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Moving abroad

What it costs to move abroad from India, Pakistan or Bangladesh

The one-off side of a move: official fees and processing times for Portugal's remote-work visa, Malaysia's DE Rantau pass and Dubai's virtual work visa, police certificates and apostilles, rent deposits, and the rules for sending money out of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

By EzyHop teamPublished Last updated 13 min read

A suitcase with a passport and a sealed document, a jar filling with coins and a calendar with three marked days, a plane passing the window.

For a remote worker moving from India, Pakistan or Bangladesh to Portugal, Malaysia or the UAE, the official visa and permit fees are the small part of the move. In Lisbon or Dubai, a rent deposit plus the first month's rent comes to more than all the government fees combined. And every bit of it has to leave your home country under its foreign exchange rules.

Below are the one-off costs for three remote-work routes (Portugal's remote-work residence visa, Malaysia's DE Rantau Nomad Pass and Dubai's virtual work visa), the documents that cost money at home, and the outbound money rules in all three countries. Every figure links to the official page or dated data source it came from, all checked on 28 October 2026.

Prove the income before you count anything else

All three routes test regular income, not a savings balance. If you cannot pass the test, the rest of the budget does not matter. As of October 2026:

  • Portugal wants an average monthly income over your last three months of at least four times the minimum wage, according to the MNE residency requirements. The means of subsistence page puts the 2026 minimum wage at 920 euros, so the bar is 3,680 euros a month.
  • Malaysia asks for more than 24,000 US dollars a year for tech roles and 60,000 US dollars for non-tech roles, according to the DE Rantau FAQ (version 10.0, 28 August 2026). Employees also need a contract that started at least three months before the application date, plus three months of payslips and matching bank statements.
  • Dubai wants proof of a monthly income of at least 3,500 US dollars, per GDRFA Dubai.

Official fees for the three routes, as of October 2026

Portugal: remote-work residence visaMalaysia: DE Rantau Nomad PassUAE: virtual work visa (Dubai)
Application110 euros national visa fee, plus the visa center's own chargeRM1,080 per applicant, RM540 per dependent, both non-refundable even if refusedAED 200 plus 5% VAT for the entry visa
After approvalAIMA residence permit fees in Portugal (see below)Immigration pass fee of RM90 per three months or RM360 a year, plus a multiple-entry visa charge that varies by nationalityResidence permit AED 200, plus AED 10 Knowledge Dirham, AED 10 Innovation Dirham and AED 20 delivery
Refundable moneyNone listedRM750 bond for Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi citizens if MDEC acts as your sponsorNone listed
InsuranceTravel insurance covering medical expenses, urgent care and repatriationHealth insurance covering Malaysia, valid for the whole passA copy of health insurance
Applying from inside the countryNot covered by these pagesAllowed on a tourist visa, but once approved you must leave and re-enterAED 500 extra, plus the two Dirham fees

What the table does not show:

  • Portugal's fee pages disagree. The MNE fees page and the Portuguese embassy in Islamabad both say 110 euros, and Islamabad adds that the fee is not refunded if the visa is refused. The embassy in New Delhi still lists 90 euros for work visas and 65 euros for a temporary stay visa. Budget for 110 euros and confirm when you book.
  • Where you file depends on your passport. Indian applicants go through the embassy in New Delhi, which takes appointments through VFS. Pakistani applicants file in Islamabad, where the embassy says applications go only through its service provider, Gerry's, and appointment requests go by email to the consular section. Bangladeshi applicants also file in New Delhi, and VFS only accepts them with an Indian X double-entry visa from the High Commission of India in Dhaka, with the stay in India capped at 15 days. Add that visa and a trip to Delhi to your budget.
  • AIMA fees in Portugal. The AIMA fee table (last updated 26 February 2026) lists 133.00 euros to receive and assess a temporary residence application and 114.30 euros to grant it. A 25% reduction applies until these services move online, which brings them to 99.80 and 85.80 euros.
  • Malaysia's bond. If no Malaysian company sponsors you, MDEC does, and you pay the bond. The FAQ says it is refunded in full when your pass expires. The bond form also needs an RM10 revenue stamp. The processing fee is not refunded on refusal, and since 1 August 2026 refusals cannot be appealed, so a second try means a new application and a new fee.
  • UAE extras. The GDRFA residence permit page lists a medical fitness test result and an ID receipt as compulsory. Neither is priced on the GDRFA pages, so treat them as extra costs to check locally.

Documents that cost money at home

Portugal is the only one of the three whose document list includes a criminal record certificate, apostilled or legalized. The same list asks for a document showing where you are tax resident. The DE Rantau FAQ and the two GDRFA pages do not ask for a police certificate, so if you are going to Malaysia or Dubai, you can likely skip this cost.

CountryPolice certificateApostille or legalization
IndiaListed as a service on Passport Seva. The site says passport application fees were revised from 1 July 2026, so check the current fee before payingMEA: Rs 50 per apostille sticker, plus Rs 84 per document and Rs 3 per page to the outsourced agency
PakistanIssued by the police in your area; no single national fee schedule is published on the pages listed here. The Islamabad embassy wants it issued less than 90 days before you applyMOFA: Rs 3,000 per personal or educational document, Rs 4,500 per legal document. Since 12 October 2026, MOFA emails an e-Certificate once the attestation is done
BangladeshBangladesh Police PCC portal: a 1,500 taka treasury challan, or an online card payment with a service charge. Your passport needs at least three months' validityAsk the Portuguese embassy in New Delhi whether it wants an apostille or MOFA legalization before you pay for either

Order the police certificate last if you are applying in Islamabad. A certificate that is 91 days old on submission day is too old there.

How long each step takes

These are the official processing times, as of October 2026. Use them to decide when to give notice on your current flat and when to book a flight.

StepPortugalMalaysiaUAE (Dubai)
Decision on the applicationIslamabad: usually within 15 working days, up to 45 calendar days6 to 8 weeks after a complete submission48 hours for the entry visa
When you can applyIslamabad says at least six months before travel, or no later than 15 days before in justified cases. New Delhi says no more than six months and no less than 15 days beforeOnline from anywhereOnline before you travel, to avoid the inside-the-country fee
After you arriveAIMA residence permit appointmentEndorsement within one month of your entry stamp; you must stay in Malaysia until the e-Pass is issued, usually within a week of a complete endorsement60 days from entry to finish the residence permit, which GDRFA also lists at 48 hours

Flights and when to buy foreign exchange

Fares change daily, so none are quoted here. Two rules affect what you buy:

  • Portugal's residence visa document list does not include a return ticket.
  • In Bangladesh, if you leave on a one-way ticket for a job, migration or study, your bank can release the whole unused part of your annual travel entitlement at once. Banks also check that your ticket is for a trip within two weeks, and releasing more than 200 US dollars needs a valid visa in your passport. All three rules are in paragraph 1 of Part B of Bangladesh Bank's consolidated circular. So buy your foreign exchange once you hold the visa, and close to the flight.

Rent deposits: the biggest one-off cost

The rent figures below are crowd-sourced Numbeo ranges for a one-bedroom apartment, as of October 2026.

Lisbon. Article 1076 of the Civil Code caps advance rent at two months, by written agreement, and the deposit at the value of two months' rent. In Numbeo's Lisbon data (last updated 27 October 2026), a one-bedroom outside the center rents for roughly 900 to 1,400 euros a month. A two-month deposit on that is roughly 1,800 to 2,800 euros, before the first month's rent. You will also need a NIF, Portugal's tax number: gov.pt says it is needed to sign contracts and open bank accounts.

Kuala Lumpur. Numbeo (last updated 27 October 2026) shows a city-center one-bedroom at roughly RM1,700 to RM4,040 a month, and RM1,010 to RM2,200 outside the center. The official pages listed here set no deposit rule for Malaysia, so agree the deposit and its refund terms in writing.

Dubai. Numbeo (last updated 28 October 2026) shows a city-center one-bedroom at roughly AED 6,500 to AED 15,000 a month, and AED 4,500 to AED 7,000 outside the center. As in Kuala Lumpur, none of the official pages here sets a deposit rule, so get the deposit, the payment schedule and the refund terms written into the contract.

Once the deposit and first month are paid, keep at least one more month of living costs in reserve. In Kuala Lumpur, plan for your home card to carry you for a while: Malaysia's FAQ warns that most local banks do not open accounts for this pass.

Getting the money out of your home country

India: LRS and TCS

Under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, each resident individual can send up to 250,000 US dollars per financial year (April to March). Emigration and private visits are both listed purposes. You need your PAN for every LRS transaction, and the bank goes by the purpose you declare on Form A2. Family members can consolidate their remittances, as long as each one meets the scheme's conditions.

Tax collected at source (TCS) starts once your LRS total for the year passes 10 lakh rupees. The Finance Bill 2026 memorandum sets the rates above that threshold from 1 April 2026: 2% for education and medical treatment, 20% for other purposes. Emigration and living costs abroad are neither education nor medical treatment, so expect 20% above the threshold, and ask your bank to confirm the rate it applies on the day. TCS is tax paid in advance against your PAN, not a bank fee, but the cash still leaves your account when you send. If your moving budget is above 10 lakh rupees, talk to a tax adviser about timing.

Pakistan: State Bank of Pakistan

The SBP Foreign Exchange Manual sets the rules: chapter 17 covers travel and chapter 18 covers taking currency out of the country. Chapter 18 gives general permission to take out foreign exchange issued by an authorized dealer and endorsed on your passport. Its cash-limit table cites a 2015 notification, and SBP can change limits by later circular, so those amounts are not repeated here as today's limits. Before you go:

  1. Ask your bank which circular it applies and get the current per-visit and annual limits in writing.
  2. Have the amount endorsed on your passport.
  3. Keep the bank receipt that matches the endorsement with your passport when you fly.

Bangladesh: Bangladesh Bank

As of October 2026, an adult can draw up to 18,000 US dollars per calendar year for travel abroad, of which up to 5,000 US dollars can be in US dollar notes. Bangladesh Bank raised the limit from 12,000 US dollars in FEPD-1 Circular No. 33 on 6 September 2026. The consolidated circular of 30 September 2026 adds rules that matter for a move:

  • Amounts drawn are endorsed on your passport, and you can carry up to 10,000 taka in cash each time you leave.
  • Visa fees can be paid abroad, including online by international card. Banks may issue a virtual card if you do not hold one.
  • Under Circular No. 09, banks may remit a refundable visa bond or security deposit to an embassy, high commission or other competent authority, against an official demand letter that states the amount, currency and refund terms. The money must come back to Bangladesh when it is released. If you apply for DE Rantau with MDEC as sponsor, ask your bank whether MDEC's payment request qualifies.

Your first two weeks after landing

  • Address. Get a written lease or booking in your name early, so you have an address to put on forms.
  • Lisbon. Get your NIF before you sign a lease or open an account.
  • Kuala Lumpur. Endorsement asks for health insurance and an income tax e-registration slip from MyTax, the Inland Revenue Board's portal. Do the MyTax registration in your first days, since the one-month endorsement clock starts at your entry stamp.
  • Dubai. Book the medical fitness test early in your 60 days.
  • Home number. Keep your Indian, Pakistani or Bangladeshi SIM active. Your bank, UPI, bKash or JazzCash and your tax portal may still send one-time codes to that number.

Staying connected while you set up

Your first weeks are mostly maps, banking apps, document uploads and video calls, often before you have a lease, let alone home internet. A data eSIM works from the moment you land, before you have queued for a local SIM, and your physical home SIM stays in the phone for SMS codes. Turn off data roaming on the home line so your data runs only on the eSIM. Your phone's hotspot can carry a laptop for work calls until the router arrives.

Malaysia is the route where you must stay put until the e-Pass is issued, so data for the whole endorsement month is worth sorting before you fly. Here are the current Malaysia plans from $3.99.

Moving to Lisbon or Dubai instead? See the Portugal eSIM and UAE eSIM pages. Check that your phone supports eSIM on the compatibility page first. We email your eSIM as soon as you pay, with a QR code and a one-tap install link, and the iPhone and Android guides cover setup.

What to do next

  1. Pick the route whose income test you can prove with your last three months of statements.
  2. Start the slow paperwork: for Portugal, the police certificate (timed to the 90-day window if you file in Islamabad), the apostille and proof of tax residence.
  3. Ask your bank, in writing, how much you can send or carry out and what tax or endorsement applies.
  4. Reopen each official page in the week you pay. Fees and limits on these pages changed several times in 2026.

Sources

Frequently asked questions

Can my spouse and I each use our own LRS limit?
Yes. The RBI FAQ says remittances can be consolidated for family members, as long as each person meets the scheme's conditions. Each person needs their own PAN for the transfer.
Do I get the DE Rantau processing fee back if I am refused?
No. MDEC says the processing fee is non-refundable for every outcome, including rejection, cancellation or withdrawal, and that no appeals are accepted from 1 August 2026. The sponsor bond is different: it is refunded in full when your pass expires.
Where do Pakistani citizens apply for Portugal's remote-work visa?
At the Portuguese embassy in Islamabad, through its service provider, Gerry's, after requesting an appointment by email. As of October 2026 the embassy charges 110 euros, does not refund it on refusal, and wants a police character certificate issued less than 90 days before you apply, apostilled by Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Can I apply for the UAE virtual work visa while already in Dubai?
Yes, but GDRFA Dubai adds an inside-the-country fee plus the Knowledge and Innovation Dirham fees. Applying before you travel avoids those charges.
Will a data eSIM give me a local phone number for bank sign-ups?
No. EzyHop eSIMs are data-only, so you keep your home number on your physical SIM for one-time codes. For a local number, you need a SIM from a local operator.

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