The rise of remote working has led to many leaving high-cost places such as San Francisco and moving to lower-cost and lower-tax jurisdictions for a better quality of life.
Working with a number of people that have made the move they have been surprised in many cases the better quality of life that you can get in places outside of the U.S and Western Europe.
However, ultimately this is very personal and what you find best for your circumstances and preferences I.E such as time zone specific.
I do want to go over some of my top places to work for millionaire nomads, but please remember this is subjective!
I have looked at aspects such as:
- Visas
- Tax
- Quality of living for the price
- Medical care
- Ease of living
Thailand – Bangkok – 01
South East Asia has been a popular option for nomads and one of the hubs has been Thailand. It has the beaches, low cost of living, the food and the friendly people.
I believe Thailand and in particular Bangkok is a great place to be based as a millionaire nomad. For me personally I look for a hub and see the beach islands such as Phuke and Bali in the region as a great place to vacation. I prefer to use Bangkok as a hub where you have more layers rather than living in other places such as Phuket and outside of Thailand. In fact, I had a 7-figure-a-year earning friend that thought they would move to Phuket only to move to Bangkok due to finding the place to get boring after a while.
Bangkok has many layers to the city and many people with a wide range of expat population. Within the expat population you can find many social groups, such as classical music, sport clubs, comedy clubs etc, there are lots of them. When it comes to food you can go to a mall and they have them around every 500m and have 100s of different restaurants. On the topic of food, Thai food is famous around the world, but you have so much in Bangkok from food courts in Terminal 21 for $1 to Michelin star restaurants and everything in between. I would even say it has the best Japanese food outside of Japan.
Also, if you are looking to cook you have supermarkets that sell all kinds of western food such as TOPs and Villa market which have food from all around the world. You pay for the privilige of course however.
The city boasts a great transportation system that outranks New York and London’s outdated transportation systems by far and at a fraction of the cost, plus reaches to most parts of the city. If you prefer to get a taxi going from one end to the other end of the city it can cost you as little as $10.
One of the downsides to the roads that like any Asian mega city is the traffic at peak times, it is awful and I would encourage getting public transport. The other downside for me is the sidewalks or pavements that can be quite dirty. If you can get over these small factors it can be a world-class city.
The accommodation is another selling point for high-earning nomads, if you are living in San Francisco you can be paying $2500 for a reasonable place. While, the same amount in Bangkok, can get you a nice 2 bedroom condo in a central location with a gym and pool.
Safety is why I have ranked it above places such as Mexico and KL, it’s a safe place on the whole. Of course, you can get some petty crimes in the tourist areas. However, I often see people leave phones and laptops un-guarded in coffee shops. Safety, other than road safety, has never been an issue.
Things to do in the city, you have many options. For me this is where it beats a place like Dubai as it has more to offer outside of the city. Thailand, as a whole is a great place, you have mountains in the north, beaches and national parks. For the weekend you can get away to the beach, islands or a national park within a few hour’s drive. The region also has some great places nearby such as Bali being a popular option and can get budget short haul flights.
Medical care, Malaysia, is the hub of medical care you have some top-end hospitals in Bangkok, such as Bumrungrad hospital, but you also have some great mid-term private hospitals.
Visas! Again this is why it’s one of the top places in the world for millionaire nomads. The elite visa is one of the world’s easiest to obtain and costs around $16,000. I have this and you get perks like a lift to the airport in a limousine (and other mainly worthless perks like spa and golf discounts) but the aid you get, the way you get treated and the support are amazing and worthwhile other than the bureaucratic hassle of other options.
Taxes, this is an advantage. You can if structured right pay 0% tax in Thailand, for example, you set up a company in the UAE and bring your income into Thailand in the next fiscal year and was earned outside Thailand it can be exempt from Thailand tax which is advantageous. It is not advised to set up a company in Thailand for most as the laws area somewhat grey and on many visas such as the Elite you are not directly allowed to sell in Thailand.
I would urge anyone to watch this video that describes a $250,000+ a year earner in Bangkok
In short the upside of Thailand (more specifically Bangkok):
- Accommodation cost and quality
- Medical care
- Tax – if structured right
- Activities to do (and discover the country and city)
- Get away options
- Low-cost travel
- Safety
- People
Cons of Bangkok
- Pollution (in the winter)
- Traffic
- Sidewalks
Malaysia, KL – 02
In many aspects KL is very similar to Bangkok, it has some great quality accommodation, medical care, and transportation. I would say that it beats Bangkok in terms of cost, infrastructure and English speaking. I can always have a conversation with the taxi drivers in KL. This is very rare in Bangkok, although this is changing with Grab and younger drivers.
KL has more green spaces than Bangkok and for accommodation it is bigger. While in Bangkok, you are getting mostly boxes as condos, KL has more spacious condos for the same cost.
The medical care in KL is as good as anywhere in the world and is a hub for medical tourism.
The food is again very similar to Bangkok you have the malls, which again are every 500 meters with all your western or other cravings. The local food which is a mix of Indian, Chinese, and Malay is fantastic and can get some great meals for $5.
The people in KL are great and friendly.
The transportation system is modern and goes to most parts of the city at a fraction of the cost of western countries. You also have great airlines and low-cost short hall flights.
When I first went to Malaysia (about 6 years ago) my first impression was who knew that Malaysia was this developed? Malaysia often gets overlooked due to factors such as expensive beer or ethnicity or not being as fun as Bangkok. However, you will miss out if you overlook KL. I think Malaysia is overlooked as a destination.
I would prefer Penang over Phuket to live and have some great options to visit in the country from rain forests, islands and caves. This includes KL having a wide range of expats and expat activities.
KL have always said it is 75% of Singapore for 1/3 of the price. Making it one of the best value places in the world.
Taxes can have a Thai-style structure where foreign income can be exempt from tax. However, you also you have Labuan options to set up an offshore company. Although, this has been a bit sporadic with rising tax charges in recent years.
Why did I put it in second? For me it came down to visa options, Malaysia did have a great option with the MH2 for millionaires and lower.
This changed in 2020. While the amount of showing the extra income should not be a problem for 6-figure earning nomads. It’s more the fact with the uncertainty that Malaysia seems to be taking. While it is fair enough to increase the price for such a great place to live and it was always likely to increase, however, the fact they stopped the program altogether in 2021 for me questions Malaysia’s stance on remote workers.
I could be wrong and Malaysia could take a U-turn but unlike Thailand which seems to want to attract a 6/7 figure earner into the country. Malaysia seems somewhat on the fence and the sudden change in policy that it’s made to MH2 and Labuan is a major concern for me.
Dubai UAE – 03
The city has seen the biggest attraction of millionaires in 2022 per capita and for the right reason, it was one of the only places that during the pandemic opened up to high earners and really did its best to attract high net worth to relocate to the city. It introduced nomad visas as well as its business visas and residency programs. This is one of the easiest and best, along with Thailand in terms of ease, to obtain in the world.
The residency programs can be 1 Million AED in real estate or set up a business in one of its free economic zones.
You can obtain a Nomad visa if you have an income of over $5000 a month and health insurance.
Dubai is a frictionless place to live with zero tax and with aspirations to become the world’s most liveable place by 2040.
Home to the world’s biggest everything it ranks higher than the other two cities on the list in tax structuring (hard to beat zero) cleaner and more efficient.
The Marina should be considered one of the best places to live in the world. It has everything you would want, all the malls and western food in a single place. I would place it with Singapore as the closest thing to utopia (giving Singapore the top spot due to being greener and better transportation).
The weather can be a tale of two. The winter/spring/autumn can be some of the best in the world with little rain and 30+ degrees. However, the summer is unbearable and many leave for this period with termperatures hitting 40+ degrees.
Safety is among the best in the world. Having been there, it is very safe to walk around and is a very clean city as well.
Transportation, Dubai has a good metro line although needs expanding. Many are opting these days for electronic scooters to get around. For air travel I would argue one of the world’s best airliners with a good airport.
I would put Dubai in many aspects a better place for nomads than KL or Bangkok even more so if you are working in a global time zone due to its location. But, I have put it down to two main factors.
I think Southeast Asia cities are more diverse and have more to offer and the region itself has more to offer. Not to say UAE doesn’t have some great places, the mountains near Oman and going to the desert and the red sea are all close by but SEA just has a more diverse range of options close by in my opinion. The other is the value, at the top end if you are looking for seven-star hotels and the world’s top restaurants and malls Dubai, of course, does it better. However, think for millionaire nomads Bangkok and KL have all that Dubai has to offer for a better price. You have world-class shopping, restaurants, hotels, and airlines (both have Emirates and Qatar) in both cities for a fraction of the price. I booked a penthouse at the RITZ Carlton KL for $750 for two nights. This would not be possible for that price in Dubai. Add the medical care in both KL and Bangkok which is just as good for a lesser amount. The other two cities top the list for me due to those reasons.
Although, I would say for those looking for a more frictionless easy place Dubai is a perfect place.
Honourable Mentions
Singapore
The more efficient version of KL. Yet, for a millionaire nomad not the top option for value. Not the cost of living as I don’t think this is too much of a factor but the residency is around $2 million USD invested in a Singapore business and would say for those that are under the mid-8 figure net worth you have better value options in KL. Although, if you are looking for one of the best places to live and are happy to invest $2 million it’s one of the best places on the planet.
Lisbon
Has a great E.U residency program leading to citizenship. Low tax for 7 years, and zero tax on crypto. Coupled with a great climate and a low cost of living. A large expat and nomad scene. This is purely a personal reason as just prefer the Asia vibe and over Europe. However, I totally why many nomads are moving to Lisbon.
If you have any questions on residency, taxes or investments in each of the areas, please email me at info@investmentsforexpats.com and I would be happy to help.
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