🪦 Visa runs are dead

Welcome to the Freaking Nomads Newsletter, your weekly dose of stories, insights, tools, and opportunities for digital nomads and remote workers building a life without borders.

Hey Freaking Nomads,

I had "Chiang Mai, November" sitting in my notes app for weeks.

Didn't book the trip yet. Just penciled it in. I was already doing the mental math: Land, get your stamp, work through it, hop the bus to Laos around week eight, get stamped back in.

I've done that loop. Half the people reading this newsletter have done that loop.

But the math doesn't work anymore.

In about a week, the 60-day exemption in Thailand is gone. Most passports now get 30 days. And you'll only get two land-border entries a year. That’s it.

Flying doesn't carry the same published cap, for now, so technically you could fly out and back in more than twice. But let's be honest, immigration is already side-eyeing anyone who looks like they're commuting through arrivals, and a country that just gazetted a hard number on land crossings isn't going to pretend it didn't notice the loophole.

The visa run wasn't glamorous, but it was reliable. It let a lot of us treat "somewhere to stay for a few months" as a decision you could make casually. That's done.

A 30-day stamp is a holiday. It was never built to be a base, and Thailand just made sure it can't become one by accident.

In 2026, if you actually want to live there, not just visit, the best solution is a Destination Thailand Visa, or another proper long-stay route. Paperwork and all. An actual visa, for people who are actually staying.

And Thailand isn't alone in tightening the vibe. Bali's had its own reckoning this year, most recently a run club whose founders got banned from re-entering the country over how they were vetting members. Different story, same undertone: the era of nobody really checking is closing in more than one place at once.

Meanwhile, Vietnam is handing out 90-day e-visas to every nationality. Compared to what Thailand just did, that basically makes it the easy option for literally anyone this winter.

Chiang Mai is, arguably, still the most iconic digital nomad hub on the planet. It's where half of us first learned this whole lifestyle was even possible. But it just got harder to live in than to visit, it seems.

So I want to know, genuinely: is this the beginning of the end for Thailand as the default nomad base, or is everyone (myself included) overreacting to a paperwork problem? And if the crown really is slipping, where do you think it lands next?

Hit reply. I'd love to hear from you and avoid my own spiraling notes app LOL

Irene

Who is hiring this week? Here are some top roles to check out:

We get this question a lot from American readers: "Am I still technically a resident of a state I haven't set foot in for years?"

Usually, yes. And usually they're still paying state income tax on it, because the alternative sounded like a whole bureaucratic mess nobody had time for.

SavvyNomad sets US nomads up with Florida residency instead, no state income tax, and does most of the annoying parts for you:

Plans start at $60/month. Steep if you're just curious, but if you're paying state tax you don't actually owe, it evens out fast.

Sort out your residency →

🙏 Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend who might like it and help us spread the word. This would help us a lot to spread the word about it!

💖 Join our Community Hub! Discover & review digital nomad places, find workspaces, track your countries and connect with like-minded people who are nomading just like you → Create your profile for free here.

📚 Want more digital nomad guides? Read our articles on all things nomad, including travel tips, budgeting & finance, legal and taxes, community, productivity and more.

If you haven't already, you can also follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn and Threads for more no-BS digital nomad content (and plenty of memes!)

We'll see you there, Freaking Nomads 👋