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A question for digital nomads and freelancers who live abroad...

Ninjakid

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How do you guys get work visas for other countries? (Or do you?). From what I've seen most countries that allow you to immigrate require you to at least be going to school or working a job. So how do you guys do it? Or do you just go as tourists and kind of work in secret?

Thanks!
 
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ZF Lee

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How do you guys get work visas for other countries? (Or do you?). From what I've seen most countries that allow you to immigrate require you to at least be going to school or working a job. So how do you guys do it? Or do you just go as tourists and kind of work in secret?

Thanks!
Really depends which country you go to.

If you read @Ocean Man 's progress thread, yes, some places like South Korea highly require tertiary education as a requirement for a long-standing visa for work and business.

Even I had a chat with my dad just recently, and in the old days, even Singapore wanted degree-holder applicants. He only had a diploma, so he could only work a shorter period there. He made his own way after that, but that's another story.

Now, in Malaysia, closer to home, I used to be in close acquaintance with a church worker.
He's from the States, but somehow he got serving here for 20 years.
He'd do his work in the country until the visitor visa period ended, then a few days before the cut-off date, he would take a train or car all the way to the Thai border, go across, stay for 1-2 days, come back, get stamped and renew the period again.

He could pull this off in Malaysia because where he works, it's relatively close to the Thai border, what with highways and so on. But I can imagine for South American places, for example, it is tacky to pull off.

EDIT: Changed 'North' to 'South'..thanks @Ninjakid for the correction and laughs
 
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Ninjakid

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Ummm are you sure??

Really depends which country you go to.

If you read @Ocean Man 's progress thread, yes, some places like North Korea highly require tertiary education as a requirement for a long-standing visa for work and business.

Even I had a chat with my dad just recently, and in the old days, even Singapore wanted degree-holder applicants. He only had a diploma, so he could only work a shorter period there. He made his own way after that, but that's another story.

Now, in Malaysia, closer to home, I used to be in close acquaintance with a church worker.
He's from the States, but somehow he got serving here for 20 years.
He'd do his work in the country until the visitor visa period ended, then a few days before the cut-off date, he would take a train or car all the way to the Thai border, go across, stay for 1-2 days, come back, get stamped and renew the period again.

He could pull this off in Malaysia because where he works, it's relatively close to the Thai border, what with highways and so on. But I can imagine for South American places, for example, it is tacky to pull off.
Thanks for your answer. However I was wondering specifically how people who freelance online get to stay in other countries for extended periods of time.
 
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Ocean Man

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Ummm are you sure??


Thanks for your answer. However I was wondering specifically how people who freelance online get to stay in other countries for extended periods of time.
South Korea, haha
 

MattR82

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I don't bother with a work visa. Not much of a problem if working online and not with local businesses.
 
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Ocean Man

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Would be swell though if the North opened up.
Never mind the politics...the opportunities would be gi-gantic.
Untapped labour and natural resources.
haha, that would be a gold mine
I’m 100% confident that the conglomerates are waiting for this to actually happen.
 

Ninjakid

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I’m 100% confident that the conglomerates are waiting for this to actually happen.
Without a doubt. Economists have said if the Koreas reunite, the GDP will be off the charts.

And the chaebol will control every bit of it.
 
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Martin.G

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i have been wondering the same question, but in the case of usa. I know that they have a entrepreneur visa, but i don't know anyone who have got it.
 

Ninjakid

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i have been wondering the same question, but in the case of usa. I know that they have a entrepreneur visa, but i don't know anyone who have got it.
entrepreneur visa is someone who invests about a million dollars into an American business. Most countries have this.
 

Martin.G

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entrepreneur visa is someone who invests about a million dollars into an American business. Most countries have this.
I thing there is another one, that you don’t have a minimum. But you have to provide a plan to hire at least 5 citizen in the next 5 years.
 
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The obvious one is just travelling as a tourist and work online. Most countries are going to have around a 30-90 day tourist option.

Some other options I have used when that isn't possible:
- Look for countries where you don't need a visa or getting a visa is easy (Georgia, for example, offers a nearly year-long visa)
- Take a language class (often counts towards a student visa)
- Get a job on paper (read between the lines)
- Do tourist visa runs (Colombia and Mexico is an example)
- Do some work with a NGO or similar
 

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