Where do Digital Nomads Work?
I remember before I first started working remotely, I thought I would be working from a laptop in bed. I didn’t realize the abundance of incredible cafes and beautiful coworking spaces around the world. It even helped me discovered the top 8 coworking spaces around the world (that you’ve probably never heard of). It truly makes for an inspiring work environment. So really, you can find digital nomads working from anywhere that you can find an internet connection.
Work Visas
Disclaimer: Before I dive into this, please note this is NOT legal advice and is not to be taken as legal advice. Always seek a professional for legal guidance. What I am sharing is simply my experience of what I witnessed in the digital nomad community. Visit VisaHQ for more details on visa requirements.
In the past, people had to be physically present in order to work, so working abroad was a very black and white concept. You’re either working in a different country or you’re not. But now that people can work remotely from their laptops it becomes a bit of a grey area.
When you work at a restaurant, hotel, or even if you’re a photographer, your job requires you to be physically present and as a result, if you’re working in a different country you could be considered “taking away” work from locals. Whereas working from your laptop can be considered as not working physically in another country, especially when your clients are not based in the country you’re currently in.
All of this, in terms of visas for digital nomads, is still a huge grey area that needs to be addressed. For the most part, as long as the remote company you work for or your clients aren’t in the same country that you’re traveling to, it seems to be ok. And what I mean by “seems ok” is that there haven’t been too many issues reported for people who are working remotely from their laptop.
Rules and regulations are still being developed around working remotely as a digital nomad. Countries like Estonia are working on the world’s first digital nomad visa to address this, which was something I was excited to be involved in.
So, how do digital nomad stay in a country for a long period of time?
When traveling, tourists are typically allowed into a country for 30, 60, 90 days. Depending on where you’re from you may or may not need a travel visa to enter the country. Again, VisaHQ is a great resource to find out if you need a visa.
Digital nomads tend to go by the same guidelines. They’ll stay in a country for the allowed amount of time that tourists are allowed to stay for, then they will leave. Some digital nomads return to a country shortly after leaving, as there doesn’t seem to be any rules in place for how long you need to leave the country before you come back. Again this is a huge grey area.
Internet – the Lifeline of Remote Workers
Now let’s jump over to internet connection for a bit because a digital nomad it’s critical to your job. When I first started, being from Canada, I assumed the internet worked more or less the same around the world as it does in Canada. That was a very wrong misconception.
Internet quality and reliability vary depending on the country you’re in. Not all countries have good or reliable internet, as sometimes their internet will constantly cut out and the speeds will bring you back to the “dial-up” internet days.
If you’re trying to find a good “starter” location as a digital nomad consider the Top 10 Cities to Live in as a Digital Nomad. The locations listed are cities that have:
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Good internet
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Are fairly safe
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Affordable, where the cost of living is much lower than countries such as America
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Warm weather
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A good digital nomad community
There you have it. Digital nomads are a REAL thing and they have REAL jobs, just like the rest of us.
Ready to Work Remote and Become a Digital Nomad?
If you’re interested in transitioning from you 9-5 to working remote, as I did, learn how 1:1 remote career mentoring can help you land a remote job or check out these online courses that teach you how to earn an income remotely.
