Image source: News Central TV
Kenya is having a successful year. Protracted protests, debt defaults, and accusations from parliamentarians calling for the impeachment of Vice President Ligachi Gachagua are some of the clear highlights of this year. Still, this country is finding ways to win.
Kenya on Thursday amended its citizenship and immigration regulations and introduced a digital nomad visa. This visa is for individuals who work remotely for a foreign employer while choosing their own work location.
According to the revised rules, applicants for the visa program must be employed by a non-Kenyan company, earn an annual base salary of $55,000, and have no criminal record.
Kenya hopes the visa will bring more remote workers into the country and boost its tourism industry, which will grow by 21.3% in the first half of 2024 to 142.5 billion Kenyan shillings (11 billions of dollars). In addition to tourism, the visa is expected to benefit other sectors such as housing, transportation and hospitality.
However, details of the program remain unclear, including visa processing times, length of stay, and route to obtaining Kenyan citizenship. Further information will be announced soon as the program takes shape.
Kenya will join other countries such as Seychelles, Mauritius, Namibia and Cape Verde that have successfully rolled out the digital nomad visa, offering tax benefits to remote workers and the opportunity to live and work in beautiful cities. .
Remote work is growing in popularity around the world, and countries want to take advantage of it. In Nigeria, Lagos State plans to tax remote workers. Kenya also needs a quick win and is looking to capitalize on this growing travel work culture. It is unclear whether and how much Kenyan digital nomads pay taxes.
