I’m pretty sure you at least have an idea of exactly what the Digital Nomad lifestyle is, that’s of course if you’re not fully versed on what it’s all about. If you don’t, to give you a brief run-down, the digital nomad lifestyle is that of people who work remotely and because of this privilege they enjoy of being able to work remotely, they choose somewhat of a nomadic life of travelling while they work.

So it doesn’t have to explicitly be work in the traditional sense, like typing at a computer or something along those lines. It can be something like a digital business which of course can be operated remotely. I think it’s safe to say that it’s quite a thing now, this thing of being a digital nomad as there are many people all around the world who identify as digital nomads. But what does the future of the digital nomad lifestyle look like?

Official recognition

The digital nomad community is exploding in its numbers, growing to a point where there needs to be some serious thought around the official recognition of this lifestyle. Nothing is set in stone yet, but the digital nomad rumour mill has it that some high ranking officials in those countries which have a little bit of an unconventional view on economic matters are discussing the digital nomad phenomenon at length.

Surely the tourism boards and even the revenue services of other countries besides the likes of Thailand can see the benefits of enticing digital nomads with a friendlier environment to host them as they bring foreign currency into the country with their mere presence? I would imagine digital nomads themselves would celebrate the day that they’re given official status and I guess for now it’s just a matter of proving your source of remote income.

Special travel clearance

As of right now, nowhere does a visa application form or travel clearance application have “Digital Nomad” as an option for declaring what is clearly a very important consideration in letting you into the country you want to visit, which is that of your occupation – how you earn your money (and actually whether you can afford to sustain yourself on your travels). It’s inevitable though – there’s going to come a time when all you’ll really need to do is prove that you’re a digital nomad and there’ll probably be a special arrangement in place for you to be able to firstly travel to those countries which you might have otherwise not qualified to travel to, and secondly, stay longer than what you’d usually be able to.

Specialised services

Lastly, there will definitely be specialised services aimed directly at digital nomads, such as specialised medical insurance (not travel insurance), discounts on accommodation and other travel-related services, and anything you can think of really which you’d put down as a “like-to-have” if you’re already living out your life as somewhat of a digital nomads.

I’m thinking here things like special visa classes, discounted airfare, etc.