Contents
How to live in Europe for 3 months, here are your options.
Living in Europe for 3 months legally for Americans is quite easy. You really don’t even need a visa. Although after 2023 you will need to have what’s called an ETIAS which is a sort of pre-registration travel authorization similar to the United States version called ESTA for citizens of Visa waiver countries.
However, as of now, the current visa rules are pretty much the same. With the exception of these two travel authorizations, the customary 90-day or 3-month permissible stay within 180 days or 6 months is still valid.
Therefore, you don’t really need to apply for any long-term visas in order to stay in Europe for 3 months.
Although you should also understand that you are not allowed to work while you are in Europe for these 3 months as well.
What I mean by work, I mean local employment. If you work online and your clients are US based or you have a US-based job. Well, that’s a different story.
However, I would not advertise that “story” to any immigration officer when he asks what you plan on doing to support yourself during your stay.
Simply say you’re there as a tourist.
Anyway you could stay in most countries in Europe for 3 months legally and enjoy living in a great European country of your choice, without a visa.
What is the cheapest city in Europe to live for 3 months?
The cheapest city to live in for 3 months in Europe would probably be Tbilisi, Georgia.
Although I’m sure there are cheaper cities and of course they are more expensive, in my experience Tbilisi has been the cheapest European city I have lived in.
How long can I stay in europe without a Visa?
The maximum amount of time that Americans can stay in Europe without a visa is 3 months. After 3 months you must leave whichever European country or countries you are in and stay out for a minimum of 3 months as well.
As I’ve mentioned, this is the 90 days within 180 day policy for American tourists. Starting in 2021 or 2022, Europe will implement the ETIAS travel authorization.
This is basically a pre-registration of your trip to Europe, if you’re going to enter a Schengen Zone country.
I believe the cost is about $10 and it’s good for I believe a minimum of 3 years. You should check the website in the link above for more details regarding the ETIAS.
Can I work in europe for 3 months?
Legally no. You are not allowed to work in Europe, not for 3 months, not for 3 days. If you’re going to Europe for 3 months on a regular “visa free” trip, then you are essentially going as a tourist. This means no working or earning money of any kind.
However, that being said, if you work online and your employers are US based or you have a job back home that will allow you to work remotely for 3 months, then technically you’re not working in Europe, nor are you taking away any jobs from the locals, which is what they’re most concerned with.
Though, I would not advertise that fact to an immigration officer at the border when you enter into a European country. They could be a bit touchy about things like that even if your employer is in the US.
Besides they don’t really need to know. However, they may ask about your availability of funds “to fund” your trip while you’re there for 3 months. I’ll go over this more below, so just read that section over again carefully.
10 most affordable places to live in europe.
Here is my list of the 10 most affordable places to live in Europe. Your list may vary. These are not in any order in regards to costs. Cost can vary from one city to the other, one person to another. Costs may be cheaper for one person in one city whereas that same city might be more expensive for another.
- Tbilisi, Georgia
- Krakow, Poland
- Lviv, Ukraine
- Chisinau, Moldova
- Minsk, Belarus
- Novi Sad, Serbia
- Zagreb, Croatia
- Sofia, Bulgaria
- Timișoara, Romania
- Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Those are my 10. However, you may have your own 10. I’d love to hear any additional cities or if you disagree with some of my choices, please let me know in the comments.
How to live in europe for 3 months, summary.
There you have it. You can legally enjoy living in Europe for 3 months without any additional visas or permits.
You will though, need money of course. In some countries, immigration officers can be sticklers in regards to how you plan to fund your stay in their country for 3 months. The UK is notorious for this
You might be asked at the border, for example, whether they are in Schengen or outside of Schengen, again, especially in the UK, of how you plan to support yourself. “Do you have sufficient funds to cover the three months you plan on spending in this country?”, for example.
In fact, you should be forewarned that the UK may actually ask you this question and there have been circumstances where Americans have been detained or simply turned away at the border and not allowed entry because they could not provide sufficient evidence of their proof of funds to support themselves for their stated length of stay.
Furthermore, you may need a return ticket just to be on the safe side. I have traveled many times there without a return ticket, but it’s not a good idea.
Always have a return ticket to show the immigration officer that you do plan on leaving. Most of the time they won’t ask you for proof of funds though. But you should be prepared if they do.
This proof of funds may be in the form of a bank statement, proof of current employment or income in your home country or a credit card that will allow you access to funds for your 3 months stay. Just be warned that these are possibilities.
Though for the most part, you should enjoy living and staying in Europe for 3 months without much hassle. Just don’t become a burden to your host country.