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Cambodia: visas, tax & cost of living

Moving to Cambodia as a remote worker: cost of living, the visa reality, tax residency and banking, from the friend who has done the move.

Cambodia: visas, tax & cost of living
Your passport

United KingdomCambodia

Your move to Cambodia on a United Kingdom passport

  • VisitFairly easyVisa on arrival, e-visa or travel authorization (ETA)
  • NomadMediumNo nomad visa, other route
  • RelocateMediumResidence with conditions

Visiting

You can get a visa on arrival. Carry the fee and the documents the border asks for, and confirm the current rules before you fly.

Passport validity:Passport valid for at least 6 months from your date of arrival, with at least one blank page.

Heads-up:Since 2025 air arrivals must submit the online Cambodia e-Arrival card within 7 days before arrival.

At the border:Passport, an e-Visa or visa on arrival (about 30 to 35 USD), and the completed e-Arrival card; proof of onward travel and funds may be requested.

Working remotely

No dedicated nomad visa; the usual route is a standard residence permit.

Tax and residency

You are generally treated as tax resident if you are present more than 182 days in any 12 month period or have your principal home in Cambodia, and residents are in principle taxed on worldwide income while non-residents are taxed only on Cambodian source income.(estimate)

The UK decides residence with its Statutory Residence Test (days in the UK plus your ties). As a non-resident you are usually taxed only on UK income; where one exists, a double-tax treaty with the destination decides who taxes what.

Practical

Currency:KHR. Cost of living:low.

Healthcare:There is no public cover for foreigners, so expats rely on private hospitals in Phnom Penh and comprehensive international insurance with medical evacuation is strongly advised.

Driving:Foreign and International Driving Permits are generally not accepted, so you typically need to convert to a Cambodian licence to drive legally.

Sources: Cambodia e-Visa (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) · Cambodia e-Arrival · General Department of Taxation · PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries: Cambodia residence · UK FCDO Cambodia entry requirements · GOV.UK: tax on foreign income · HMRC: double-taxation treaties

Estimates, not advice. Confirm with the official sources before you act.

Should you move to Cambodia?

Let us be honest with each other from the start. Cambodia is one of the easiest countries in Southeast Asia to just show up and start living, which is exactly why it keeps drawing remote workers who got tired of visa gymnastics elsewhere. The paperwork is light, the dollar is king, and Phnom Penh has quietly grown a real cafe-and-coworking scene without losing its rough, friendly edge.

It suits you if you want low costs, a laid-back pace, and a community that skews toward long-stay expats and founders rather than weekenders. It suits you less if you need world-class hospitals on your doorstep, fast reliable public transport, or four seasons. The heat and the wet season are real. So is the fact that Cambodia has not yet built the polished nomad infrastructure you find in Thailand or Vietnam. You trade a bit of convenience for a lot of freedom. For many people who move here, that is the whole point.

Cost of living in Cambodia

Cambodia is genuinely cheap, and not in a way that requires you to suffer for it. A single person in Phnom Penh typically spends somewhere around 780 to 1,250 USD a month once rent, utilities, food, local transport and a little fun are counted, according to 2026 expat cost guides. Couples often land closer to 1,200 to 1,800. Treat those as ballpark estimates and confirm current rents locally, because the market moves.

Siem Reap and the smaller cities tend to run roughly 20 to 40 percent cheaper than the capital, and many people find the slower pace means they simply spend less. The one line item that surprises newcomers is electricity. Running air conditioning daily can push your power bill to an estimated 100 to 150 USD a month, versus around 30 USD if you mostly use fans. Budget for the aircon. In this climate you will want it.

Cambodia digital nomad visa and entry

Here is the part people get wrong, so let me say it plainly. Cambodia does not have a dedicated digital nomad visa in 2026. Business groups have been urging the government to create one, but as of now it does not exist, and you should ignore any site that implies otherwise.

What people actually use is the ordinary visa, historically called the E-class visa. You can arrive on it for around 35 USD, then extend from inside the country. The route long-stayers rely on is the twelve-month EB extension, arranged through a local agent, which reporting puts at roughly 290 to 300 USD, so a full year of legal residence often works out near 325 to 335 USD total. It is renewable indefinitely, which is the real magic here. The plain tourist visa (Type T) is different and more limited, giving you 30 days extendable once for 60 days total, so it is not a long-term base.

One honest caveat for 2026: immigration is tightening, and longer or repeat extensions increasingly expect some proof of business activity or employment. In fact, Cambodia now generally requires a work permit for foreign remote workers and freelancers, even when every client is overseas. Rules shift, so confirm the current requirements with an official Cambodian source or a reputable local agent before you commit. If you want to sanity-check which route fits your situation, our digital nomad visa checker walks you through the options in a couple of minutes.

Tax residency and the 183 day rule

Cambodia decides your tax status largely on time in the country. You are generally treated as a resident taxpayer if you are physically present for more than 182 days in any twelve-month period, or if Cambodia is your main home, per Cambodian personal income tax guidance. Roughly, half the year or more tips you into residency, so track your days carefully.

Why it matters: residents are, in principle, taxable on worldwide employment income at progressive rates that run from 0 up to 20 percent, though credits are available for foreign tax already paid. Non-residents are taxed only on Cambodian-source income, at a flat 20 percent. For a remote worker earning abroad, the practical picture is often gentler than it sounds, but it depends heavily on your own facts and any home-country obligations. This is educational, not advice. Run your dates through our tax residency tool and then confirm your position with a qualified Cambodian tax adviser before filing anything.

Healthcare and insurance

Cambodia runs a two-tier system, and as an expat you will live almost entirely in the private half. Costs there are modest by Western standards. A GP visit is commonly cited at around 50 to 100 USD. The catch is depth of care: international-standard hospitals sit almost entirely in and around Phnom Penh, and for anything serious many expats get evacuated to Bangkok or Singapore.

That single fact shapes the whole decision. A medical evacuation can reportedly exceed 20,000 USD, and providers usually want a payment guarantee before the plane leaves. So international health insurance that explicitly includes evacuation cover is close to non-negotiable here. Get quotes and read the evacuation clause before you fly, and confirm coverage details with the insurer directly.

Money, banking and settling in

Cambodia is one of the most dollarized economies on earth, so your US dollars work almost everywhere, with the riel used mostly as small change at a rate hovering near 4,035 to the dollar. Opening a local account is refreshingly simple by regional standards: banks such as ABA, ACLEDA and Canadia typically ask for your passport, a valid visa and a local address, with minimum deposits reported as low as 10 USD at some banks. ABA is the expat favourite and lets you open and run everything from its app. For everyday spending, the Wing wallet and QR payments are accepted at millions of merchants. Requirements do vary by branch, so confirm the current document list with your chosen bank first.

Figures are estimates. Always check the official source.

Frequently asked questions

Cambodia: is there a digital nomad visa?
No dedicated digital nomad visa; most people use a standard residence permit instead.
Cambodia: when do you become a tax resident?
You are generally treated as tax resident if you are present more than 182 days in any 12 month period or have your principal home in Cambodia, and residents are in principle taxed on worldwide income while non-residents are taxed only on Cambodian source income.
Cambodia: what is the cost of living?
The cost of living is low and the local currency is the KHR. Treat any figures as estimates.
Cambodia: do you need health insurance?
There is no public cover for foreigners, so expats rely on private hospitals in Phnom Penh and comprehensive international insurance with medical evacuation is strongly advised.
Cambodia: can you drive on a foreign licence?
Foreign and International Driving Permits are generally not accepted, so you typically need to convert to a Cambodian licence to drive legally.

Terms worth knowing

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Last verified: 2026-07-25

Voymo gives general information to help you organise your move. It is not legal, tax, or immigration advice, always confirm with an official source or a qualified professional before you act.

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