Moving & Living - Azerbaijan - Complete Guide

01Choose a base around work, study and everyday journeys

Start with the address that will shape your week. In Baku, compare a home around the city centre with an apartment near the metro station serving your workplace or campus. A household studying in Ganja needs a different search from someone working in the capital; do not choose a property simply because its advertisement calls it central.

1. Locate your workplace or campus, then shortlist homes using the exact address.
2. Request the monthly rent, deposit and separate utility charges in writing.
3. Ask how the heating, water supply and internet connection work in that building.
4. Confirm who provides the accommodation documentation for immigration and registration.
5. Use initial accommodation to inspect the home and test your routine before signing a longer agreement.

Make registration cooperation part of the accommodation conversation. The State Migration Service’s place-of-stay procedure requires a real address and supporting passport records; retain the host’s contact details and a copy of the confirmation. The registration step later in this guide explains the timing and nationality-specific exception.

02Separate visitor entry from permission to reside and work

Use the official ASAN Visa conditions to establish whether your nationality and travel document qualify for an electronic visa. Submit with the passport you will actually carry. Standard applications require at least three working days before arrival; the urgent option uses a three-hour application lead time. The passport must remain valid three months beyond the e-visa’s expiry, and you should print the issued document.

An e-visa permits a stay of no more than thirty days within its validity dates. It does not authorise paid employment. For a move involving paid work, distinguish the applicable work visa, temporary residence permission and work permit; one document does not automatically replace the others.

1. Identify your nationality, activity, family members and intended application location.
2. Confirm the entry procedure through the responsible visa service or diplomatic representation.
3. Identify a qualifying residence basis and collect the evidence for that specific category.
4. Build the application timetable around the expiry of your lawful stay.
5. Keep the permission decision, payment instructions and any employment conditions with your household documents.

The State Migration Service’s residence answers require an eligible temporary-residence applicant to apply at least thirty days before the existing temporary stay or residence expires. This is a material planning constraint for someone considering entry on a thirty-day visitor permission: do not plan to spend most of that stay apartment hunting before beginning the residence process. Establish the viable sequence with the authority before travel.

The same authority requires the travel document to remain valid more than three months beyond the proposed residence permission’s expiry. Check each accompanying person’s passport separately. A place-of-stay registration records accommodation; it does not create a new residence basis or an unrestricted right to work.

03Arrange the employer’s permit process and document your income

For employment requiring a permit, the employer handles the State Migration Service work-permit procedure. Ask who will prepare the application, which documents you must supply and how the proposed start date fits the residence process. Where an exemption is claimed, ask the employer to identify the actual legal category rather than treating the job title as proof.

1. Obtain the written role, salary, location and contract period.
2. Provide passport information and the requested evidence of qualifications.
3. Arrange the notarised qualification copy and required medical evidence using the authority’s document checklist.
4. Confirm that the employer has submitted its own registration records and the justification for employing you.
5. Keep copies of the decision and confirm the separate residence arrangements before beginning the activity.

The published work-permit procedure generally provides a one-year permit, or a shorter period when the contract is shorter. Extensions are for no more than one year at a time, and the employer must apply at least thirty days before expiry. Put the renewal date in the shared employment calendar so the household’s residence planning does not depend on a last-minute reminder.

If you intend to run a business, start with the State Tax Service’s business-starting guidance. Decide whether you will operate individually or establish a legal entity, identify the activity and arrange the applicable taxpayer registration and declarations. Tax registration, an employment-permit exemption and a qualifying residence basis are separate questions. Do not treat registering a small business as automatic permission to settle.

For overseas remote work, describe the actual activity to the migration and tax authorities: where you will perform it, who pays you and whether you will invoice clients or remain an employee. The visitor e-visa is not evidence of an unrestricted work right. Establish a lawful residence and activity arrangement before relying on foreign income to fund a long stay.

04Build an arrival budget and confirm your payroll and tax treatment

Work in Azerbaijani manats, AZN, and separate the money needed to arrive from an ordinary month’s spending. Obtain quotations for the actual city and home. Rent, temporary accommodation and schooling can dominate the household’s budget; one Baku apartment quote cannot establish a national cost of living.

For example, if your own agreed rent were AZN 900 and the contract requested a deposit equal to one month, the initial rent and deposit would total AZN 1,800 before other costs. This is a hypothetical calculation, not a Baku price quotation or a statement that every landlord requires that deposit.

Ask payroll for a calculation using your employer’s actual sector and your personal reliefs. The State Tax Service’s 2026 salary explanation distinguishes private non-oil-and-gas employment: its taxable monthly income bands use 3% up to AZN 2,500, AZN 75 plus 10% of the excess up to AZN 8,000, and AZN 625 plus 14% of the excess above AZN 8,000. These are 2026 income-tax bands for that category, not a complete take-home-pay calculation; social and medical-insurance deductions and applicable reliefs also matter.

For business or other income, use the tax authority’s guide to identify the relevant return and payment obligations. Keep contracts, invoices, payment records and foreign-tax evidence by tax year. A residence card does not by itself answer every tax-residence or treaty question. Explain your travel pattern and each income source to the tax office before deciding that overseas earnings fall outside the system.

05Apply to the school or university before fixing the household timetable

For an international-school option in Baku, The International School of Azerbaijan’s admissions procedure gives a concrete starting point. Its online application asks for the child’s identity documents, photograph and school records in English; the latest report must be signed and stamped. Prepare the health, language and learning-support information honestly so the admissions team can assess the provision needed.

1. Discuss the intended year level and arrival date with admissions.
2. Gather the records and supply the current teachers’ contact details for references.
3. Use the TISA application account and complete any requested assessment or interview.
4. Obtain the written placement decision and the full fee schedule.
5. Confirm the start date, transport and any additional support before finalising the home.

TISA accepts applications throughout the year, subject to places and support capacity, and has stated admissions priorities for particular employment and diplomatic households. Its Diploma Programme has additional timing conditions. An application is not a reserved seat; confirm the position for your child before planning around a particular classroom.

For a degree, ADA University’s undergraduate admissions page separates international applicants from citizens and certain other categories. Permanent residents and people whose dual citizenship includes Azerbaijan follow the citizen process. The international sequence is the university’s online application, an interview for shortlisted candidates, then the Study in Azerbaijan CAS application portal.

Prepare the diploma or expected-graduation reference, transcript, passport, photograph, CV and statement of purpose, with the required notarised English translations. The international application fee displayed on the page reviewed in October 2026 is AZN 100, distinct from the citizen-route fee. The listed April and July 2026 international deadlines have already passed; ask admissions for the next intake’s published schedule rather than treating those dates as upcoming.

Keep tuition, preparation courses and housing as separate budget lines. The migration authority’s residence grounds include qualifying full-time higher or technical education and secondary-school education. Admission, residence evidence and permission for any paid work remain separate tasks.

06Establish a qualifying residence basis before planning retirement

A foreign pension is an income source, not a retirement residence permit. The State Migration Service’s published temporary-residence grounds do not list pension income alone as a dedicated retirement route. Identify a basis that actually applies to you, such as an eligible family relationship, rather than assuming age and regular pension payments establish residence.

The published financial grounds include ownership of Azerbaijani real estate worth at least AZN 100,000 and a fixed-term deposit of at least AZN 100,000 with a bank operating in Azerbaijan. These are conditions for an application, not a guarantee of approval or a recommendation to invest. They also differ from permanent-residence requirements.

1. Identify the legal ground and request the category-specific evidence list.
2. Confirm how ownership or a qualifying deposit will be documented and maintained.
3. Review the proposed transaction and access to the money independently before committing funds.
4. Check pension-payment access, currency conversion and the tax treatment of that income.
5. Arrange healthcare suited to your actual eligibility and ongoing treatment.
6. Schedule the application and renewals using the lawful-stay deadlines.

For the deposit basis, the authority describes bank notification when the amount falls below the threshold or the fixed-term agreement ends. Do not budget that capital as freely available everyday spending while relying on it for residence. Keep a separate liquid fund for rent, treatment and travel.

Test the proposed routine in the actual neighbourhood: access to medical appointments, the building entrance, lifts, heating and nearby shops. A retirement plan should work without an employer organising paperwork or services. Document who will assist with appointments and record translations, and ensure each accompanying household member has their own appropriate residence arrangement.

07Prepare residence records, belongings and any pet journey

Use the State Migration Service’s document lists for your actual application. For temporary residence, the records include identity and lawful-stay evidence, proof of the qualifying ground, required medical evidence, two 3.5 × 4.5 cm photographs and accommodation documents. Where someone provides the home, their application and identity record also matter. Arrange with that person in advance rather than discovering the dependency at submission.

1. Check each passport against the proposed permission’s validity requirements.
2. Collect the civil, employment or education evidence supporting the category.
3. Arrange the required notarisation or equivalent certification and translations.
4. Agree the accommodation documents with the owner or provider.
5. Keep originals accessible and maintain secure copies separately from luggage.

For belongings, read the Customs Committee’s traveller information. Personal items and personal-use medicines have different treatment from other goods, commercial equipment or a carrier shipment. Prepare an inventory with quantities and values, and have the carrier explain the declaration procedure before collecting your boxes. Do not assume that an accompanied-baggage allowance automatically covers a later freight consignment.

For a pet, contact the Food Safety Agency’s veterinary-document service with the species, origin, route and travel date. I could not verify one complete current import checklist covering every origin and household pet from its published material. Obtain the applicable certificate format, vaccination or identification conditions and any permission requirement from the agency and your exporting authority before booking transport. Its domestic veterinary-passport form is not, by itself, proof that all entry conditions are satisfied.

Then agree the airline’s carriage arrangement, crate and transit conditions, and obtain the landlord’s written agreement for the animal. Keep veterinary records with the traveller responsible for the pet. Pack essential medication and treatment records where they remain accessible, and ask customs about any medicine requiring specific evidence.

08Reach your accommodation and start the arrival paperwork

Keep the passport, entry permission and accommodation address together for the journey. Save the address and host contact offline, and agree how you will enter the building if the flight arrives late. Check the immigration entry record before putting the travel documents away; it determines the dates used for stay and registration planning.

At Heydar Aliyev International Airport, the airport’s transport service identifies an Aero Express connection operating around the clock and an official taxi pickup area outside Terminal 1. Choose the option that reaches your actual accommodation, accounting for luggage and the final journey from the bus stop. Obtain the current fare before paying; a 2024 announcement is not a verified October 2026 fare quotation.

1. Complete border formalities using the document matching your visa.
2. Present any required customs declaration and retain its record.
3. Use the identified transport service or your agreed pickup arrangement.
4. Confirm the accommodation provider has the passport and entry-page copies needed for registration.
5. Record the applicable registration and lawful-stay deadlines in your calendar.
6. Keep a payment method and working contact channel available while banking is being arranged.

Imported mobile phones and other wireless devices require particular attention: the Customs Committee’s guidance directs travellers to declare them and describes the link between customs records and subsequent device registration. Use the declaration service or ask the customs officer about your device before leaving the customs area. Buying a local SIM later does not replace a required customs declaration.

For a long move, confirm the next migration appointment promptly. The place-of-stay process, residence application and any employer-led permit are separate records. Give the host a clear submission date and request the registration confirmation so your first week does not depend on an undocumented assurance.

09Register the actual address and keep immigration records current

Use the State Migration Service’s place-of-stay service for the address you occupy. The normal registration threshold is a stay exceeding fifteen days, with submission within fifteen days of arrival; for citizens of Kazakhstan, the published period is thirty days. Use the service’s nationality-and-arrival-date calculator to establish your deadline.

1. Provide the application and passport copy, including visa and latest entry pages.
2. Agree whether the hotel, owner or you will submit through the service’s electronic channel, regional migration department or ASAN centre.
3. Obtain the confirmation and check the name, address and recorded dates.
4. After moving, register the new address within five working days, unless the published same-owner accommodation exception applies.

The registration has no state fee. Keep it distinct from a residence permit and do not treat it as an extension of the allowed stay. Arrange each household member’s records rather than assuming one adult’s submission covers everyone.

Keep a second file for the residence application: submission record, decision, payment evidence and permission card. Confirm the current address held by the issuing authority when changing accommodation, because a residence document has its own continuing conditions. Coordinate work-permit renewal with the employer and retain the contact for the authority handling your case.

For taxable business activity, arrange the appropriate taxpayer registration with the State Tax Service and keep the issued number with your invoices and bank records. Ask which electronic access credentials fit your documents and activity before relying on an online filing service. Banking identification, taxpayer registration and immigration identification serve different purposes.

10Open an account and test the payment arrangements you need

Choose a bank by the transactions you will make: salary receipts in manats, international transfers, cards and household payments. ABB’s current-account service describes accounts in AZN and several foreign currencies, with domestic and international transfer facilities. Its account FAQ identifies a passport as the identity document for foreigners; contact a branch about the additional evidence and account-opening route for your status.

1. Explain nationality, lawful residence, tax residence and the expected source of funds.
2. Bring the original passport and any address, residence, employment or tax evidence the bank requests.
3. Compare account, card, cash withdrawal, conversion and transfer charges for the actual product.
4. Obtain the account details and exact instructions for an overseas transfer.
5. Test a small transfer and purchase before directing your main income to the account.

Confirm whether an online product accepts your documents before beginning a digital application. A bank’s general account description does not establish that every newcomer can complete the same phone-based process. If a branch appointment is required, ask for the document list and keep your existing payment method available while the application is assessed.

For rent and utilities, obtain the recipient’s correct details and retain payment references. Check how a bill identifies the household or subscriber account before entering it in a banking app. Do not assume that a payment to the right company has reached the right customer record.

If using a deposit as a residence basis, distinguish it from the ordinary current account used for bills. Confirm the term, withdrawal conditions and evidence provided to immigration before moving funds. Business receipts also need the account and records appropriate to that activity; ask the bank to identify those requirements separately.

11Agree the residential lease and accommodation evidence together

Ask for a residential kirayə agreement that identifies the property, parties, rent and period. Confirm that the person accepting payment owns the home or has authority to represent the owner. Read the notice provisions, repair responsibilities, permitted occupants and any animal or business-use conditions before agreeing to the deposit.

1. Inspect the apartment, including water, heating, appliances and access to the building.
2. Check ownership or the representative’s authority and agree the full payment breakdown.
3. Record the deposit, payment dates and return conditions in writing.
4. Agree which accommodation and owner documents will support your migration application.
5. Arrange the applicable signing or notarial appointment, with translation assistance where needed.
6. Record the handover with photographs, an inventory, keys and meter readings.

For notarising a residential rental agreement, ASAN’s specific residential service lists ownership evidence, a registry certificate concerning the property’s rights and encumbrances, and the applicable marriage and consent documents. Both parties, or properly authorised representatives, participate. Ask the notary to confirm the requirements for your actual household and property before arranging the appointment.

The residential service page reviewed on 13 October 2026 lists a state fee of AZN 35 and a service charge of AZN 5.25: AZN 40.25 combined for those two listed charges. This is the specified notarial service, not a universal rental deposit or agent commission. Do not substitute the different ASAN property-transfer renta service, despite the similar English translation.

Keep the landlord’s registration cooperation explicit. A home that looks suitable but lacks the evidence your immigration category needs can disrupt the application timetable. Ask which documents you will receive, who supplies them and when. Keep receipts for rent and deposit separately, and retain the signed handover record for discussions about repairs or deductions when leaving.

12Confirm insurance eligibility and establish your treatment contacts

Confirm your position with the State Agency on Mandatory Health Insurance, rather than assuming a temporary or permanent residence card covers every foreign household automatically. Its current FAQ distinguishes qualifying categories and contribution-paying foreigners, and describes the residence-permission card used by eligible foreign patients. Employment, taxable activity and other statutory categories affect the assessment.

1. Give payroll or the agency your actual employment and residence details and ask how coverage is established.
2. Obtain the effective date and the evidence used when attending a medical institution.
3. Ask which facility to approach first and whether the desired service requires a referral.
4. Arrange private or international insurance for needs outside confirmed local cover.
5. Identify a suitable routine-care provider and check its appointment, language and payment arrangements.

For an accompanying partner, child, student or retiree, establish the position individually. One worker’s contributions are not evidence that all family members have identical entitlements. Ask the agency about the person’s actual category and retain the answer with the insurance records.

When comparing private policies, read the provider network, outpatient and inpatient benefits, exclusions, excesses and claim procedure. Discuss existing conditions and ongoing prescriptions before purchase. If evacuation or treatment abroad is important to your household, obtain the precise policy wording rather than assuming ordinary local cover includes it.

Bring a concise medical summary, prescriptions using medicine names and relevant test results. Find out how the treating clinician will review repeat medication and where you can obtain it locally; an overseas prescription does not itself establish local supply. Keep insurer contacts, preferred facilities and appointment records in the household file. Separate the medical certificate required for an immigration application from the insurance arrangement needed for everyday treatment.

13Set up subscriber accounts, a phone and your regular transport

Collect the electricity, gas and water subscriber codes from the landlord, together with handover readings and the latest payment records. Agree whether the accounts stay with the owner or transfer to you. Paying a bill and changing the registered subscriber are different tasks.

1. Record meter numbers, readings and the handover date.
2. Check outstanding balances with the owner and provider before transferring the account.
3. For electricity, follow ASAN Kommunal’s consumer-name change procedure with the application, identity evidence, property or tenancy document and subscriber code.
4. Ask which owner consent or representative authority the property requires.
5. Complete the supply agreement and test that subsequent payments reach the correct subscriber record.

The electricity procedure lists the name-change service as free and normally immediate, with conditions that can change the timing. Outstanding debt can prevent the change, and mismatched records require additional processing. Obtain the documents and account confirmation for your actual address rather than assuming the rental signature completes the utility transfer.

For a phone, compare prepaid and postpaid requirements before choosing a product. Azercell’s subscriber-document instructions list a foreign passport among the accepted alternatives for a foreign citizen’s prepaid line; postpaid arrangements have additional residence and guarantee conditions. Take the original documents to the operator and obtain the number in your own name. Check the chosen plan’s validity, data allowance and renewal method, and test calls and internet before leaving.

For fixed internet, ask a provider to confirm service at the exact building and apartment. Agree installation access, equipment ownership, monthly charges and cancellation terms. A service advertised across Baku does not establish that your particular apartment is already connected.

For the Baku Metro, the operator’s fare page states AZN 0.60 per journey, effective from 1 October 2025 and reviewed here in October 2026. Forty journeys would therefore cost AZN 24 in metro fares: a calculated example excluding buses, airport transport and any additional card costs. Arrange the supported payment method and practise the route, including the walk from the station. Do not treat a metro fare as a universal fare for every transport service.

14Complete the first-month file and build a neighbourhood routine

Review the actual records you received rather than relying on the original moving checklist. Put entry evidence, place-of-stay confirmation, residence correspondence, employment or admission records, insurance and rental documents together. Record each expiry or outstanding appointment by person; a partner or child may have a different document sequence.

1. Check names, passport details and addresses on issued records and ask the responsible institution to correct errors.
2. Confirm income has reached the intended bank account and retain the first rent and utility receipts.
3. Check healthcare access and arrange ongoing prescriptions or appointments.
4. Test the school, campus or workplace journey at the time you normally travel.
5. Compare the first month’s bills with the budget and separate one-off purchases from recurring spending.
6. Review immigration and employer renewal dates together, including any appointment still required.

Build your local routine around places you can reach regularly. In Baku, a walk along the boulevard or through the streets around Icherisheher can sit alongside ordinary errands, rather than being a substitute for understanding your own neighbourhood. Locate nearby groceries, a pharmacy and the building’s waste arrangements; ask neighbours or the building manager how shared services work.

For community, begin with the institution that brought you to the country. Ask the university, school or employer about current activities and language-learning opportunities, then confirm registration and meeting details with the organiser. Choose something you can attend consistently instead of collecting distant contacts that never become part of your week.

Revisit the optional steps once the household is functioning. A student should keep admission and study conditions central to the file; a retiree should review pension access and the qualifying residence basis; an employed newcomer should coordinate the employer-led paperwork. The useful endpoint is a routine supported by the permissions, records and services you actually hold.