Living everywhere in every country as a jetset remote worker!

Being British, I think that you should be in the clear.  Unlike the US, the UK does not claim unlimited tax jurisdiction over its citizens, wherever they live.  So logically, your research could probably focus down like this:
1. What countries would you like to live in for 3-6 months at at time?
2. Which of those countries encourage, or at least do not erect barriers, to digital nomads?
3. Which of those countries can provide the basics you need, e.g., a pleasant, safe place to live, good cell connectivity, and high quality Internet, at a reasonable price and with minimum hassle?

Policy differences will trump cultural similarities, and you'll need to consider that carefully.  The two principal Portuguese-speaking countries are a good case in point.  Portugal is very welcoming to digital nomads, and make it increasingly easy to settle there temporarily.  Brazil, on the other hand, is cool to the concept, and puts up plenty of barriers. 

With the right banking infrastructure at home, good advance factfinding, and traveling light, I don't see any reason you shouldn't be able to make a go of it.  Good luck!

Dear Mike,

Don't overthink this.

Take your concerns to a company that specializes in Expat taxes.  I have used Tax Samaritan for many years .. www.taxsamaritan.com ...

You may need to google tax accounting for expats or tax accounting for UK expats as I don't know whether Tax Samaritan is a good fit for your situation.

--

To my knowledge, the 200 or so countries do not enforce their tax laws on drive-by cyber entrepreneurs.  Personally, I would let them find me if I was moving four times a year to different countries.  But you do you.

cccmedia

MikeGreo wrote:

Ever since I was a child, I've dreamt of travelling the world and living in many different countries. The only problem that didn't think this dream was possible because of work.

Okay you might say, you can take time off from work, but having lived and worked in the UK that is something I haven't been able to do to the extent I wanted.

Obviously we have limited holiday allowance and limited financial resources to make the travel possible. If a person is saving on tax it is more possible to travel.

So here is my proposition. What if I traveled the world and stayed in foreign countries moving from one country to another every 3 months?

Most countries allow a person to stay in their country on a travel visa for 90 days.

Given your financial situation and the geographical/language realities, Mike, I suggest that you consider visiting the Spanish-speaking countries of South America.  They comprise most of the countries on the continent, although enormous Brazil with its Portuguese-speaking population covers about half the land mass.

Once covid lightens up, you could roam from one country to the next with minimal language problems, provided you use your time now to improve your español.  Your travel budget will be reduced .. and you can expose yourself to the wonders of countries such as Argentina, Uruguay and the rest.

FYI, some employers will grant months of unpaid leave to employees upon request.  I obtained such leaves several times from different employers in my USA days .. and used the time to visit Thailand and Ecuador on separate trips.

cccmedia

All governments, naturally, want to have a degree of control over what happens in their country - and the possibility to tax income generated therein.
Free-wheeling, temporary residents are difficult to control (and usually also don't want to be controlled) and are thus unwanted by most countries' authorities. There are very few places providing visa that allow remote work - and the formalities (not least for taxes) are formidable.

If you do things legally - and only that case is allowed to be discussed here - you need a visa allowing self-employed work for each country you stay in. Tourist visa do NOT allow this!
You also need to register with the tax authorities and declare all income, following their guidelines. Every country has their own rules and they often conflict. Bilateral tax treaties reduce the incidence of double taxation - but it is still far more likely than no or less taxation (in addition to the amount of paperwork, for which you probably need a tax adviser in each country).

In conclusion: The world is not prepared for "digital nomads" (yet).
Almost all self-declared "digital nomads" are therefore illegal, most of the time - and many are arrogant enough to think they are above the law and don't need to contribute their dues, in taxes and otherwise, to the societies hosting them. This is also morally questionable!

Excellent post, beppi.   

I view digital nomadism as being in the same legal category as  birth tourism in most Western Hemisphere countries:  forbidden in some countries,  discouraged in many, but still technically legal, even in countries that discourage it.  A gray area, in other words.  As such, I'll continue to give advice on the subject, as I do on birth tourism, if it will help someone make a better informed decision.  Obviously, the first counsel should always be, "don't try it where it's against the law!"  Further, if a country  is actively discouraging something, even if it's not illegal yet, there's a message there that should be heeded.

The fact remains that some countries do seem open to the concept,  and tax laws in many countries don't directly address it.  While that's still true, I still see it as a viable option, for some people who choose carefully and live unobtrusively.

Off-topic, but: What is birth tourism?

Most self-declared "digital nomads" (previously "global nomad" - the concept predates the digital age) I encountered were in cheap tropical countries like Thailand and parts of Indonesia, where there is NO valid visa type for this and all of them had to do "visa runs" to secure new tourist visa (which could only be extended to three months from within the country).
Of course the officials did know what is going on and looked the other way. Some profited by taking bribes, and greed brought the needed payments ever higher.
And then there were political changes (democracy in Indonesia, military dictatorship in Thailand) and hundreds had to suddenly leave what sometimes was their "home" for years.
Not what I would want to base my lifestyle on!

Still off-topic, but: I googled "birth tourism" and things are clear now. I never lived in a country with "ius soli" (and find the concept strange), so was not familiar with it - my fault!
Singapore, where I lived for many years, is a popular target for purely medical "birth tourism", due to the excellent hospitals and doctors there. But the baby (and parent) gets no formal advantage related to visa or citizenship.

beppi wrote:

Off-topic, but: What is birth tourism?

Most self-declared "digital nomads" (previously "global nomad" - the concept predates the digital age) I encountered were in cheap tropical countries like Thailand and parts of Indonesia, where there is NO valid visa type for this and all of them had to do "visa runs" to secure new tourist visa (which could only be extended to three months from within the country).
Of course the officials did know what is going on and looked the other way. Some profited by taking bribes, and greed brought the needed payments ever higher.
And then there were political changes (democracy in Indonesia, military dictatorship in Thailand) and hundreds had to suddenly leave what sometimes was their "home" for years.
Not what I would want to base my lifestyle on!

I totally agree.  I don't like gray areas much either. 

Many people live very comfortably, though,  in the space of "whatever isn't forbidden is allowed".  If I can help them not do something totally stupid, that's a win.


*ETA*
I'd also draw a distinction between a modern "digital nomad" and the old fashioned "global nomad" whom, like you, I often ran into in the developing world in my younger days.  Those folks, in my experience, were usually living off the land, putting together a semi-legal living at semi-legal occupations in the economy of the host country.  Owning a laptop wouldn't make them digital nomads in my view.

In contrast, I think of a digital nomad as someone who brings a portable income from somewhere else to her country of choice.  She's paid in another country, by a person or organization in another country, and her work product is consumed in another country:  ideally, her only economic impact on the host country is a positive one, the extra cash she spends in it to pay for her living expenses, entertainment, and travel, plus the impact of any volunteer work she undertakes.

Somebody who comes to Brazil with a plan to teach Brazilians English online on a tourist visa is doing something just as illegal as if he were going to their houses and giving private lessons; I wouldn't hesitate to tell that person so.  On the  other hand, I wouldn't come down nearly as hard on a freelancer who's doing project work for Apple and drawing her living expenses from her US bank account at a Brazilian ATM, because she loves being in a warm, Portuguese-speaking environment.  I would tell her, though, that she could get a similar lifestyle with less hassle in Madeira, because the Portuguese government is friendlier to her plans.