Countries Paying Remote Workers To Move — October Applications Still Open

If you’ve got a remote paycheck and an itch to relocate, this month still has real, time-boxed openings. The catch: the cash rarely comes from a national government. It comes from regions and small municipalities trying to keep schools open, bakeries alive, and town squares lit in winter. As of mid-October 2025, here’s what is actually open, what just closed, and what is rolling—with exact dates, amounts, and strings attached so you don’t chase a headline that isn’t real.

Quick scene-setter: why October matters

October is when grant rounds close, town councils switch to winter schedules, and year-end budgets get locked. If a call says “apply by October 22,” they mean documents received by then, not “start thinking.” The programs below fall into two buckets you can still use this month:

1. Municipal calls with hard October deadlines for a handful of households or one specific business.
2. Regional incentives that are either open until funds are gone or about to relaunch and are actively receiving dossiers or expressions of interest.

You’re a strong fit if you can arrive with a remote income, register locally, and in some cases add a light, needed activity (think reopening a shop, not launching a unicorn). The goal isn’t tourism; it’s year-round life.

Spain: a live October window in Catalonia, and an Extremadura grant that closed on the 8th

Spain had the loudest national headlines this year because Extremadura offered digital nomads up to €15,000 to settle in small towns. That round closed October 8, 2025. If you missed it, don’t spend October refreshing that page. Instead, look at municipal calls still open this month.

Castellolí (Barcelona province): free housing + €15,000 to reopen the village shop, October dossier window

• What’s on offer: the council provides a house and €15,000 toward fitting out a small grocery/retail space that the newcomer agrees to run. It’s a repopulation-meets-services scheme, not a passive stipend. Remote workers qualify if they also commit to running the shop a set number of hours.
• Why it’s unusual: the package mixes housing and business premises—you land with a roof and a reason to meet everyone on day one.
• Timeline: October application window announced locally this summer; most coverage notes submissions due in October with rolling council review. Treat October 22 as a practical internal cutoff because town offices slow down after that date for late-month regional observances and budget prep.
• Strings: minimum opening hours, proof you can operate the retail space, registration as a local resident, and a basic business plan.
• Receipts: Catalan- and Spanish-language reports detailed the package (house + premises + €15k fit-out) launched in late June; subsequent municipal and press posts confirmed the fall intake and specified October as the submission month.

Extremadura (regional): the famous up-to-€15,000 remote-worker grant is shut for now

• Status this month: Closed on October 8, 2025. Earlier notices spelled out the date. Some English blogs still say “open,” but the official cycle timed out. Expect a new tranche only if the region refills the fund.
• If you’re set on Extremadura: you can still relocate on Spain’s Digital Nomad Visa and watch for a future call; just don’t bank on money this autumn.

Other Spanish micro-offers to watch (rolling, small, real)

• Village housing support in places like Griegos (Teruel) reopens episodically: free or subsidized rent, small child allowances, help matching jobs. These are not remote-worker stipends, but they pair well with a remote income and are open/paused by council vote, sometimes announced with October council meetings. Act when a call opens; spots vanish fast.

What to do this week
Pick your lane: Castellolí if you can mix remote work with a light retail role; otherwise, line up your Spain DNV and housing, then camp on municipal noticeboards for winter calls. For anything “€15,000 plus housing all in one,” assume it’s a mashup of multiple programs and verify dates.

Italy: Calabria’s cash is back in the headlines, with fresh regional money and ongoing village schemes

Italy doesn’t usually pay “digital nomads” per se. It funds people who move to shrinking towns and add activity. That can still be you if your remote job pays the bills and you run a small, needed service on the side or simply buy and restore a home.

Calabria (region): new money in 2025, grants for newcomers who start local activity

• What’s on offer: Calabria is re-upping incentives that historically paid €20,000–€28,000 to newcomers who transfer residency to tiny towns and launch a micro-business. In early September the regional president teased a much larger housing-purchase incentive up to €100,000 for inner-area municipalities. Separately, a €5 million “borghi” call flagged contributions of at least €20,000 for those who relocate and open compliant activities.
• Status in October: Funds and calls are active at regional level; individual measures specify opening dates and “until funds exhausted” mechanics. If you can assemble a dossier in late October, you won’t be out of place; several Calabria pages confirm sportelli that open, pause, top up, and reopen.
• Strings: residency transfer, minimum time in place, and a business in line with the town’s needs (food retail, guesthouse, artisan services).
• Why it works for remote workers: your remote salary removes risk as you over-deliver on a small, qualifying local activity.

The classic “€28,000 for nine villages” scheme

• Provenance: earlier Calabria rounds named nine specific borghi; the model persists even as the exact list and sums shift. If a town post says “new residents who open a business”, it’s your green light to ask for the current bando and deadline inside October.

Why October matters in Italy
Regional offices push to commit funds before year-end, and small towns schedule autumn intakes to fill winter shop hours. If you can land by December with residency and a registered activity, you’re in the 2025 ledger, which councils like. Start now and build a one-page plan with opening hours and a 3-line budget—that’s what a mayor needs to say yes.

Croatia: small cash, real seats, and housing that beats the euro amounts

Croatia is famous for its digital nomad residency, not cash. But certain towns have dangled €3,000–€5,000-class relocation grants or symbolic-price houses to people who will live year-round. The grants are tiny next to your salary, but the housing and simplicity can be the win.

Legrad (Koprivnica-Križevci): the headline village

• What’s on offer: one-kuna-era houses, now €0.13-symbolic deeds, plus upgrade grants in some cycles for young families or newcomers.
• Status in October: rolling micro-tenders and case-by-case approvals still get reported; amounts vary by cycle and council. Treat October as a good month to file interest because councils set winter agendas now.
• Best use case: you have a remote job, you want low fixed costs, you accept north-Croatia winters and paperwork in Croatian.

Why it can beat a cash grant
Croatia’s value is often housing at a rounding error. Saving €350–€700 a month on rent beats a €3,000 check in under a year. Apply now while schools and councils are in session.

Portugal: cash programs are quiet, but two honest angles remain for October movers

Portugal’s 2025 has been light on pay-you-to-move headlines. The national attention went to bank rates and instant-payments rules, not relocation stipends. Still, October can be a strategic month if you’re remote.

Interior relocation incentives exist, but 2025 application windows were early

• “Emprego Interior MAIS” and related interior-mobility supports ran spring deadlines in 2025. If you see English posts pretending there’s a fresh October intake, be cautious. The official portals show closed spring windows for the year.
• What you can do now: line up housing in an interior municipality, register locally, and be ready for 2026 relaunch windows. Meanwhile, your October move secures lower rents and Portuguese state savings rates for your cash.

Azores/Madeira and “digital nomad villages”

• What’s real: structured community and workspace, town discounts, and soft-landing help; no government cash stipend. These programs remain open year-round with seasonal surges. If your goal is supportive landing over money, you can start in October and ride the island shoulder season.

How to choose fast: a 10-minute decision script

You don’t need a spreadsheet to cut through the noise—use this short test and pick a lane today.

Do you want guaranteed cash or guaranteed housing savings.

• If cash: Calabria is your October build-a-dossier project; Castellolí is your “house + shop + €15k fit-out” if Catalonia fits.
• If housing savings: Legrad-type Croatian plays beat €3k grants in practice.

Can you run one simple local activity alongside your remote job.

• If yes: Italy’s borghi are built for you; Castellolí’s shop program is a perfect fit.
• If no: focus on housing-first villages (Croatia) or wait for 2026 rounds in Spain/Portugal.

How winter-proof are you.

• Calabria and Catalonia winters are gentle; north-Croatia is a choice. Match your mood to your map.

Do you need English-first bureaucracy.

• Catalonia and Calabria will meet you halfway in English in bigger offices, but bring translations. Croatia is doable with patience or a fixer.

Make the call, then spend the rest of October assembling proofs: remote income letter, criminal-record check, health coverage, and any business-plan bullets a mayor will ask for.

What to put in an October-ready dossier (you’ll reuse this everywhere)

• Identity + residency: passport, visa path (EU citizen, Spain DNV, Italy elective/remote-compatible status, Croatia DN permit).
• Proof of remote income: employer letter or client contracts, last 3–6 payslips/invoices. This is your credibility.
• Local plan: one page with address, how you’ll register residency, and basic community contribution (opening hours if the town needs a shop, tutoring, off-season hours you’ll be present).
• Kid/school notes if applicable: towns love students; it’s the fastest way to gain priority.
• Language cover: a line that you’ll complete intro language classes and name a local volunteer program you’ll join.
• Timeline: “Arrival by December 10, residency registration the week of December 15.” Dates make officials relax.

Pitfalls most applicants miss

Chasing viral numbers without dates. A program that was real last spring doesn’t help you this October. You need live calls or rolling intakes.

Assuming “remote worker” always qualifies. Some schemes require a specific small activity: reopening a shop, running guest rooms, or providing a service the town lacks. Your remote job is welcome, but it may not qualify alone.

Waiting for perfect English pages. Small-town Europe announces in local languages. Use Google Translate, call the ayuntamiento/comune/općina, and ask for the bando/avviso/poziv.

Missing the school effect. Arriving with children enrolled before winter break is a superpower. It often moves you to the top of small-town lists.

Budgeting for the stipend, not the stay. Cash lands in tranches, after paperwork. You must carry 3–6 months without it.

Realistic October outcomes by country

Spain

• Closed: Extremadura’s €15k remote-worker grants ended Oct 8.
• Open now: Castellolí housing + €15k shop fit-out intake through October.
• Rolling/episodic: Griegos-style housing support opens when councils call for it; if you see a notice, apply that week.

Italy

• Open/ongoing: Calabria funding pot topped up in September; borghi measures include €20k+ contributions for newcomers launching activities, and housing purchase incentives foreshadowed up to €100k in inner areas. October is a legitimate month to file interest or submit where sportelli are “until funds exhausted.”

Croatia

• Rolling: Legrad-class offers continue case by case; amounts are modest (€3k–€5k range historically), but symbolic-price houses and low rent are the real benefit. October is a good time to raise your hand while councils plan winter decisions.

Portugal

• No October cash round for remote workers this year; interior mobility supports ran earlier. Use October to move, register, and position for 2026 while enjoying lower interior rents and clean banking rails.

What this means for you

If you want money this month, your best two plays are Castellolí’s house-plus-€15k and Calabria’s funded “move here + start something small” mechanisms. If you want “no shop, just me and my laptop”, then Croatia’s housing steals and Spain’s episodic rent-help micro-calls are the honest path while you watch for the next regional grant wave.

The internet loves one-line miracles. October rewards documents that arrive on time. Pick the place that fits your winter, send the dossier, and put a date on your calendar. The people reading your email aren’t trying to filter you out. They’re trying to fill a real need before the year ends.