4 ms·

I have always been curious about the concept of "digital nomadism" and remote working while traveling to many countries around the world. Most people I know liv

I have always been curious about the concept of "digital nomadism" and remote working while traveling to many countries around the world. Most people I know living this lifestyle have a very lax viewpoint on the concept that remote working around the world incurs special tax liabilities/visa requirements. I'm not sure if that's actually true or if living in countries for 2 months at a time for the purpose of remote working does create tax & visa nightmares. Do you have any advice for US citizens who might be interested in taking up that sort of lifestyle? In particular, are there countries that are trivially amenable to such arrangements or certain types of employment contracts / job arrangements that help provide legal cover for perpetually travelling employees?

proberts 6y ago
Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with the immigration and tax rules of other countries but what you mention I see happening more and more with our clients and our immigration laws are going to need to be changed to account for remote/no-fixed address employment.
vertis 6y ago
IANAL but I have been DN for a few years, albeit not a US one. In my reading, US citizens are responsible for US income tax regardless of where they are in the world. Some of that is balanced by double taxation treaties, but this doesn't apply if you're floating from one place to the next. While it's possible for some digital nomads to become a (tax) resident of nowhere, falling into a loop hole, it was my impression that this was not the case with US citizens. It's anyone's guess as to how long this will last, especially with this years uptick in remote work (if that is coupled with a return to the ability to travel after COVID). In the case of self employed digital nomads it's possible to structure your businesses to legally minimize taxes. I run my business out of Estonia, which may not be the cheapest tax wise but has the benefit of being an EU country, and somewhat transparent about tax. Estonia has flat 20% tax on share distributions. This is also great for startups. Money that comes into the business and stays in the business isn't taxed, simplifying growing your business. https://nomadcapitalist.com https://nomadcapitalist.com has some good reading on the subject, both blog or book. Regardless of whether or not you agree with his observations on certain things. I'm far from an expert, but if anyone wants to talk about my experiences, my email is on my profile. Edit: Is it allowed to add answers in AMAs, I'm not across the etiquette.
- vertis 6y ago
  Also Estonia has a Digital Nomad visa specifically for remote workers, allowing you to be in the country for ~1 year. Also a lot of digital nomads use https://safetywing.com https://safetywing.com for insurance. I believe they also have a remote team plan.

proberts 6y ago

Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with the immigration and tax rules of other countries but what you mention I see happening more and more with our clients and our immigration laws are going to need to be changed to account for remote/no-fixed address employment.

vertis 6y ago

IANAL but I have been DN for a few years, albeit not a US one. In my reading, US citizens are responsible for US income tax regardless of where they are in the world. Some of that is balanced by double taxation treaties, but this doesn't apply if you're floating from one place to the next. While it's possible for some digital nomads to become a (tax) resident of nowhere, falling into a loop hole, it was my impression that this was not the case with US citizens. It's anyone's guess as to how long this will last, especially with this years uptick in remote work (if that is coupled with a return to the ability to travel after COVID). In the case of self employed digital nomads it's possible to structure your businesses to legally minimize taxes. I run my business out of Estonia, which may not be the cheapest tax wise but has the benefit of being an EU country, and somewhat transparent about tax. Estonia has flat 20% tax on share distributions. This is also great for startups. Money that comes into the business and stays in the business isn't taxed, simplifying growing your business. https://nomadcapitalist.com https://nomadcapitalist.com has some good reading on the subject, both blog or book. Regardless of whether or not you agree with his observations on certain things. I'm far from an expert, but if anyone wants to talk about my experiences, my email is on my profile. Edit: Is it allowed to add answers in AMAs, I'm not across the etiquette.

vertis 6y ago
Also Estonia has a Digital Nomad visa specifically for remote workers, allowing you to be in the country for ~1 year. Also a lot of digital nomads use https://safetywing.com https://safetywing.com for insurance. I believe they also have a remote team plan.