Skopje, April 30 — For almost three years, the legal amendments to the Law on Foreigners, aimed at the officialization of digital nomad status, have not been adopted, but now they have been included in the election programs of the leading political programs.
The digital nomad status was envisioned through amendments to the Foreigners Law in October 2021. But these changes never made it into the Assembly.
With these amendments, digital nomads - foreign citizens - can obtain temporary residence in Macedonia. The amendments would allow them to stay for a maximum of one year, with the possibility of extending their stay.
In addition, the digital nomad will be able to bring their family, that is, his family members will be granted temporary residence.
The conditions for obtaining the permit are: that the foreigner is a resident of an EU or OECD member state, that he has a monthly income of at least 1,500 euros in Denar equivalents in the last six months after the request, that he has been employed for at least one year, that he is registered at mandatory social insurance and to have a certificate of employment from the foreign employer.
But despite the general silence about the explicitly mentioned changes, some of the political parties now mention the term "digital nomad" in their election manifestos ahead of the parliamentary elections on May 8.
For example, VMRO-DPMNE foresees the introduction of a renewable visa for digital nomads, that is, for foreigners who would like to spend between 3 and 12 months living in Macedonia.
The condition is that they have a remote job with a foreign employer and a regular monthly income.
This measure is said to attract young employed professionals to choose Macedonia as their home for a certain time, which will help the local economy and increase the country's visibility on an international level.
They also announced that the government will create a portal to promote the opportunities for staying in Macedonia and all the necessary information for digital nomads.
Meanwhile, the election program of the SDSM also states that they will introduce the possibility of a special multi-month stay by introducing the so-called "digital nomad visa".
"North Macedonia is a country with a wonderful climate, rich cultural and spiritual heritage, and decent prices, which makes it an excellent destination for attracting digital nomads. We have excellent conditions for working online from the entire territory of our country. The highly widespread 4G and 5G network allow digital nomads to perform their digital and IT tasks in a quality and timely manner from our tourist centers", they state in their program.
Such a measure, as they say, will strengthen the local economy and create an influx of tourism throughout the year.
Skopje.IN remains to closely follow the announcements and possible implementation of this visa, which we will report on further.