign individual entrepreneurs who received this status previously, which also suggests that anyone with this status is liable to pay tax locally
So, what all this suggests is that digital nomad visa has been approved by the Kyrgyz Republic, but that it isn’t available yet and that the specific terms and conditions are unclear. We do know that it is different from the DN visa currently open for application officially on the Kyrgyzstan Government website, which requires sponsorship from a local organization.
The moral of the story? Be careful when you spot the latest digital nomad visa headlines.
Kazakhstan Neo Nomad Visa
So, while we can stay nothing with certainty about the Kyrgyzstan digital nomad visa, it will probably look something like the neighboring Kazakhstan digital nomad visa, which was announced at the end of 2024. It is granted for one year in the first instance, and is granted to remote workers with a minimum monthly income of US$3,000.
Why Visit Kyrgyzstan?
Despite all this confusion, why should Kyrgyzstan still be high on your radar as a digital nomad?
- It has a fascinating nomadic culture that embodies the intersection between Russia and Asia
- It has a stunning landscape ideal for hiking enthusiasts
- Horse lovers will enjoy the central role that horses plan in most aspects of life
- There are many fascinating ancient Silk Road heritage sites to explore
- It has a highly accessible cost of living about half of that of the United States
- There has been significant investment in digital production and technology parks making it a melting pot for innovation
Hopefully more information about the real Kyrgyzstan digital nomad visa will become clear in the coming months. In the meantime, read our complete guide to being a digital nomad in Kyrgyzstan.
