{"id":566620,"date":"2022-12-27T12:36:28","date_gmt":"2022-12-27T11:36:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/estherjacobs.info\/?p=566620"},"modified":"2023-05-15T15:05:43","modified_gmt":"2023-05-15T13:05:43","slug":"why-most-digital-nomad-visa-are-useless","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/estherjacobs.info\/en\/blog\/why-most-digital-nomad-visa-are-useless\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Most Digital Nomad Visa Are Useless"},"content":{"rendered":"

Why Most Digital Nomad Visa Are Useless<\/h1>\n

When to apply for a Digital Nomad Visa and when to save yourself the money and trouble<\/h3>\n<\/div>
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Recently, many countries have launched a ‘Digital Nomad Visa’, a document or program that gives digital nomads, location-independent entrepreneurs, and remote workers the legal right to work remotely, while residing away from their country of permanent residence.<\/p>\n

There are currently around 50 digital nomad visas! That seems like a good development. But what do digital nomads<\/a> – and especially those with a European passport, benefit from it?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>

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\"Een<\/span><\/div>
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A publicity stunt? Or is it a digital nomad essential?<\/h2>\n

Below is an overview of why I think the offering of a Digital Nomad Visa is mainly a fun – but no longer original – publicity stunt of those countries. I also list reasons why some should apply for such a visa. In the end, you will also find advice for governments of countries that want to do something that will actually benefit digital nomads.<\/p>\n

Are Digital Nomad Visas beneficial?<\/h3>\n
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  • I have been traveling and working all over the world for over 15 years; always on a tourist visa. They are often valid for 3 to 6 months and I don’t stay in a country that long at all.<\/li>\n
  • Moreover, with most EU passports you automatically get a tourist visa in many countries. You have to apply separately for a Digital Nomad visa, which costs time and money.<\/li>\n
  • If you work on your laptop in a country, it doesn’t mean you work IN that country. Most of us do our business online and our customers are elsewhere than where we reside. So technically we don’t work in a country and we don’t take over local jobs; that is what work visas are mainly for.<\/li>\n
  • Unfortunately, a number of digital nomads have run into problems in recent years. For example, the police in Indonesia has been very strict for a while. They have even arrested a group of digital nomads working in a co-working cafe, accusing them of “taking work from Indonesians”. It took a while for that to be cleared up. If you want to avoid such a situation, a Digital Nomad visa can come in handy.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Are visas for Digital Nomads still valid?<\/h3>\n

    It may still be a good idea to apply for such a visa in the following cases:<\/p>\n

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    • If you have local customers in that country<\/li>\n
    • When you do very visible work, for example as a speaker, or with local workshops<\/li>\n
    • If you really want to stay in a country longer, longer than 3 to 6 months<\/li>\n
    • If you like to avoid any risk or, for peace of mind, business, or status, like to do everything by the book.<\/li>\n
    • If you want to save visas, just like once the stamps in your passport \ud83d\ude42<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>
      \"Een<\/span><\/div>

      So what DOES matter?<\/h2>\n

      Governments don’t realize that we worry less about rules and administrative matters when we travel to a country to stay there for a while. There are other things that are much more important to us, such as good infrastructure and, above all, good internet. See also my blog ‘tips for remote working<\/a>‘.<\/p>\n

      I gave a presentation to the government of Cura\u00e7ao about what they can do instead of, or in addition to, a visa to attract digital nomads:<\/p>\n