---
title: "Living in Shahrisabz as a digital nomad: cost, safety, visa, internet"
url: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/shahrisabz
description: "Timur's birthplace, over a mountain pass from Samarkand"
dataset: 2026.11.2 (2026-11-09)
license: CC BY 4.0
---

# Shahrisabz, Uzbekistan

Shahrisabz scores 43.7/100 for digital nomads under balanced weights, ranking 1401 of 1501 cities. There is no open cost-of-living figure yet; expect no dedicated nomad visa, and a measured median download speed of 12.2 Mbps.

Shahrisabz is a small city in the Kashkadarya valley where Timur was born, with the huge broken portal of his Ak-Saray palace and a historic centre on UNESCO's World Heritage list, about two hours from Samarkand over a mountain pass. Life is quiet and very cheap, but there is no coworking or nightlife, few people speak English and summers are very hot.

Known for: Ak-Saray palace ruins, Birthplace of Amir Timur, Takhtakaracha pass drive, Quiet small-town life.

## Scores (balanced weights, 0–100)

| Factor | Score |
| --- | --- |
| Overall | 43.7 |
| Cost of living | — |
| Safety | 70 |
| Healthcare | 74 |
| Internet | 52 |
| Visa ease | 33 |
| Getting there & around | 14 |
| Climate | 42 |
| Air quality | 21 |
| Quality of life | 44 |

## The numbers behind the scores

| Metric | Value | Level | As of | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Monthly cost, one person | — | country | 2026-09 | [^2] |
| Central 1-bedroom rent | — | city | 2026-09 | [^3] |
| Outskirts 1-bedroom rent (basis of the monthly total) | — | city | 2026-09 | [^3] |
| Homicide rate (per 100k) | 1.4 | country | 2021 | [^4] |
| Political stability (0–100) | 67.4 | country | 2025 | [^5] |
| UHC service coverage (0–100) | 79 | country | 2023 | [^6] |
| Life expectancy (years) | 74 | country | 2023 | [^7] |
| Median download (Mbps) | 12.2 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Median upload (Mbps) | 12.9 | city | 2024 | [^8] |
| Starlink residential service | Coming soon (Starting in 2026) | country | 2026-10 | [^9] |
| Nomad visa | none listed | country | 2026-07 | [^10] |
| Entry for US / EU / UK passports | e-visa required / 30 days / 30 days | country | 2026-02 | [^11] |
| Non-stop destinations (SKD) | 28 | city | 2026-10 | [^12] |
| Restaurants within 3 km of the centre (OpenStreetMap) | 16 | city | 2026-11 | [^16] |
| Walkability / transit (1–5) | 3 / 1 | editorial | 2026-09 | [^13] |
| Comfortable months | 5 of 12 | city | 2001–2020 | [^14] |
| Annual mean PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 40.5 | city | 2023 | [^15] |
| Human Development Index | 0.74 | country | 2023 | [^17] |
| English proficiency band | very-low | country | 2024 | [^18] |

## Tax on income from abroad

**Residents pay a flat 12% on worldwide income, with 5% on dividends and interest.** Uzbekistan taxes residents on income from anywhere at a flat 12%, so a salary from a foreign employer or fees from foreign clients are taxed once you are resident. Dividends and interest are taxed at 5%. Since 2026, registered individual entrepreneurs and self-employed people pay 1% of turnover instead. There is no wealth or inheritance tax, only a small annual tax on property you own in Uzbekistan.

| Question | Answer |
| --- | --- |
| How residents are taxed | worldwide income |
| Remote work for foreign clients or employers | taxed (12% flat) |
| Investments and pensions from abroad | taxed (5% on dividends and interest; 12% on other income) |
| Wealth | no wealth tax; no inheritance tax |
| Tax resident after | 183 days a year |
| Top income tax rate | 12% |

Residency: You are an Uzbek tax resident if you are physically in Uzbekistan for more than 183 calendar days in total in any 12-month period that starts or ends in the tax year (Tax Code, Article 30). There is a second test that matters for nomads: you are also resident for a tax year if you spent fewer than 183 days in Uzbekistan but more days there than in any other single country. So someone who moves around and spends their longest stay of the year in Uzbekistan can become resident without reaching 183 days. Days abroad for short treatment or study (under six months) do not break the count. Days are proven by border stamps and data the tax authority receives from other agencies. You can ask to be treated as resident early if you show a long-term employment contract. If a treaty country also treats you as resident, the treaty decides, and Uzbekistan looks at your centre of vital interests: it is in Uzbekistan if your spouse or close relatives live there or you have a home there available to you. A 30-day visa-free stay alone is far below 183 days, but repeated stays in one calendar year can add up.

Remote work: Residents are taxed on income from sources in Uzbekistan and abroad (Tax Code, Article 368), at a flat 12% (Article 381). A salary from a foreign employer or fees from foreign clients are therefore taxed once you are resident. No Uzbek payer withholds the tax, so you declare foreign income in an annual return filed by 1 April of the following year (Articles 393 and 397); a foreigner who is resident must file the return in any case. Tax paid abroad on the same income can be credited against the Uzbek tax (Article 399), and a tax treaty with your home country may change the result. Before you are resident, only Uzbek-source income is taxed; the Code treats income from economic activity in Uzbekistan as Uzbek-source (Article 43) but has no specific rule for a short-stay non-resident paid from abroad, so whether such work is taxed is not clear. Social tax (12%) is paid by employers in Uzbekistan, not by an employee of a foreign company (Articles 402 and 405). Freelancers who register as individual entrepreneurs or self-employed persons pay 1% of turnover instead of 12% (see regimes).

Investments: Residents pay 5% on dividends and interest (Tax Code, Article 381), and the Code does not limit this to Uzbek payers, so foreign dividends and interest are covered. Interest and winnings on bank deposits are exempt (Article 378(13)); the text does not say whether deposits in foreign banks qualify, so this profile does not assume they do. Rent and other investment income are taxed at 12%. Gains on selling personal property are exempt, except gains on securities (other than issued securities sold on a stock exchange), shares in companies, non-residential property and homes owned for less than 36 months (Article 378(7)); those gains are taxed at 12%. The text does not say whether a foreign stock exchange counts. State pensions are left out of taxable income (Article 369), but the Code does not say whether this covers foreign state pensions; private pensions from abroad appear to be taxed at 12%. Foreign income is declared by 1 April, and foreign tax can be credited (Articles 397 and 399). The Code has no specific rule for crypto-asset gains of individuals, so this profile does not say how they are treated.

On the nomad visa: Uzbekistan has no digital nomad visa. Citizens of many countries, including the UK, Canada, Australia and most EU states, can stay 30 days visa-free from each entry (Decree PF-5611 of 2019 and later decrees), and US citizens can too since 1 January 2026 (Decree No 203 of 3 November 2025). These stays have no tax status of their own: the 183-day test and the rule that your longest stay of the year can make you resident apply as to anyone else.

Schemes for newcomers:

- **Turnover tax for individual entrepreneurs and self-employed persons** (no fixed end): Since 1 January 2026, 1% of turnover replaces income tax on business income (Tax Code, Articles 365, 461, 465 and 467). Above 1 billion sum a year you move to VAT and profit tax (Article 462). Rent income stays taxed at 12%. Individual entrepreneurs also pay social tax of at least one base calculation amount a month; for the self-employed it is voluntary (Article 408). Who qualifies: People registered in Uzbekistan as an individual entrepreneur or a self-employed person whose income from selling goods or services stays within 1 billion sum a year. This profile did not confirm on an official page which foreigners can register. Salary from an employer does not qualify.

Official sources: [Tax Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan (official Uzbek text, consolidated to 21 October 2026)](https://lex.uz/docs/4674902) (National Database of Legislation of Uzbekistan (lex.uz), read 2026-10-27); [Tax Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan (Russian translation)](https://lex.uz/ru/docs/4674893) (National Database of Legislation of Uzbekistan (lex.uz), read 2026-10-27); [Decree of the President No PF-5611 of 5 January 2019 on additional measures for the accelerated development of tourism](https://lex.uz/docs/4143188) (National Database of Legislation of Uzbekistan (lex.uz), read 2026-10-27); [Uzbekistan introduces a visa-free regime for US citizens](https://gov.uz/ru/nokis/news/view/99279) (Government portal of Uzbekistan (gov.uz), read 2026-10-27).

Not yet reviewed by a person. General information, not tax advice. US citizens are taxed by the US wherever they live.

## Climate (2001–2020 normals)

| Month | Mean °C | Rain mm | Humidity % | Comfortable |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jan | 0.7 | 34 | 64 | no |
| Feb | 2.2 | 44 | 65 | no |
| Mar | 8 | 52 | 62 | no |
| Apr | 13.3 | 52 | 58 | no |
| May | 19.3 | 26 | 45 | yes |
| Jun | 24.7 | 6 | 28 | yes |
| Jul | 27.1 | 1 | 21 | yes |
| Aug | 25.5 | 1 | 21 | yes |
| Sep | 20.4 | 2 | 22 | yes |
| Oct | 13.4 | 11 | 35 | no |
| Nov | 6.6 | 32 | 53 | no |
| Dec | 2 | 28 | 61 | no |

## Airports and nonstop flights

| Airport | IATA | Nonstop destinations | International | From US airports |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Samarkand International Airport | SKD | 28 | 24 | 0 |

Unique destinations across all airports: 28, of which 24 international (Wikipedia, 2026-10).

## Similar cities

- [Samarkand](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/samarkand) (46.3) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/samarkand-vs-shahrisabz)
- [Fergana](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/fergana) (45.1) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/fergana-vs-shahrisabz)
- [Khiva](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/khiva) (44.3) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/khiva-vs-shahrisabz)
- [Bukhara](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/bukhara) (44) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/bukhara-vs-shahrisabz)
- [Kathmandu](https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/kathmandu) (46.4) — [compare](https://nostos.navoy.io/compare/kathmandu-vs-shahrisabz)

## FAQ

### How much does it cost to live in Shahrisabz as a digital nomad?

We do not have a reliable monthly cost figure for Shahrisabz yet.

### Is Shahrisabz safe for digital nomads?

Shahrisabz scores 70/100 on safety. Uzbekistan records 1.4 homicides per 100,000 people per year (WHO, 2021) and a political-stability score of 67.4/100 (World Bank WGI). Both figures are national, so neighbourhood-level risk can differ.

### Does Uzbekistan have a digital nomad visa?

No dedicated digital nomad visa was listed for Uzbekistan as of 2026-07. Visitors from the US need an e-visa, applied for online.

### How fast is the internet in Shahrisabz?

Measured median download speed in Shahrisabz was 12.2 Mbps (upload 12.9 Mbps) across 65,500 M-Lab tests in 2024. Measured speeds run below advertised plan speeds everywhere, so compare cities rather than reading the number as a plan.

### Is Starlink available in Shahrisabz?

Not yet. Starlink's availability map lists Uzbekistan as coming soon (Starting in 2026) as of 2026-10. Roaming plans may work for short stays, but local rules on using them vary.

### Which airports serve Shahrisabz and how many nonstop flights are there?

Shahrisabz is served by Samarkand International Airport (SKD) with 28 nonstop destinations, of which 24 are international. 0 US airports have a nonstop link. Source: Wikipedia, 2026-10.

### When is the best time of year to be in Shahrisabz?

The most comfortable months are May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep. Mean temperatures range from 33°F (1°C) in Jan to 81°F (27°C) in Jul (NASA POWER 2001–2020 climatology).

### Shahrisabz or Samarkand: which is better for digital nomads?

Samarkand is the city with the closest factor profile to Shahrisabz in this dataset. Which one wins depends on your weights; the comparison page puts every factor side by side with the numbers behind them.

## Plan a trip

[Plan a trip to Shahrisabz](https://dashboard.navoy.io/trip/new?utm_source=nostos&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=plan_trip&utm_content=shahrisabz&destination=Shahrisabz%2C+Uzbekistan) on Navoy, the AI travel planner behind Nostos.

## Sources

[^1]: City population (latest census or official estimate), Wikipedia (citing national statistics offices). CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^2]: 2026 Cost of Living Index (country level), WhereNext. CC BY 4.0. https://getwherenext.com/data/cost-of-living-2026 (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^3]: Cost of Living Global 2026 (city rows), WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^4]: Victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population (national data, latest year), United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, dataUNODC. UNODC data, free to reuse with attribution. https://data.unodc.org/datareport/hom-victim (retrieved 2026-10-12)
[^5]: Worldwide Governance Indicators — Political Stability and Absence of Violence (score 0–100), World Bank. CC BY 4.0. https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^6]: UHC service coverage index, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/uhc-index-of-service-coverage (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^7]: Life expectancy at birth (years), both sexes, World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory. CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO data policy). https://www.who.int/data/gho/data/indicators/indicator-details/GHO/life-expectancy-at-birth-(years) (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^8]: M-Lab NDT statistics (city aggregates, 2024), Measurement Lab. CC0 1.0. https://statistics.measurementlab.net/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^9]: Starlink availability map, SpaceX (Starlink). Factual status cited from starlink.com. https://www.starlink.com/map (retrieved 2026-10-07)
[^10]: Digital Nomad Visas 2026, WhereToEmigrate. CC BY 4.0. https://github.com/0brien18/global-emigration-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^11]: Passport Index dataset (visa requirements, 199 passports × 199 destinations), Ilya Ilyankou (compiled from passportindex.org). MIT. https://github.com/ilyankou/passport-index-dataset (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^12]: Airport destinations (Wikipedia airline and destination tables), Wikipedia contributors; countries via Wikidata. CC BY-SA 4.0. https://en.wikipedia.org/ (retrieved 2026-09-24)
[^13]: Walkability and transit ratings (editorial), Navoy. CC BY 4.0. https://nostos.navoy.io/methodology (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^14]: NASA POWER climatology (2001–2020 monthly means), NASA Langley Research Center. Public domain (US Government). https://power.larc.nasa.gov/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^15]: SatPM2.5 satellite-derived annual PM2.5 (V6.GL.02.04), Atmospheric Composition Analysis Group, Washington University in St. Louis. CC BY 4.0. https://sites.wustl.edu/acag/surface-pm2-5/ (retrieved 2026-10-07)
[^16]: OpenStreetMap restaurants (Overpass API), OpenStreetMap contributors. ODbL 1.0. https://overpass-api.de/ (retrieved 2026-10-02)
[^17]: Human Development Index (HDR 2025, HDI 2023), United Nations Development Programme. CC BY 3.0 IGO. https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/documentation-and-downloads (retrieved 2026-09-22)
[^18]: EF English Proficiency Index 2024 (band), EF Education First. Proprietary; band cited as a fact with attribution. https://www.ef.com/epi/ (retrieved 2026-09-22)

HTML page: https://nostos.navoy.io/cities/shahrisabz