The Digital Nomad Revolution — History, Current Trends, Future
Employers too have started to realize that eliminating the need for large office buildings, desks, offices, work stations, and the associated infrastructure could add to their bottom line. Both are now starting to consider a future where most knowledge workers will primarily work remotely, periodically visiting an office location for in-person meetings. Businesses (including Facebook, Apple, Google, and Bank of America) have extended their remote-working policies and are considering a permanent move to a remote (or hybrid) workforce model as a means for a) reducing costs b) improving productivity and c) employee well-being. These trends have led to a new lifestyle where workers relocate to an exotic location for a short duration and then move to a new similar location. These folks are often referred to as “digital nomads”.
This is an article about such digital nomads. In it, we cover the following topics:
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Who Are They?
At its most basic, a digital nomad is a person who travels frequently, with no set home base, and works remotely to support his or her lifestyle. This adjective “digital” is an important aspect of this lifestyle since only jobs that are performed digitally (usually through the use of the internet) enable this life-style. A large number of professions meet this requirement — software developers, graphic designers, lawyers, currency traders, freelance writers — the list is long. In discussing this trend, we should realize that the activity itself is not so important as the fact that there is no office or work location that a person is expected to show up to on a daily basis. They have the freedom to work from anywhere with the Internet connection.
The second part of the term — nomad — implies a person who travels frequently, with no set home base. Such folks often spend only a few weeks or months in a destination before heading out to the next place, thus being constantly on the move. This makes the nomadic lifestyle perfect for those who love to travel. While the time period is not as important, typically, to be considered a digital nomad, the person will not spend more than six months in any one place.
What about folks who are not knowledge workers? A factory worker, delivery van driver, or a restaurant chef cannot become a digital nomad while remaining at the same job. But as the movie Nomadland portrays, perhaps we are embarking on a future where workers who perform such in-person jobs may also adopt (or be forced to adopt) a nomadic lifestyle where they move from place to place and pick up new jobs. Therefore, while this article focuses primarily on “digital” nomads, the information provided here can be useful to anyone who is considering an itinerant lifestyle.
Why Is This Lifestyle Becoming Popular?
The digital nomad lifestyle is popular among individuals who like to travel and visit new places. They like to explore new cultures, cities, food, and geographies. They also want to have jobs that offer independence and flexibility. Such people often live a minimalist material existence, and crave rich experiences rather than physical possessions. Below are some of the most common factors that attract people to a nomadic lifestyle:
- Freedom from traditional office settings
- Disillusionment with office politics and supervisors
- Less stressful working environment
- No commuting
- No need to dress up and make yourself up each day
- Savings due to lower rent or living expenses
- Opportunities to travel and learn about new cultures
- Time to engage in outdoor hobbies
- Desire to meet new friends, love interests, life-partners, etc.
- More control over one’s life
- Environmentalism and minimalist lifestyle
Is It Legal?
The short answer is yes; there is nothing illegal about being a digital nomad. However, you have to make sure that you acquire the proper travel documents and follow the laws of the country you are visiting.
In many countries, immigration laws were written before the era of the Internet and have not been updated to keep up with new trends in remote work culture, digital nomadism, and freelancing. Therefore there are many aspects of the digital nomad lifestyle that fall within a grey area of the law because these old laws consider work as something to be done in a factory, office, or some other physical space, and there are no regulations to cover work that can be done remotely. However, all countries allow a person who is visiting the country to work on business or work-related issues that may arise in the person’s home country. If you do not plan to stay in a country for more than 6 months, digital work can fall under this category. Thus, in most cases laws do not prevent remote workers from travelling and doing their jobs from abroad.
There is an exception to this rule. If you plan to take up a new job in the country you are visiting then you may have to review the regulations related to work by foreigners and visitors; these regulations differ for each country. You may require a work permit.
Visa Issues
Most digital nomads travel on a tourist visa, which usually allows them to stay in a country for somewhere between 90 and 180 days, depending on the person’s nationality and the destination country’s laws.
Obtaining a work visa is harder; it usually defeats the whole purpose of digital nomadism; a work visa normally requires a contract and a long-term stay, so it’s not the preferred option for most digital nomads. Another opportunity that has become available recently is a special visa for digital nomads, such as the e-Residency in Estonia and a SMART visa program in Thailand. Other countries, such as Bermuda, Barbados, Georgia, and Croatia, have begun to offer similar visa programs dedicated to remote workers and digital nomads.
Working in a Foreign Country
From a legal point of view, you are not allowed to work for a local employer when you are on a tourist visa. However, these regulations were created to prevent visitors from taking jobs from locals, which doesn’t apply in the case of digital nomads. If your employer is not a local company, then remote work for your employer outside the country you are visiting is usually not prohibited.
No one is going to catch you if you open your laptop on the beach. Authorities usually turn a blind eye to this for two reasons: First, you are doing nothing illegal and not taking a job away from locals. Second, you are just a tourist, bringing money into the country’s economy and supporting local businesses. You should respect the duration restrictions of your visa and keep a low profile when working, just in case. Work discreetly, don’t make a big public display of it, keeping in mind that there is a very small chance that someone could ask you questions.
Surprisingly, digital nomadism has a long history. An important technical step that allowed remote work took place in March 1983, when a recently formed technology company called Compaq Computer Corporation created the world’s first portable computer, the Compaq Portable. Shortly after, in the same year, the world saw the first location-independent professional or digital nomad. He was Steven K. Roberts, who rode on a computerized recumbent bicycle and was featured in Popular Computing magazine. Another important period of this story was 1985, when a satellite system called Motosat was established, allowing remote access to the Internet, giving digital nomads the ability to live and access communications from anywhere in the world. Sadly, the Motosat project was a failure.
Digital nomadism has rapidly grown in popularity since 2014, when websites ranking cities by cost of living, weather, and internet speed started helping nomads choose where to live, and international conferences for digital nomads (such as DNX) sprang up. The trend continued to gain momentum, especially with employees of technology companies in Silicon Valley. National Geographic started the Digital Nomad blog, and Dell Computers launched a short-lived website called Digital Nomads. Moreover, in 2013, a documentary film about the digital nomad lifestyle was made by Christine and Drew Gilbert, titled The Wireless Generation.
But the most critical phase of this movement occurred in 2020 with the COVID pandemic and the ensuing worldwide lockdowns.
A rising number
The population of digital nomads has risen dramatically. According to a survey conducted by MBO partners, in 2019 there were 7.3 million Americans who identified as digital nomads. Between 2019 and 2020 (boosted by Covid-19), this figure rose by a staggering 49%. Today, there are over 10.9 million digital nomads from the US alone. Increased flexibility, higher salary expectations, freedom, and the ability to work anywhere in the world are powering this growth. Pieter Levels, the founder of NomadList, predicts there will be a billion digital nomads globally by 2035.
Most are freelancers
A recent survey from the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) provides a profile of digital nomads. According to ATTA, most (36%) are freelancers for multiple companies, 33% own their own business, 21% work as a regular employee for one specific company, and 5% work as consultants for one specific company. Digital nomads work, on average, 46 hours per week. The report also indicates that 20% of respondents became digital nomads during 2020, likely as a result of the pandemic.
Varied Professions
As to profession, digital nomad jobs range widely, from engineers, designers, and creatives to marketers. However, aside from entrepreneurs, computer programmers and engineers tend to earn higher salaries than other remote professions.
The average age is 32
The global pandemic has given rise to another unexpected trend — younger nomads. AND.CO’s report shows that 42% of all nomads are Millennials (aged 25-40 years) and the average age of a digital nomad in 2021 is 32. Before Covid-19, the share of Baby Boomers (aged 57-75 years) who were nomadic was rising — they were choosing to spend their time traveling instead of sitting in their gardens. Many combined this travel with freelance work and, in 2019, 27% of all digital nomads were Boomers. The pandemic changed these demographics. Due to higher risk of infection, most older nomads decided to stay safely at home. Now, just 17% of digital nomads are Baby Boomers, but this could rise in coming years.
Remote companies have more women leaders
Becoming a mother is one of the greatest challenges for the career of women. Taking time off to raise children often means fewer promotions and results in a gender wage gap. A digital nomad lifestyle can change this. Released from an office desk and 9-5 routine, women and working mothers have been able to flourish. Almost 30% of fully remote companies have women CEOs, founders, or presidents. Compare this to the measly 5.2% of female company leaders in traditional workplaces, and it’s no surprise women are choosing and promoting the nomadic lifestyle for themselves and their employees.
Digital nomads earn well
An Outside survey shows that 19% of digital nomads make up to US$50,000 annually, 46% of them earn between US$50,000 and US$100,000, and 35% of respondents reported earnings of more than US$100,000 per year. Thus, we can see that remote workers can actually earn well. Besides, they often choose to spend their money differently, on things that really delight them instead of routine spendings at the homeland. Being a digital nomad is a lifestyle choice, and maybe it’s right for you!
2021 has been a “coming of age” year for the digital nomad lifestyle, and its popularity is set to increase in coming years. Here are some projections for the short and long term.
The near future is a bit complicated for international remote workers. The rise of the Delta variant, new travel restrictions, governments that can’t make up their minds about their travel policies, and local lockdowns mean that hopping easily from country to country remains a challenge. However the long-term prospect is very bright. Covid-19 has demonstrated that many of us don’t need a set location or office to effectively do our jobs. Global tech giants like Twitter, Apple, and Facebook declared they would be making the permanent shift to remote work; and many smaller businesses have followed suit. The cost advantages of this model (reduced real estate costs) will make companies who do not follow it uncompetitive. Furthermore, such companies will face recruitment challenges as candidates begint to prefer remote work and will not join (or leave) companies that do not offer it. Many companies are adopting a hybrid model wherein they hold occasional personal meetups or adopt a part-time remote policy.
What do the figures say about the outlook for nomads? Technology has led to a situation where 56% of individuals could do at least some of their job remotely; and 41.8% of the American workforce, for example, is currently working remotely. This is an unbelievably large increase of 87% over pre-Covid times. Although it’s expected that some of these remote employees will eventually return to their offices, it is projected that an estimated 36.2 million Americans (22%) will still be working remotely by 2025. Another global survey shows that by 2025, an estimated 70% of the workforce will be working remotely at least five days a month.
So, given the above corporate policy trends and statistics, we can say confidently that the digital nomad lifestyle is here to stay? Without a doubt!
If you’re already on the digital nomad path, you know what makes your life so fulfilling. But if you’re still considering it, look at the following figures:
- 90% of digital nomads report being highly satisfied at work — MBO partners
- Travel and experiential purchases are one of the best means to maintain happiness and enjoyment — Cornell Chronicle
Living a digital nomad’s life doesn’t mean you lose sight of your career, friends, or family. It’s absolutely the opposite. The flexibility allows you to do what you love — travel widely, travel part-time, learn foreign languages and cultures, sunbathe on the best tropical beaches, or whatever else makes you happy.
We have all been cooped up for very long that when we eventually do get to travel, we may not want to go home. As a digital nomad, you don’t have to. Contact our team if you need assistance with choosing the right destination for you, learning about the regulations of a specific country or acquisition of travel or visa documents for your work and travel.