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Estonia Country Profile

Passport
For more details visit Estonia Passport Ranking
  • Passport Grade
    A
  • Passport Ranking
    34/198
  • Passport Score
    175/198
  • Visa-free Countries
    155
  • Visa-required Countries
    43
  • Access to the World's GDP
    75%
  • Access to the World's Surface Area
    58%
  • Access to the World's Population
    45%
  • Access to the Unesco Sites
    79%
Citizenship and Naturalization
Birthright citizenship (Jus Soli)
  • Birthright citizenship (Jus Soli)
    No
    No provisions
Naturalization - Standard Conditions
  • Minimum residency period
    8 years
    Must hold permanent residency for 5 years, which takes 3 years to obtain.
  • Physical presence requirement
    –
  • Language test
    Yes, Estonian
  • Need to renounce original citizenship?
    Yes
  • Can minor children naturalize?
    –
  • Can naturalized parents pass citizenship to a child born abroad?
    –
  • Can you lose naturalization due to prolonged absence/ naturalization elsewhere?
    –
Naturalization - Your Spouse is a Citizen
  • Living IN the country: Residency/marriage requirement
    No provisions
  • Living ABROAD: Marriage requirement
    No provisions
  • Language test
    No provisions
  • Need to renounce original citizenship?
    No provisions
Naturalization - Other Beneficial Provisions
  • Your child is a citizen
    No provisions
  • Citizens of specific countries
    No provisions
"–": The provision has not been analysed.
Visas and Residencies
Visas and Residencies
Taxation
For more details visit Cost of Living
  • Taxation Type
    Residence-based
A tax resident of a country with a RESIDENCE-BASED tax system pays taxes on their WORLDWIDE income. However, if you lose tax residency status there (e.g., by moving out), the country will generally stop taxing you.
Schiff Sovereign's Take on Estonia
Estonia is one of the three Baltic States. All three of these countries – Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia – have fared quite well since discarding most of their Soviet legacies.

Among the three, Estonia is the brightest star. Estonians are richer, more efficient, and more pro-business in their mindset than Latvians and Lithuanians. 

Culturally they also tend to gravitate more towards Finland. That also means that they’re anti-corruption, pro-healthy living, pro-business and pro-innovation.

That’s one reason why Estonians have this quirky obsession with being the most technologically advanced and efficient country on Earth.

Estonians will say, “I’m from Estonia. If you’ve never heard of it, we invented Skype.”

Estonia is also the first country to offer something revolutionary: an E-Residency program. 

As the name suggests, it is solely an electronic residency in Estonia, and has nothing to do with physical residency. This digital identity is available to anyone in the world interested in running a location-independent business online.

And Estonia is a sound place to structure a company, especially if you’re doing business in Europe. It’s also a reasonable place to bank.

If you decide to move there, chances are you will choose to live in Tallinn, Estonia’s capital and largest city. It is incredibly picturesque; a fairy tale location.

However, in a country of only 1.3 million people, even the largest city is not that large. Consequently, Tallinn’s population hovers around 400,000 people only. You better enjoy quiet cities if you plan to live there.

Conveniently, Estonia now also offers a Digital Nomad Visa, which will allow you to spend a year in the country, and perhaps use it as a base to explore the rest of Europe.

Just keep in mind that proximity to Finland doesn’t only bring the benefit of northern European efficiency, but also northern European ice, snow and frigid temperatures in winter. The harsh climate is definitely something to consider before moving there.
Schiff Sovereign's Rolodex
Service Providers available in Estonia
  • Tax advice (attorneys and/or accountants)
  • Corporate services (company formation, etc.)
Obtain access to our Rolodex by signing up for Sovereign Confidential Join Sovereign Confidential Today

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Estonia Overview
  • Region
    Europe
  • Capital City
    Tallinn
  • Largest City
    Tallinn
  • Currency
    Euro
  • Languages
    Estonian, Russian (widely spoken)
  • Population
    1.3 million (156th)
  • Life Expectancy
    77.9 years (80th)
  • GDP (Nominal)
    $39.1 billion (101st)
  • GDP/Capita
    $29,324 (42nd)
Useful Data
For more details visit Cost of Living
  • Cost of Living
    Inexpensive (3/7)
  • Climate
    Average (3/5)
  • Safety
    The Safest (1/7)
  • Pollution
    Very clean (1/5)
  • English Proficiency
    High (2/5)

Sovereign Global Explorer

Benefiting from over a decade of our team’s boots-on-the-ground experience, Global Explorer is where your international journey begins.
Explore Now
Found a mistake /
Have a suggestion ?
Please let us know if you spot any inaccuracies on this page or have a suggestion on how to make it even more useful.
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PREMIUM REPORTS
Estonia inside Schiff Sovereign resources
Resource TitleProductTypeDate
The Return of Conscription in Europe: Are New Citizens at Risk?Sovereign ConfidentialSMCBlack Paper18-Jul-2407/18/24
European Citizenships By Ancestry: Part IV (Northern Europe)Sovereign ConfidentialSMCBlack Paper05-Dec-2312/05/23
August 2023 SC Q&ASovereign ConfidentialSMCQ&A30-Aug-2308/30/23
Digital Nomad Visas Roundup: Part I (Europe and Asia)Sovereign ConfidentialSMCBlack Paper06-Mar-2303/06/23
The Blue Card: European Residency for ProfessionalsSovereign ConfidentialSMCMonthly Letter15-Feb-2202/15/22
10 Residency Options for Digital Entrepreneurs, Freelancers & Remote EmployeesSovereign ConfidentialSMCMonthly Letter15-Oct-2110/15/21
Here Are 15 Factors to Consider Before Your International MoveSovereign ConfidentialSMCMonthly Letter15-Jun-2106/15/21
These eight countries are offering 12-month visas or temporary residencies to digital workersSovereign ConfidentialSMCMonthly Letter15-Sep-2009/15/20
Best startup programs around the worldSovereign ConfidentialSMCBlack Paper05-Oct-1810/05/18
Sovereign Man Country Rankings: The Right Country for YOU, with Simon's insightsSovereign ConfidentialSMCBlack Paper06-Apr-1704/06/17
Open a foreign bank account in Estonia without getting on a planeSovereign ConfidentialSMCAlert08-Nov-1611/08/16
Why Estonian e-Residency might be a total NO-BRAINER for youSovereign ConfidentialSMCAlert04-Mar-1603/04/16
Meet FATCA’s even nastier cousin: CRSSovereign ConfidentialSMCAlert26-Feb-1602/26/16
Benefits of an offshore company and how to select the right jurisdiction for youSovereign ConfidentialSMCMonthly Letter19-Jan-1601/19/16
SMC Comprehensive Residency Update: 2015 EditionSovereign ConfidentialSMCAlert03-Mar-1503/03/15
Estonia: Zero corporate tax, EU residency & brilliant banking; Plus another good option in nearby LithuaniaSovereign ConfidentialSMCAlert20-Oct-1410/20/14

Articles featuring Estonia

Estonia
Trends & News

Estonia- 0% corporate tax and still kicking ass. Why can’t the US learn from this…?

July 31, 2014 Tallinn, Estonia In the absurdly best-selling book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen Covey wrote about abundance vs. scarcity. With the abundance mindset, people confidently view the world as full of resources and opportunities… that there’s more than enough to share… and that more success is coming soon. The […]
Estonia Digital Nomad Visa 2023
Second Residency

A look at Estonia’s pioneering Digital Nomad Visa in 2023

Looking to spend up to a year living and working remotely from Europe? If you’re a remote worker or online business owner, Estonia’s Digital Nomad Visa (DNV) program can help you achieve just that. Let’s take a look at its requirements below… Estonia’s Digital Nomad Visa: Your gateway to a year of European memories Up […]

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