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BL Premium reports that in a bid to boost SA’s ailing tourism sector, the Western Cape government has called for the urgent introduction of a one-year remote working visa that will allow international tourists to stay longer in the country.
Covid-19 has led to more employees across the world working from home, making remote working “vacations” possible. This could provides the struggling tourism sector with an opportunity to grow the international market. According to the latest figures from Stats SA, foreign arrivals dropped by 71% from 15.8-million travellers in 2019 to less than 5-million travellers in 2020. On Wednesday, Western Cape Finance & Economic Opportunities MEC David Maynier wrote to Tourism Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi-Ngubane and her Home Affairs counterpart Aaron Motsoaledi requesting that national government urgently introduce a remote working visa. Under current regulations, many visitors to SA are issued with a 90-day tourist visa upon arrival. “Introducing a dedicated remote working visa programme can attract a significant number of long-term, financially independent travellers to South Africa, not only during this period of economic uncertainty but also in the long term,” Maynier said. There has been a significant escalation of countries around the world rolling out remote work visas to attract visitors, Maynier pointed out, citing Mauritius, which consistently rivals SA as a tourist and investment destination. The island nation offers a “premium travel visa”, which allows non-citizens to stay and work remotely for up to one year.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Bekezela Phakathi at BusinessLive (paywall access only)
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