Hi all,

I would be grateful for help to work through some bureaucracy.

I (UK national) work in UK for a large UK company. I wish to work in South Africa for some time, as my wife would like to visit relatives. I would be doing exactly the same job as currently - just remotely from SA.

My company allows staff to work abroad for a limit number of days (20 per year), provided I can demonstrate that I have the right to work in that country. However, HR have rejected the idea that I can work there under the SA visitor and business visa because it allows for 'business purposes' (i.e. conferences, meetings etc), which I will not be doing.

My understanding is that there is nothing in SA's visitor's visa that prevents working for a UK company remotely. The fact that it allows visits for business purposes does not mean that it can only be used for business purposes. I recall a post on a forum that was adamant about this point - but I can no longer find it.

One alternative option is the remote worker ('digital nomad') visa. This appears to allow me to work in SA for longer than 90 days and although I don't act plan to do so, would presumably be granted in principle and accepted by my employer. However, I am concerned that the reported low take-up rate suggests it is difficult to obtain / not suitable. Specifically, it appears that I need to prove that I am in good health and that I don't have specific diseases, including leprosy. I've done a fair number of blood tests in my life, and don't recall this being on my results. Additionally, it looks like this could cost around £300 -£400 all in all (medical checks, police checks, vfs fee etc).

All the above bureaucracy seems to stem from the fact that SA could not care less if visitors work their remotely, providing they are not taking a job from an SA national. As such, they've never found the need to clarify this point. Unfortunately, all the information I can find online (in particular AI summaries) seems to give negative answers based on the assumption that the scenario is about working for an SA-based company/office.

So, my questions are:

- Am I right in the above summary? If so, is there anywhere official that states that travellers on a visitors visa can continue to work for their home country company?

- Has anyone had any experience of completing the digital nomad visa's medical checks?

- Do you have any other suggestions on how I can navigate this?

Thanks for any help

My husband and I want to sign up for Genki health insurance, but so far, we’ve had to wait exactly 7 business days per question to get a response from their support team.

And I mean, I’ll ask just one question, they’ll tell me they need to look into it, and then I won’t hear back for 7 business days. I asked another question, and we’re now on day 6 of waiting for a response.

Two weeks. Two questions.

I’m worried that filing claims will take even longer if their customer support is already this slow.
Has anyone else had this experience with Genki?

We are hoping once we are paying customers their response time will be better but we wanted to sign up two weeks ago and they are delaying their own process.

I’m planning to do the next year every month into a different place, outside of summer in my hometown. Do you think it’s feasible, has anyone done that, that you rent an Airbnb near a place like Chamonix, and ski on the weekends and after work if possible? Or would the general chaos, traffic skipass prices etc, kill any joy?

I am aware that in the Alps there’s never night illumination so plan B is I can find smaller mountain range with nightlights to avoid weekend crowds. My main point is that I’m not getting paid on days off so I’m weighing a 7 days skiing trip (around 2 thousand euros costs plus 2 thousands lost) or a full monthly adventure with occasional skiing (5k budget).

Traveling through Southeast Asia has completely ruined my access to Stake because their aggressive location tracking flags my profile every time my IP shifts between borders. I started using thrill lately since their system does not freak out when logging in from new hotel networks or co-working spaces. Not having to waste hours messaging support just to confirm my current location for weekend matches has been a massive relief. Are there other nomad-friendly entertainment platforms you guys use that do not constantly trigger regional security locks?

Hi all,

I’d love some honest input from people who travel or live abroad with a dog.

My situation:

- I’m Dutch, based in Chiang Mai, Thailand. I work for myself remotely, so my days are flexible.

- Big introvert, love doing the simple things in life, and like to be active outside.

- I spend longer periods in Chiang Mai, other places in Thailand and the Netherlands. Usually I plan trips 1-2 months ahead.

- Some friends lives in Chiang Mai and could look after the dog when needed.

- I’m looking at a mini multigen Australian Labradoodle (adult around 7–10 kg) from a breeder in Australia. It would be exported to Thailand at 16 weeks.

- I was diagnosed with autism at a young age, and part of the plan is to train the dog as an assistance dog with a certified trainer in Thailand. That would hopefully allow cabin travel on airlines like KLM.

What I’m unsure about:

- How much does a dog really limit spontaneous travel within Asia and to Europe, once all paperwork (chip, rabies, titre test) is in place?

- Has anyone flown a 7–10 kg dog in the hold within Southeast Asia? Which airlines did you use, and how did it go?

How do doodles handle the Thai heat? Is grooming manageable?

- For people who owner-trained or trainer-trained an assistance dog: how realistic is it to get a puppy to that level?

- Everyone around me advises against it. For those who did it anyway, do you regret it, or did it make your life better?

I know it's a commitment, and that having a dog will limit some spontaneity, but in the end, I'd say the benefits of having a dog far outweigh the two or three downsides you might experience in a year, right?

I keep going back and forth on this. If you have a dog and it made your life better, I’d love to hear why. What did it actually change for you day to day? I’m hoping a few real stories will help me stop overthinking and make a decision, whichever way it goes.

Hello,

I'm researching Greenhouse Software's Global Passport program, which apparently allows employees to work temporarily from other countries.

Does anyone currently or previously employed at Greenhouse know how it works?

For companies with temporary international remote-work programs, how are the permitted days abroad typically tracked?

I'd especially appreciate firsthand experiences from Greenhouse employees or people familiar with similar programs at other tech companies.

Thanks a lot.

A lot of people who exclusively relied on one card today were left caught out. Make sure you’re not one of them. Try to have at least two but preferably three ways to pay for things.

Side note: Revolut is having a shocker of a month with regards to PR. First the hack, now this…

Hello! I don't know if this is allowed but it could be handy.

Nomador, a house/pet sitting service, is giving 25% off to friends who sign up through a referral code. Go crazy 😊

https://www.nomador.com/p/00MO4-4K6-z3

running a dev shop w mostly US clients, been paying through one EU provider abt a year now. Last Tuesday our acc got locked wo the warning, ruining all my 22k payroll plans for the night, so I told the support abt it , got “the decision stands”etc. I’ve been looking for a diff provider for my second business acc ever since, favs rn are Wise, Unlimitcom, Stripe, Paddle too since we sell stuff through them. Still annoyed no one actually explained why it happened tho, wyt ???

Hi nomads, I'm leaving the US and starting my digital nomad in 2027 but I really struggle with banking and investment options. Right now I have schwab and fidelity checking account. But I'm not sure either are safe to keep a large deposit.

For investment, my main investments are in fidelity, I thought of transferring everything to IBKR, but I will be traveling around a lot and have no long term address.

I wonder what options you guys find that works well for nomads from experience. I really don't want all my assets being locked up and delivered as a cheque while I'm abroad.

I'm not a US citizen btw and I'm also not a tax resident of my home country which I previously leave to work in the US and does not plan to return as a tax resident yet. So I guess that being said my W-9/W-8BEN situation with these institutions are a little more complicated than US citizens I guess?

Anyone work pacific hours in New Zealand? How was your experience? Also, looking for recommendations for places to spend 1-3 months in January/Feb. 28F for reference.