Being a small country in the Schengen zone, Estonia enjoys the pride of being the first-ever country to offer foreigners E-Residency without any capital or travelling requirements. How to apply for the Estonia E-Residency online? It seems complicated at first, but believe me it is really easy. Once you finish reading this information, you will be able to apply for the E-Residency not only yourself, but will be also able to start a business in Estonia right from your country of origin. E-Residency is a transnational digital identity available to anyone in the world interested in administering a location-independent business online. It enables you to use secure and convenient digital services that facilitate credibility and trust online. The residency card does not have a photo of you on it and you can use it digitally by connecting it with your PC through a card reader. You can apply for this e-residency from all very the world (provided that you have an Estonian embassy nearby to pick up your residency card).
WHO CAN APPLY FOR E-RESIDENCY?
Generally speaking, everyone can apply for this card, but the focus is on the following by the Estonian government:
- Freelancer
- Digital Nomad
- Startup Company
- EU Company
When you apply for this E-Residency only by filling in an application form, you are asked for the reason for applying. There might be many reasons to apply, for example, business starting in the EU, or if you are an E-Residency fan etc. You will have to write a motivation paragraph to show your interest in it.
COST
Though the amount you have to pay for the benefits of this E-Residency, €100 seems nothing.
BENEFITS OF E-RESIDENCY?
There are a lot of benefits for applying an E-Residency of Estonia, but I will mainly focus on the following which allows you to:
- start an online business in Estonia
- register en EU based company entirely online
- operate your business remotely as the residency card can be attached with a laptop and you can access all business apps online to start the proceedings whilst traveling
- settle in abroad in any EU country after establishing the business online
- own your company without being present in Estonia
- pay all payments through PayPal
- sign, authenticate, encrypt and send documents digitally
- file taxes online to the Estonian government
- discover many new ways to grow in the EU market online
DRAWBACKS
E-Residency of Estonia is not a Schengen visa or a work permit. It does not allow you to enter any EU state without visa.
HOW TO APPLY FOR E-RESIDENCY?
The only way to apply for the E-Residency of Estonia is online. The government of Estonia has opened an online portal for this purpose. But before you reach out to this portal, let me clear you a few more things.
Steps to apply
- You will need your government-issued ID for filling in details in the online form
- A passport-sized digital photo
- A visa or master card to pay for your fees online
- Write a motivational letter that why do you want to apply for Estonian E-Residency
- After filling in the online form, you will be asked to pay €100
- Once all done, you will receive an email confirmation
- After the process of 6 to 8 weeks, Estonian Police & Border Guard Board will check background information of your data provided
- Once everything confirmed, you will be notified to collect your E-Residency from the location you have chosen while filling online form
HOW TO RECEIVE OR PICK THE E-RESIDENCY CARD?
The process is simple; you can pick up your card from the location you have chosen within six months of issuance. For example, in South Asia, only the Embassy of Estonia in New Delhi is authorized to pick up the residency card. So carefully choose the location, as this is not possible through the post. Chose only a location where you are entitled to enter for collection.
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