July 8, 2024
PUTRAJAYA – Affordable living costs, incentives for remote workers and low inflation are attracting a growing influx of digital nomads to Malaysia, according to Tourism Malaysia.
“Employees will be able to travel and work remotely across different parts of Malaysia, with access to stable broadband connectivity and other facilities and services,” said director-general Manoharan Periasamy.
He said the introduction of Malaysia’s digital nomad programme “DE Rantau” in October 2022 had increased the popularity of “workcation” (working vacation) and “bleisure” (a combination of business and leisure).
“DE Lantau has benefited both local talent and overseas nomads by creating a vibrant ecosystem that supports the nomadic lifestyle,” he said in an interview.
DE Rantau was first launched in Penang on Sept 13 as one of the Malaysia Digital Catalyst Programmes which aims to make Malaysia a preferred digital nomad hub to boost digital professional mobility and tourism.
The pass allows people to live and work in Malaysia for up to 12 months and can be renewed for an additional year.
In addition to this special pass, digital nomads are also offered services during their stay.
Malaysia aims to attract around 80,000 digital nomads by 2025.
The programme is expected to inject about 4.8 billion ringgit into the local economy.
As of June 13 this year, DE Rantau had received 3,218 applications, of which 1,506 had been approved.
Applicants came from 78 countries, with the top five countries being Russia, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, Japan and Australia.
The average annual salary of an approved digital nomad is US$69,000 (RM325,024), with the majority having skills in software development, digital marketing, AI and machine learning.
A survey at the end of 2023 revealed that 40 per cent of approved applicants were staying in Malaysia with their families, impacting spending on tourism, education, food, accommodation and transport.
Manoharan said Malaysia is expected to see a surge in digital nomads, expanding its existing global network of remote workers and complementing those in neighbouring regions.
He believes there will be a mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and skills between these global talents and Malaysian experts.
There are various reports showing that Malaysia is popular with digital nomads.
According to global talent platform Remote, Kuala Lumpur made a big leap in its list of the top 100 best destinations for remote working, from 84th place in 2022 to 22nd place last year.
Malaysia was ranked number one as the most preferred country for digital nomads by the nomadlist.com platform in December last year.
