Estonia offers special visas for “digital entrepreneurs”
As a result of pandemics, millions of people around the world are working from home, enough to have a computer and good internet connection. Estonia has come up with an original idea.
As a result of pandemics, millions of people around the world are working from home, enough to have a computer and good internet connection. This situation, analysts say, is the foretold of a world where the work environment is eternally transformed, as many people will continue to work from home even after pandemics. Estonia has come up with an original idea. Foreign states that want to live in Estonia but work for companies in other countries already have the opportunity to apply for a special visa.
Marrë nga Associated Press
Pandemia has created a new category of employees known as “endacaks digital”: specialists living in a corner of the globe but work for a company in another country.
"I am the chief executive of the company. At the moment I lead everything from the house, physically detached from the team. Other employees also work from home. We are going through a very interesting period. This has proven that those who have digital capacity can do everything from any country,” says Edilson Osorio, who runs a company in Brazil.
Brazilian Edilson Osorio Jr is the chief executive of a technological company. He works and lives for 18 months in the Estonian city of Tallinn on the shores of the Baltic Sea. It represents a trend that intensified during pandemics, when people from every corner of the world work for companies in another country.
"We are seeing a larger number of people who have become “endacak digital”. So even though they work for a company in a given country, they themselves are located in another country in the world. We began to see weaknesses in existing policies, as this group is not reflected in current regulations. So if you are a foreign citizen, it goes to another country or as an employee, or as a tourist. In the case of “endacs digital” they are considered illegal employees as they work for a company in a country where they have not provided work permits,” says Karoli Hindriks, founder of the company “Jobbatical”.
Estonia was the first to embrace an experiment in working format in pandemic conditions starting on August 1 a new program to respond to reality created by pandemics.
"Estonia has begun to give visas for “endacaks digital”. This type of visa is given to someone working in an innovative technological company, with an unproven product,” says Mrs. Hindriks.
Visa gives specialists the opportunity to work through the internet connection for companies in other countries and live in Estonia for up to a year.
"I think the biggest benefit for Estonia will be that it will attract people with new ideas that will further develop the business environment”, says Mrs. Hindriks.
Estonia is known as a country with a wide range of digital services: electronic voting, filling prescription for medicines through the Internet and other facilities.
"Unquestionably, the new visa that Estonia gives to “endacaks digital” is a step in the right direction. Estonia was the first, but there are other countries that are embracing this idea that is great improvement, but there are also full of flaws. One of the problems is that Estonia has imposed some obstacles to this visa. Authorities seek proof of monthly income twice as high as average income in Estonia,” says Christoph Hueber, “endacak digital from Germany”.
Foreign citizens classified as “endacak digital ” are considered “ citizens of digital space” and may apply for a visa via the Internet. Over 70,000 people from 170 countries have received the status of “ digital space citizen” in Estonia which gives them the opportunity to exploit digital capacity in this country, although this does not mean regular residence status.