Advertisement
PostMag
Life.Culture.Discovery.

Destinations known | Indonesia, Portugal and South Africa mull digital-nomad visas, but how to define exactly what ‘work’ is and where it is happening?

  • Digital nomads will be able to stay in Indonesia for up to five years and South Africa up to one year, under current plans. Portugal’s priority is the shoring up of its hospitality sector.
  • Thailand could make tweaks to its existing Smart Visa to apply to digital nomads, but knowing who would or would not break immigration law is unclear

Reading Time:5 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
A digital nomad in Bali. Indonesia has announced that a remote worker visa lasting for up to five years will finally 
see the light of day. Photo: Getty Images

It would seem to be a no-brainer: as the world reopens following the Covid-19 shutdowns, countries that saw their tourism industries devastated by the lack of visitors are laying out the red carpet for digital nomads.

Advertisement
The trickle that began with Estonia, in 2018, has now become a flood, with the Harvard Business Review recently declaring there are currently 46 countries and territories that offer visas especially designed for digital nomads (or close enough alternatives), from Anguilla to Vietnam.

The appeal is obvious. Not only are such visitors likely to stay longer and thus pump more money into local economies but also their needs are less likely to put a strain on services in areas that are prone to overtourism. Visas designed for digital nomads – typically lasting from six months to a year, although some are for two years – tend to exempt visitors from income tax so long as they are not making their money in the country or taking jobs from locals.

Furthermore, the ranks of the no-fixed-abode should continue to swell; the benefits of remote work for health, well-being and productivity are now well understood – by employer as well as employee – after months of work-from-home orders, and those who like to travel are realising that staying put for a significant period of time is better for the environment than rushing hither and thither in bursts of activity.

A man works on a laptop under a bridge in Lisbon, Portugal. Photo: Getty Images
A man works on a laptop under a bridge in Lisbon, Portugal. Photo: Getty Images

Three of the latest countries to be at least toying with the idea of offering specific digital-nomad visas are Indonesia, Portugal and South Africa.

Advertisement
Among measures designed to bring visitors back to Indonesia was the announcement this month that a long-term visa for remote workers – which had been in the works since before Covid-19 struck – would finally see the light of day. Holders will be permitted to stay in Indonesia for up to five years without paying tax to the country so long as their income comes from elsewhere.
loading
Advertisement