More of our buyers now ask a second question after "what should I buy?": could we actually live there, for the winter or for good? Albania is a serious answer for many people. It is cheaper than the rest of the Mediterranean, the coast is a short flight from most of Northern Europe, and EU citizens can now settle without applying for a residence permit. It also has real gaps, mostly in healthcare and in how quiet the beach towns get in winter.
This guide covers the practical side: costs, where to live, the rules for staying, your pension, healthcare and getting home. Rules on residence and tax change, and some depend on your own country, so treat it as orientation and check anything you plan around with current official sources or an adviser.
Day-to-day costs in Tirana run roughly a third lower than Amsterdam or Berlin, and around half of Oslo, before rent (Numbeo, October 2026).
Visitors from the EU, UK, Norway and Switzerland can stay 90 days in any 180 without a permit. Since 2025, EU citizens can stay longer by registering online instead of applying for a permit.
Where your pension is taxed depends on your home country's tax treaty with Albania; Denmark has none. Get advice before you move your tax residence.
The European health card (EHIC) does not work in Albania. Plan on private health insurance, and on Tirana for serious treatment.
Beach towns like Golem are lively in summer and very quiet from October to May. Choose where to live for the season you will actually be there.
Most of the foreign owners we work with do not move overnight. The common pattern is part-year living: spring and autumn on the coast, summer let to holidaymakers, winter at home or in Tirana. Others come for good, often retirees and remote workers who want sea, sun and a lower cost of living within a three-hour flight of family.
Both work, but they lead to different choices. A home you live in through the winter needs a town that stays open in winter. A home you use for a few months a year can sit in a resort that empties in October. Decide which you are before you decide where.
Each part of the country suits a different way of living.
Tirana: the capital and the only place that feels fully year-round. Best healthcare, most services, the airport about half an hour away. No sea, and busy traffic.
Durrës: a real city on the coast with a long beach, about half an hour from the airport. Open all year, so it works for full-time living by the sea.
The Durrës Riviera (Golem, Qerret, Mali i Robit): new-build resort coast about 45 minutes from Tirana and the airport. Busy and lively in summer; from October many beach businesses close, so it suits part-year living best.
Vlorë and Orikum: a city on a bay further south, with a longer season than the resorts and its own services. The new Vlorë airport is not open for commercial flights yet, so count on Tirana for now.
Sarandë and the southern Riviera: the most dramatic coast, but four to five hours' drive from Tirana and very seasonal.
Albania is one of the cheapest places to live on the Mediterranean. According to Numbeo's crowd-sourced comparison (October 2026), everyday prices in Tirana excluding rent are about 39% lower than in Amsterdam, about 32% lower than in Berlin, about 36% lower than in Stockholm, about 44% lower than in Copenhagen and London, and about half of Oslo.
Rent depends heavily on where you are. Numbeo puts a one-bedroom flat in central Tirana at around €740 a month; coastal towns are generally cheaper outside the summer season, but too few data points exist for a reliable figure. For context on local incomes, the Albanian minimum wage is ALL 50,000 a month in 2026 and the average gross wage was about ALL 92,000 in the second quarter of 2026 (INSTAT).
Eating out, fresh produce, local transport and services are where you notice the difference most. Imported goods, cars and electronics cost about what they cost at home.
Citizens of the EU, the UK, Norway and Switzerland do not need a visa for Albania and can stay up to 90 days in any 180-day period. Dutch and German citizens can enter with a national ID card; others should check whether their ID card is accepted or bring a passport.
To stay longer, the route depends on your citizenship. Since a 2025 change to Albania's law on foreigners, EU citizens can live in Albania beyond three months without a residence permit if they work, are self-employed or have sufficient resources and health insurance. They register online within three months and receive a registration certificate, and can obtain permanent residence after five years.
Other nationalities, including UK citizens, generally need a residence permit. The relevant types are a pensioner permit, a permit for property owners and a single permit for remote "digital nomad" workers. Most are issued for a year at a time and renewed annually, and five years of continuous legal residence can lead to permanent residence. Applications start on the e-Albania portal. The detailed criteria, including any income threshold for pensioners, are now set by government decision rather than in the law itself, so confirm the current requirements before you apply. Our guide to residency through buying property covers the property route in more detail.
You become tax resident in Albania if you have your permanent home there or spend 183 days or more in the country in a calendar year. Albanian tax residents are taxed on their worldwide income. Whether and how Albania taxes foreign pension income under its 2023 income tax law is not settled in published sources: some advisers state an exemption that others say no longer exists. Do not plan around a tax-free pension without written advice.
What usually matters most is the tax treaty between Albania and your home country, which decides which country may tax your pension:
Netherlands (treaty in force since 2005): private pensions and AOW are in principle taxed only in Albania once you live there. The Netherlands keeps the right to tax them if Albania does not tax them at its normal rates and your total pensions exceed €20,000 a year. Government pensions generally stay taxed in the Netherlands.
Germany (treaty in force since 2011): pensions are in principle taxed in the country where you live, with civil-service pensions generally taxed by Germany. Germans receiving a pension abroad deal with the Finanzamt Neubrandenburg. An amending protocol was signed in June 2026 and is not yet in force.
United Kingdom (treaty in force since 2013): UK pensions remain taxable in the UK even when you live in Albania.
Sweden and Norway (treaties in force since 2000): check how your specific pension is treated before you move.
Denmark: there is no tax treaty with Albania, which raises the risk of being taxed twice. Take advice before changing your residence.
This is the area to plan most carefully. The European Health Insurance Card does not cover Albania, and both the UK and German foreign offices describe public healthcare as below what you are used to, especially outside Tirana. Most foreign residents rely on private health insurance and private hospitals in Tirana, such as the American Hospital and Hygeia, for anything serious.
Health insurance is also a formal requirement: you need it for EU registration and for residence permits. Residence-permit holders receive an Albanian insurance number and can ask the national health insurance fund (FSDKSH) about voluntary cover, but for most buyers an international private policy is the practical choice. If you have a chronic condition, check access to your treatment and medication before you commit to living here.
Tirana International Airport is the gateway, and its network has grown fast. Low-cost carriers fly direct from Eindhoven, a long list of German airports, London, Stockholm and other Scandinavian cities, with more routes added each season; some routes, such as those to Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Oslo, run in summer only. Check current schedules for your home airport before you choose a location.
From the Durrës coast the airport is under an hour by car, which is the main practical advantage over the southern Riviera. The new airport near Vlorë has no commercial flights yet.
Money: the lek is the official currency. Euros are widely accepted in tourist areas, but pay bills and rent in lek. Foreigners can open a local bank account.
Driving: once you live in Albania, you need to convert your licence to an Albanian one through e-Albania. Albanian roads have one of the highest accident rates in Europe, so drive defensively.
Internet: mobile coverage is good on the coast, and 5G has been available in Tirana and Durrës since late 2024.
Language: Albanian is the language of daily life. English is common among younger people and in tourism, and many older Albanians speak Italian.
Safety: the Dutch government rates Albania green for travel, and the UK foreign office describes crime against foreigners as rare. Normal city precautions apply.
Climate: around 2,700 hours of sunshine a year on the coast at Durrës. Summer highs reach the low 30s °C; winters are mild by the sea but wet, with January lows of about 4°C.
EU accession: Albania is an EU candidate, not a member. All negotiating chapters are open and the first were closed in July 2026; the government aims to finish negotiations by the end of 2027.
Yes. You can stay 90 days in any 180 without formalities, and since 2025 EU citizens can live in Albania longer by registering online within three months, if they work, are self-employed or have sufficient resources and health insurance. Permanent residence is possible after five years.
Everyday costs in Tirana, excluding rent, are roughly a third lower than in Amsterdam or Berlin and about half of Oslo, according to Numbeo (October 2026). A one-bedroom flat in central Tirana rents for around €740 a month; coastal towns are usually cheaper outside summer.
Do not assume so. Published sources disagree on how Albania taxes foreign pensions under its 2023 income tax law, and your home country may keep the right to tax your pension under its treaty with Albania. Denmark has no treaty at all. Get written advice before you move.
For many people, yes: low costs, a long warm season and short flights home. The main trade-offs are healthcare outside Tirana, which means planning on private insurance, and how quiet the beach resorts are in winter. Durrës, Tirana or Vlorë suit year-round living better than a summer resort.
No. The EHIC only covers EU countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and the UK. You need private health insurance, which is also required for registration and residence permits.