In the past couple of years, the pandemic has changed many aspects of everyday life – but perhaps none more so than the concept of working from home. A quick look at any job site will confirm the abundance of location-independent or remote-working opportunities.
The quest to work from exotic locations has sprouted and boosted entire industries catered to remote workers, including co-working hubs, co-living spaces, and a network of hosts offering short-term stays.
Meanwhile, digital nomads (DNs) have grown from an obscure group into a thriving global community of about 35 million-strong as of last year. Nomadic-community favourites that have recently risen to the top include choice locations such as:
- Tulum, Mexico
- Bali, Indonesia
- Chiang Mai, Thailand
- Medellin, Colombia
- Tallinn, Estonia
- Tbilisi, Georgia
- Prague, Czech Republic
- Lisbon, Portugal
- Istanbul, Turkey
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
The economic injection from digital nomads into communities mirrors that of tourists: boosting the hospitality industry, but with the added bonus of trickle-down support for other local businesses, and generally for a much longer period of time.
More than 25 countries have already started offering long-term DN visas to entice more remote workers to visit and stay with tax incentives, and a few Asean neighbours are following suit.
Thailand has recently announced a reduction of long-term visa costs by 50%, slated to take effect later this year, in the hope of attracting more DNs. Indonesia is planning to offer a five-year DN visa that will allow remote workers to live there tax-free, assuming their income is derived from businesses or sources outside of the country.
Despite being an ideal location smack-bang in the middle of both nations, Malaysia still remains relatively unknown to many in the DN community – yet it checks almost all the boxes, including:
- low cost of living;
- high-speed internet and mobile data;
- tropical climate with few to no natural disasters;
- English-speaking with fewer language barriers;
- variety of food to meet all dietary needs and taste preferences;
- safe with a lower percentage of violent crimes;
- access to affordable, high-quality healthcare; and
- being a regional travel hub within one to four hours of dozens of popular cities.
Malaysia offers everything a DN could want: an urban metropolis in Kuala Lumpur; beach/island life in Langkawi, Penang, Tioman, and Redang; historically engaging locales in Melaka and Kuching; cooler climates in Cameron and Genting Highlands; rugged hiking terrain in Mount Kinabalu; and unmatched ecological treasures across the rest of East Malaysia.
The benefits for Malaysia and Malaysians are equally as favourable. An influx of DNs brings in longer-term visitors who typically enjoy exploring and soaking in new experiences, including a preference of buying local products and eating local food.
A 2021 report from the Adventure Travel Trade Association found that DNs spent 36% of their earnings on accommodation, food, and transportation. And since their source of income is foreign, this represents a net positive inflow into any hosting local economy, which directly benefits micro, small, and medium businesses.
DNs also indirectly impact local talent via networking, boosting ideas, spurring innovation, and even stimulating investments, while encouraging the development of infrastructure catering to the improvement of the digital-economy ecosystem.
With its neighbours actively promoting themselves as options, Malaysia should seriously consider the introduction of a DN visa to attract more skilled remote workers. A win-win scenario and opportunity to cement itself as the region’s go-to digital nomadic hub awaits.
Reg Ching is a walking quadriplegic (OKU), digital business consultant, medical cannabis advocate, and cryptocurrency enthusiast. Follow his journey at regching.com.