Estonia may open the door to EU with a 365 days Digital Nomad Visa

Few days ago, the Estonian ministry of interior met with Jobbatical, Remote Year and WiFly Nomads in preparation for the creation of a Digital Nomad Visa who may enable access to one year visa in Estonia.

The door to Europe

There is no doubts that getting access to a Schengen area would be a big win for Digital Nomads. Estonia is a beautiful country with many digital advantages, but in my opinion, being able to sip an Espresso in Paris before a flight to Nice anytime under a 12 months Visa while giving you access to hundred destinations in Europe would be paradise.

As soon as 2019

Discussions were mentioning that the program could start as soon as early 2019, I guess being a e-Estonia resident must give early bird access, just a quick heads-up ;-)

Unknown Requirements

I would be very surprised that using hashtag #digitalnomad with pictures by the beach or sipping cocktails would be enough to qualify. I can only assume that a serious screening would apply prior getting access to the Shengen Zone.

Could Asia Leap Frog Estonia?

Some programs for tech startups already exists, Malaysia Digital Hub is one of them, letting you get a visa and some interesting tax incentives if your business or idea qualifies … and even ideation stage projects can apply!

Collateral Development

This is something I want to write about for a while but in a nutshell, at AngkorHUB Coworking/Coliving, we are mainly attracting coders, bootstrappers and marketers from different industries sharing one common trait: Digital Nomads (or digital world citizens?).

Local economical impact aside, I can testify is that Digital Nomads can bring a solid expertise to any communities. I can only imagine how months instead of days with a proper visa could positively impact a commune, village or city with a bunch of highly positive and mindful professionals sharing knowledge true workshops and training. I already see it in Asia, but what if they wouldn’t have to fly under the radar…

I’ve started NomadVisa.com as a community service dedicated to the future of work for digital nomads. We believe we should be heard.