Remote work employed in non-resident country

Question

I am wondering about the legal details of a work situation. I would work remotely for a company that's not in the country I reside. That would mean the following situation:

• I am a citizen of country A
• I am a resident in country B
• I am an employee of a company based in country C

I am specifically wondering about whether it is legal to be an employee of a company based in this country C (and receive income in this country in the currency of this country) without being a resident and without any visa.

What authority in this country may I contact to know whether this is allowed? Immigration services (even though I would not be a resident)? Tax services (I assume I would pay taxes there anyway)? some other labour authority?

My current knowledge is that countries usually allow residence and work if the person holds a specific visa, but in that case I am not a resident of that country, hence my question.

In short: does being an employee of a company based in a country C require any particular autorization? And which authority would be in charge?

Answer 1

The main sticking point is country B. Country A doesn't care where their citizens go, and country C is not really involved.

If you have the right of abode and/or the right to work in country B, then it's not a problem.

If you need to get visas to remain in country B, then you will need to factor that in as part of the deal - that is to say that there will be a cost associated with getting visas, and there will be time necessary every 1-6 months (depending on the country) to leave the country and apply for a visa, allowing for the fact that it might not be granted, if they deem that you are actually doing more than just being a tourist.

And then there's the issue with tax. Where would you pay tax? If you stay in country B for more than 182 days, then legally you should pay tax there. Except that if you don't have a work permit then you generally can't.

There are many people who do this in Thailand (where I live), even though it's technically illegal because they see it as working in Thailand, even if you're not employed by a company in Thailand. (And you can argue that you're not, but they make the rules.) Every now and again, immigration have one of their many crackdowns and fine/deport these 'digital nomads' just to discourage other people from doing it.

Basically, the hard part is finding a country B that doesn't mind people entering long-term and working remotely within their borders, without paying any income tax to them.

Being caught working in country B without a work permit will at least lead to deportation, and possibly a hefty fine. Again, it depends which country you pick.