South Africa Just Announced a Digital Nomad Visa (Finally!)

Thanks to the increased availability of remote work, so many people have taken advantage of their flexible work situations to travel the world while holding down full-time roles. And South Africa is set to become the latest country to offer digital nomad visas.

According to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s newsletter, the country’s Department of Home Affairs published draft amendments to introduce two new visa categories: a remote working visa and a “critical skills” visa, meant to employ “a points system for critical skills visas that will take into account factors such as age, qualifications, language skills, work experience, and having an offer of employment, amongst others,” according to President Ramaphosa.

“The introduction of a remote working visa responds to the rapidly evolving world of work, where increasing numbers of skilled workers, notably in the tech industry, are attracted by the lifestyle benefits of working from a remote location,” Ramaphosa wrote. “It also caters to so-called digital nomads, who are able to work virtually from any location in the world. A remote worker who wants to work in South Africa while being employed by a foreign company will be able to receive such a visa.”

Although details about the exact qualification requirements for these visas are still very much in the works, interested travelers can expect to learn more if they’re officially approved in the near future. The country is set to follow the same criteria introduced by different countries with similar visa requirements, such as Canada, the Czech Republic, Japan, Spain, and South Korea. 

If you’re curious whether the digital nomad life is for you, there are plenty of online tools to help you figure out if this lifestyle might work for you. You can put your salary information in to find out which countries offer digital nomad visas that you can afford based on your income and each country’s specific visa requirements.