If you're a digital nomad without a permanent office (meaning you can work from anywhere you want), Indonesia might just be your next port of call.
This week, the Indonesian government announced that it would be offering a new type of visa that would allow remote workers to live in the country tax-free as long as their earnings came from non-Indonesia-based sources.
The scheme was proposed as a five-year "digital nomad visa", and was announced by the nation's tourism minister Sandiaga Uno, who expressed his hopes that the scheme could help bring over 3.6 million international professionals to the country next year, and that it would help place a focus on spiritual retreats and eco-tourism.
"In the past, the three S's were 'sun', 'sea', and 'sand'," he said. "We're moving it to 'serenity', 'spirituality', and 'sustainability'. This way, we're getting better quality and better impact on the local economy."
He also added that the decision to introduce the visa was made based on research which indicated that Indonesia – and more specifically Bali – was at the "top of mind" for 95 percent of remote workers when it came to ideal destinations.
Of course, not only will the plan look to boost tourism income, but there are hopes that it will be able to generate up to a million jobs without negatively impacting the locals.
Interestingly enough, there were already plans to introduce such a visa in 2021, but the plans were scuppered due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
SEE ALSO: U.S. influencer gets deported from Bali after pissing off most of Indonesia on Twitter
"Now with the pandemic handled and all the ministries getting involved and cooperating from the health side to the immigrations office, we believe that this is an opportune time to relaunch this idea," Uno said.
Prior to this new visa, those who wished to visit Indonesia as remote workers could only enter on a selection of visas that only lasted between 30 to 180 days maximum.
The new option, however, will definitely come as an attractive proposition for freelancers and flexible workers who may have been keen to work in locales such as Bali completely tax-free, with its many beaches, equatorial weather, and perpetual holiday mood all coming as cherries on the top.
If you have a flexible working schedule, would you be keen to take up the offer and work tax-free in Indonesia?
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Cover image sourced from Now! Bali and Honeycombers.
