The Cipher - was not having a go at you - my point is wrt to the definition of digital nomad used by many which you just happened to be the one to post. To me you are clearly a remote worker for whom it became possible with Covid. I would say you are not a 'digital nomad', but a "remote worker"  because you are employed and dependent on that job with corporation.

13 hours ago, garyk said:

This is the crowd Thailand needs to go after. 

No, they're yours. You keep'em. Don't try and fob them off on Thailand.

On 12/4/2021 at 8:00 PM, Heng said:

Already is for plenty of folks.  All that is needed is half decent net access and legal foreign condo ownership.   

Net access is OK in Thailand, specially in Pattaya and Bangkok where I have condos. I get cheaper rate than in the USA. 1000/300 I get for 700 baht that includes dtac 10 gig of data. The same I pay $50 in my house in an Illinois university town and cant get in my Las Vegas condo unless I fork more than $200.

They should give work permit, starting with a minimum tax payments based on 40K baht incomes. People will flock from all over the World. No need for fixing existing corruption. In fact, I would not have moved to Thailand if it was squeaky clean like Singapore. I want agents to do everything for me with a reasonable fee.  It will be nice if they improve the air quality. 

Can't Thailand just stop trying to be a hub of whatever?

On 12/5/2021 at 2:33 PM, mokwit said:

The Cipher - was not having a go at you - my point is wrt to the definition of digital nomad used by many which you just happened to be the one to post. To me you are clearly a remote worker for whom it became possible with Covid. I would say you are not a 'digital nomad', but a "remote worker"  because you are employed and dependent on that job with corporation.

Oh I just saw this. You don't have to apologize to me and no offense taken. It's just a difference in definition.

 

For what it's worth, I do know people who run e-commerce businesses online (I do this too, actually but mine's tiny) and are able to run the operation alone or manage their employees from abroad. I do think that recent developments are increasingly ushering in a paradigm shift in the world of work.

 

Referring specifically to income-sustainable travel bloggers or whatever, yeah I'm sure some of those guys exist, but there can't be too many. Covid probably forced a lot of them at the margins into other employment too.

4 hours ago, mtraveler said:

Can't Thailand just stop trying to be a hub of whatever?

They should setup a Hub Cap committee to monitor the situation.

TIT.

On 12/4/2021 at 8:54 PM, mokwit said:

You are not really a digital nomad you are a remote working employee (or at least your wife is from what you wrote). That is not the same as someone claiming to make a living blogging or travel writing etc which is how the term is more normally applied. 

From that statement, your understanding of the range of different things that "digital nomads" might do seems a bit limited. In addition to the often lightweight things like blogging and travel writing, there are freelance graphic designers, freelance copywriters, freelance copy editors and proofreaders, freelance graphic designers, freelance software coders, freelance QA testers, freelance marketing professionals, freelance translators, freelance video editors, freelance SEO specialists, freelance web designers, freelance app developers, freelance accountants, etc., etc.

Disregard

On 12/7/2021 at 4:37 AM, CartagenaWarlock said:

Net access is OK in Thailand, specially in Pattaya and Bangkok where I have condos. I get cheaper rate than in the USA. 1000/300 I get for 700 baht that includes dtac 10 gig of data. The same I pay $50 in my house in an Illinois university town and cant get in my Las Vegas condo unless I fork more than $200.

They should give work permit, starting with a minimum tax payments based on 40K baht incomes. People will flock from all over the World. No need for fixing existing corruption. In fact, I would not have moved to Thailand if it was squeaky clean like Singapore. I want agents to do everything for me with a reasonable fee.  It will be nice if they improve the air quality. 

My 3bb is less than $USD 19. From August I have a optical cable all the way to my condo unit.

 

Not even available where I am in the US. Fiber goes to a box downstairs and is split into hundred of different Condo units copper wires cheapest $55 per month.

 

But Thailand cannot become an international hub for remote workers or Nomads because of different ministries that do not coordinate or share information. The are all stuck with antiquated ways, reluctant to innovate, and work for different purposes. You literally have TAT and PM level politicos promoting "workations" at the same time the Police or Immigraton will "pounce" on a hapless sop for working on vacation.

2 hours ago, PadPrikKhing said:

From that statement, your understanding of the range of different things that "digital nomads" might do seems a bit limited. In addition to the often lightweight things like blogging and travel writing, there are freelance graphic designers, freelance copywriters, freelance copy editors and proofreaders, freelance graphic designers, freelance software coders, freelance QA testers, freelance marketing professionals, freelance translators, freelance video editors, freelance SEO specialists, freelance web designers, freelance app developers, freelance accountants, etc., etc.

No it's not, read my other posts. I mentioned people with high end skills whose skills allowed them to work remote. I even mentioned proofreader/copy editors specifically.

 

 

I also pointed out how one proofreader had seen his earnings collapse as they used an algorithm that sent to the cheapest bid. I used programmers in Russia because when things are location independent you look for same quality available cheaper.

 

 

Many people working remote for a company since COVID but don't have a highly specialized/country specific skill are going to find that their employer works that one out too - if people can do the job from home that home can be in a country with lower wages like India or Russia.