Guest Self-Employment Residence Permit

1. Visa12 months
2. Renewup to 36 months

• Leads to residency
• Leads to citizenship

Country

Hungary

Visa name

Guest Self-Employment Residence Permit

Local name

Vendég-önfoglalkoztatás célú tartózkodási engedély

Program type

Freelancer visa

Status

Active

Initial duration

12 months

Max duration

36 months

Income requirement

$1,972/month ($23,661/year)

Application fee

$123

Tax status

Standard

Application method

online, embassy, in country

Processing time

Up to 21 days

Can apply in-country

Yes

Multiple entry

Yes

Schengen access

Yes

Can open bank account

No

Renewable

Yes

This is Hungary's residence permit for guest self-employment, not the White Card. It is for a third-country national who will do independent paid work in Hungary, for example as a registered self-employed person, or who will be the chief executive of a Hungarian business. Someone who only works remotely for a foreign employer, with no Hungarian activity, uses the White Card instead. Actual work in the company beyond the chief-executive role needs an employment permit or a Hungarian Card, and a holder of this permit cannot apply for those in Hungary. For a registered self-employed person, the immigration factsheet asks for a tax-authority certificate that annual income from self-employment exceeds 24 times the current minimum wage, plus a certificate of no tax or contribution debt. Government Decree 426/2025 (XII. 23.) sets the full-time monthly minimum wage at HUF 322,800 from 1 January 2026, so 24 times that wage is HUF 7,747,200 a year. The monthly figure stored here is that annual test divided by twelve (HUF 645,600). It is not a separate monthly rule. At the ECB reference rates of 8 October 2026, 366.25 forints and 1.1186 dollars per euro, HUF 7,747,200 is about $23,661 a year and the monthly equivalent is about $1,972. A chief executive does not use this number. The business must have employed at least five Hungarian or free-movement persons full time for six consecutive months, or the applicant's stay must be essential and the business plan must show income likely to support the business as well as the applicant. No fixed savings sum is published. The permit is issued for at most one year. It can be extended for the same purpose by up to two years, but the total from the first issue cannot exceed three years. The extension is only on Enter Hungary, no earlier than 90 days and no later than 30 days before expiry, and only if the holder spent at least 90 days in Hungary in any 180-day period and met the regular reporting obligation. To stay longer than three years, a new issue can be requested in Hungary at least 40 days before expiry. The passport must remain valid for at least three months after the permit expires. The first issue from inside Hungary is for a visa-exempt national who does not already hold a residence permit and has not applied for this permit before, and for a holder of a permit for seeking a job or starting a business. Anyone else, including a visa-exempt national who has applied for this permit before, applies at a Hungarian mission. Extensions are only on Enter Hungary. The application includes a single-entry D visa to collect the card, valid for three months and for a stay of at most 30 days. The approval lapses if the holder does not enter within three months. Fees follow the general residence-permit tariff: EUR 110 at a mission, HUF 39,000 in person in Hungary, HUF 26,000 on Enter Hungary, and HUF 26,000 to extend. The stored application fee is the EUR 110 mission charge, about $123 at the 8 October 2026 ECB rate. A family member pays that same issuance fee on their own application, which is the stored dependent fee. Family reunification is refused for one year from issue, except a child born in Hungary during the permit and except a permit re-issued after three years. No income supplement per family member is published. Holders file a regular report with the immigration authority, on Enter Hungary. The factsheet does not state the interval. During the permit and after it expires, a different residence purpose cannot be requested in Hungary. Holders cannot receive a national residence card. Procedural administration is 21 days, excluding time spent supplying missing documents. Accommodation and healthcare evidence are required, on the same patterns as the White Card. There is no degree requirement and no employment contract. The national attachment list does not include a police certificate. There is no special tax regime. Self-employment income earned in Hungary is Hungarian-source income. The National Tax and Customs Administration states a 15% personal income tax, and a tax resident is taxed on worldwide income. Residence for an unsettled third-country national follows the Personal Income Tax Act's home, vital-interests and habitual-residence tests, not a day count stored on this record. EEA nationals and their family members do not use this permit. Stateless persons can qualify.

• Hungary Guest Self-Employment Residence Permitfreelancer
• Hungary Guest Investor Programmegolden visa

1. Oct 10, 2026

   Added

   set the mission application fee at EUR 110, about $123, and the same figure as the dependent fee Source