The South African Republic earlier this year announced plans to introduce a Digital Nomad Visa in order to attract more qualified personnel to the country's economy. However, as it turned out, it will be necessary to change the tax legislation first.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his intention to launch a visa for remote workers in his address to the government of the country back in 2022. But then the delay occurred "due to non-compliance with mandatory public consultation procedures."
"There is a tax-related issue that needs to be addressed in the rules," said Leon Schreiber, South Africa's Minister of the Interior. "As soon as this is done, the department will begin to implement."
Initially, the ministry proposed to allow digital nomads, people working remotely for foreign companies, to live in the country six months a year without paying taxes, provided that they earn at least 1 million rand ($56,490) per year.
Another problem in South Africa is the long processing time for work visa applications. The process often takes more than a year. Both the President and the business community have repeatedly stressed that this situation hinders economic development.
Source: Bloomberg
