Economic News

Digital Nomads: In Vogue During the Pandemic

The corporate world, traditionally averse to allowing employees to work from home, is now more open to this option as a result of the pandemic. A global survey conducted by the US research and advisory company Gartner revealed that more than 80% of the 127 company leaders surveyed were willing to allow part-time work from home, even after it becomes safe to return to the office.

Some countries have seen this as a great opportunity to attract so-called “digital nomads” to their economies. Bermuda is among the nations that, after successfully containing the first wave of the virus, began offering one-year visas to remote workers. The opportunity arose after officials noticed that when borders re-opened, tourists inquired about extending their 90-day visas,  joined local gyms, and reserved villas for months. Barbados implemented a similar twelve-month program on July 24; shortly after, Georgia announced its own project, and Estonia launched a digital nomad visa (although it had been preparing to do so long before the pandemic).