EuropeSelect the passports you hold to see short-stay access and per-route eligibility for Hungary.
Short stays: tourism, transit, business trips, medical, pilgrimage.
Tourist Visa
Electronic travel authorisation for visa-exempt nationals (e.g. US, UK, Canada, Japan). Valid 3 years for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. We apply on your behalf end-to-end. Fees illustrative.
Tourist Visa
Short-stay visa for tourism: up to 90 days within any 180-day period. We prepare your forms and documents; you attend the consulate/VFS appointment to submit biometrics. Government fee EUR 90 (illustrative).
Transit Visa
Required by some nationalities to pass through the international transit area of a Schengen airport without entering. Whether you need one depends on your nationality. Government fee EUR 90 (illustrative).
Business Visitor Visa
Short-stay visa for business trips (meetings, conferences, negotiations): up to 90 days within any 180-day period. We prepare forms and documents; you submit at the consulate/VFS. Government fee EUR 90 (illustrative).
Not yet researched
Universities, language courses, internships and exchanges.
Student Visa
For stays over 90 days to study. Issued under national rules -- apply at the consulate of your destination country. We guide you; submission is in person. Fees and processing times vary by country.
Student Visa
For full-time students admitted to accredited Hungarian higher-education institutions, registered schools, or university preparatory courses; applicants must show the language skills needed for the course. Issued for 1–3 years (matched to the course) and extendable in-country via Enter Hungary; students may work up to 30 hours/week during term and full-time up to 90 days/year outside term. Graduates can switch to a 9-month job-search/business-start permit; student years do not count toward the national residence card.
Internship / Trainee Visa
For trainees with a traineeship contract at a government-approved host organisation who hold a higher-education degree obtained within the last 2 years or are currently enrolled in a degree programme. Issued for the traineeship duration, maximum 6 months, and cannot be extended; holders cannot switch to other residence permits in-country. The host must commit to covering potential return costs.
Not yet researched
Digital nomad, freelance, skilled employment and company transfers.
Digital Nomad Visa
Residence permit for third-country nationals who work remotely for a foreign employer or own a profitable foreign company managed from Hungary; no gainful activity in Hungary or shareholding in a Hungarian company is allowed. Requires verified net income of at least EUR 3,000 per month for the 6 months before entry, maintained during the stay. Valid up to 1 year, extendable once for 1 more year; it does not lead to the national residence card (permanent residence). Fee: EUR 110 at consulates, HUF 26,000 via Enter Hungary.
Self-Employment Visa
For third-country nationals pursuing independent gainful activity in Hungary (sole traders) or acting as chief executive of their own Hungarian business. Initial validity up to 1 year, extendable to a maximum of 3 years total, with a regular reporting obligation; family reunification is blocked for the first year and the route does not lead to the national residence card. Applicants must prove sufficient funds for subsistence, accommodation, healthcare and return travel.
Startup / Entrepreneur Visa
Post-study/post-research bridge permit: graduates of Hungarian institutions and researchers who completed their research may stay to seek employment matching their qualification level or to start a business. Valid 9 months, non-extendable and non-renewable; applications are made in-country via Enter Hungary at least 15 days before the current permit expires. Hungary has no separate startup visa — this is the only named business-start route besides guest self-employment.
Skilled Work Visa
For stays over 90 days to work. Requires employer sponsorship / a work permit before you can apply, so eligibility is conditional. Issued under national rules -- apply at the consulate of your destination country. Fees and processing times vary by country.
Skilled Work Visa
For highly qualified third-country workers with tertiary education (or equivalent experience) and an employment contract of at least 6 months. The 2026 gross monthly salary threshold is HUF 1,001,048 (reduced threshold HUF 800,838 for designated shortage/healthcare occupations). Issued for up to 4 years and renewable; Blue Card time counts toward the EU residence card (EU long-term residence) after 5 years. Fee HUF 39,000 in person / HUF 26,000 via Enter Hungary / EUR 110 at consulates.
Skilled Work Visa
General single-permit work route under the 2024 immigration law (Act XC of 2023) for third-country nationals with a Hungarian employment contract; tied to the sponsoring employer. Valid up to 2 years, extendable to a maximum of 3 years in total; holders cannot obtain the national residence card (permanent residence) and family reunification is restricted. Employer applications go through the Enter Hungary platform (HUF 26,000; EUR 110 at consulates).
Seasonal Work Visa
For guest workers in legally designated seasonal sectors: plant production, forestry, animal breeding and fishery. Issued for up to 6 months, extendable by a further 6 months within a 12-month period; employment is tied to the sponsoring employer and the permit lapses shortly after the job ends. Expedited 15-day processing is available for compliant repeat seasonal workers.
Intra-Company Transfer Visa
For managers and specialists (university degree or vocational training plus experience) and graduate trainees transferred from a third-country entity to a Hungarian host within the same corporate group, after at least 3 months of prior group employment. Managers/specialists: up to 3 years total; trainees: up to 1 year; long-term EU mobility permits are available for ICT holders from other member states. Does not lead to the national residence card.
Not yet researched
Golden visas, real estate, citizenship by investment, passive income.
Golden Visa (Residence by Investment)
Relaunched golden visa (July 2024): invest at least EUR 250,000 in investment fund units of a real-estate fund registered with the Hungarian National Bank, or donate at least EUR 1,000,000 to a Hungarian public higher-education institution. Applicants first obtain a guest investor visa (EUR 110) at a consulate, then apply for the residence permit within 30 days of entry; the permit is valid 10 years and extendable once for another 10, with unrestricted work rights and family reunification on matching 10-year terms. Holders are exempt from the national residence card route but enjoy near-permanent status directly.
Residence by Real Estate
The direct residential real-estate route of the 2024 golden-visa relaunch was scrapped in January 2025 before it ever opened (it had been postponed from its planned 1 January 2025 start). Only the EUR 250,000 fund and EUR 1,000,000 donation options operate.
Non-Lucrative / Passive Income Visa
Hungary's flexible 'other purpose' permit — previously used by financially independent persons, retirees and language students — was abolished by the new immigration law (Act XC of 2023) effective 1 January 2024. Hungary now has no passive-income/retirement or standalone language-study residence route.
Not yet researched
Retirement visas and working holiday schemes.
Working Holiday Visa
Hungary issues a temporary residence permit to working-holidaymakers under bilateral agreements with 10 partners: Australia (quota 500/yr), Argentina (200), Chile (200), Hong Kong (200), Japan (200), South Korea (100), Ecuador (100), Colombia (100), Taiwan (100) and New Zealand (100). Duration follows each agreement (typically 12 months); the permit cannot be extended and applications are refused once the annual quota is exhausted. Applicants must show funds, accommodation, insurance and a passport valid at least 1 year.
Not yet researched
Reunification, spouse routes and ancestry-based repatriation.
Family Reunification Visa
For spouses (including registered partners) and minor children of Hungarian citizens and of third-country nationals holding residence permits, national/EU residence cards or refugee status. Generally valid up to 3 years (renewable +3); 4 years for family of EU Blue Card/Corporate (Hungarian) Card holders and 10 years for family of guest investors. Under the 2024 law, guest workers, seasonal workers, trainees, students and White Card holders cannot sponsor family members; work requires the combined single-application procedure (70-day processing).
Ancestry / Repatriation
Since 2010, any non-Hungarian whose ancestor was a Hungarian citizen (no generational limit, covering pre-Trianon Hungary) or who plausibly has Hungarian origin can be naturalized without residing in Hungary, provided they demonstrate sufficient Hungarian language ability in an interview, have a clean criminal record and pose no security risk. Applications are filed with any Hungarian registrar or consulate and decided by the President of the Republic; spouses married to a Hungarian citizen for 10 years (or 5 with a common child) may also use the preferential route. Citizenship grants full EU rights; a passport is applied for separately afterwards.
Not yet researched
Talent, religious, humanitarian, media, official and permanent residence.
Talent / Highly Skilled Visa
Privileged work-residence permit introduced by the 2024 immigration law for third-country nationals in occupations requiring higher professional qualifications listed by ministerial decree, plus professional athletes, coaches, performers and film-industry workers. Valid up to 3 years and extendable by 3 years; unlike ordinary employment permits, Hungarian Card holders keep access to family reunification and the national residence card (permanent residence). Approval lapses if the holder does not enter Hungary within 3 months.
Long-Term Residence Permit
Hungary's national settlement status under the 2024 law: requires at least 3 years of continuous lawful residence (1 year for dependent ascendants; preferential rules for spouses of citizens), proof of subsistence and accommodation, and — since 1 January 2025 — passing the Hungarian cultural knowledge exam. Holders of employment, seasonal, student, trainee and White Card permits are excluded from this route. The card is valid 10 years and renewable for further 10-year periods.
Permanent Residence
EU long-term resident status after 5 years of lawful continuous residence in Hungary (with favourable cumulation rules for EU Blue Card holders), requiring stable resources, accommodation, health insurance and the Hungarian cultural knowledge exam certificate. Students, seasonal workers and temporary-protection beneficiaries are excluded. The card is valid up to 10 years and extendable via the Enter Hungary platform; status confers EU-wide long-term-resident mobility rights.
Not yet researched
