Top five countries to work in that offer a Digital Nomad Visa

A new study from global payroll specialists, IRIS FMP Global, has revealed the best countries for remote working that offer a digital nomad visa; a specific type of work visa that allows individuals to work remotely away from their country of permanent residence. And while resilience was shown during the Covid pandemic, the fallout is impacting countries and sending signals of uncertainty that makes it difficult for professionals all over the world to unlock their power.

To find new ways to make people shine and smash targets, IRIS FMP Global used an online database of statistics to find the overall quality of life in various countries such as crime rates, cost of living, and pollution. As a result, 44 countries that offer digital nomad visas have been analysed and ranked to reveal which are the best to work in, and which could be worth reconsidering.

The overall best scoring country was Spain, which scored well on safety, climate, and overall quality of life. It was Spain’s health care that helped the country claim the top spot though, which offers universal coverage for all residents. However, Spain failed to score so well on the cost of living, ranking 18^th on the list.

Australia ranked second overall in the study and came first for the overall quality of life. Scoring better than any other country in the category means that Australia beat tough competition such as Iceland, Norway, and Germany. Quality of life is calculated by averaging factors such as cost of living, housing affordability, and air pollution.

5 highest-scoring countries offering a digital nomad visa, and what they performed well for:

1. Spain: Health care
2. Australia: Quality of life
3. Estonia: Safety
4. Iceland: Lack of pollution
5. Norway: Property purchasing power

Countries that didn’t perform so well in the study were Jamaica, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka – three locations that failed to offer a strong overall quality of life, making a poor atmosphere for day to day life. Jamaica came lowest in the study, mostly due to the poor safety score and the fact that it is a destination suffering a high crime rate.

5 lowest-scoring countries offering a digital nomad visa:

1. Jamaica: Worst for safety
2. Indonesia: Worst for quality of life
3. Sri Lanka: Lowest purchasing power
4. Vietnam: Worst for pollution
5. Colombia: Worst for traffic

While many of the lowest scoring countries overall were unable to provide safety and quality of life, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Colombia all scored very well on cost of living, while the likes of Iceland, Norway, and Australia were all at the bottom of the table for cost of living.

As the cost-of-living score increases, the price to income score lowers, along with quality of life, pollution, and purchasing power. As a result, it means that a safe and secure lifestyle comes at an expense that manifests itself in everyday life. Having a secure environment is essential to balancing work and life in a healthy way while enabling opportunities to do the things that really make a difference; both personally and professionally.

Safest 5 countries offering a digital nomad visa:

1. Iceland
2. Portugal
3. Czech Republic
4. Croatia
5. Germany

For the best remote working experience, that enables you to unlock your power, consider either Spain or Australia. However, if a hotter climate could distract from your productivity, consider cooler countries like Estonia and Iceland – two countries that experience average annual temperatures of no more than 10°C.