U.S. Digital Nomad attempting to apply to U.S. applicant positions

[clarkmarcell]

Hello, I've just created a freelance profile and I am a U.S. citizen but I am location independent and travel constantly. I have not been to the U.S. in years although I am a U.S. citizen and pay U.S. taxes. Will this affect my ability to apply for U.S. applicants only?

Thanks,

Marcell C.

[prestonhunter · Accepted solution]

re: "Hello, I've just created a freelance profile and I am a U.S. citizen but I am location independent and travel constantly. I have not been to the U.S. in years although I am a U.S. citizen and pay U.S. taxes. Will this affect my ability to apply for U.S. applicants only?"

Yes. It will affect your ability to apply for such jobs.

"U.S. applicants only" jobs are meant for people who live in the United States. Citizenship has nothing to do with it.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Marcell C wrote:

Hello, I've just created a freelance profile and I am a U.S. citizen but I am location independent and travel constantly. I have not been to the U.S. in years although I am a U.S. citizen and pay U.S. taxes. Will this affect my ability to apply for U.S. applicants only?

Thanks,

Marcell C.

---

How do you stay "location independent"? Don't you have to use a permanent address of some kind, or do you just keep changing it every few months? Sorry, I don't mean to distract from your original question, but I travel all the time too, and I've found that I need to maintain a permanent address in the UK for various reasons, and spend at least six months a year there; I'm curious as to how somebody stays "on the road" permanently.

[prestonhunter]

re: "I'm curious as to how somebody stays 'on the road' permanently."

You have apparently not watched enough television.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Preston H wrote:

re: "I'm curious as to how somebody stays 'on the road' permanently."

You have apparently not watched enough television.

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Ha! You're certainly right about that - it's because I'm usually in a country where I can't speak the local language well enough to understand any TV programmes. (Although I do enjoy watching "Friends" in Spanish.) 

[martina_plaschka]

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Christine A wrote:

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Preston H wrote:

re: "I'm curious as to how somebody stays 'on the road' permanently."

You have apparently not watched enough television.

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Ha! You're certainly right about that - it's because I'm usually in a country where I can't speak the local language well enough to understand any TV programmes. (Although I do enjoy watching "Friends" in Spanish.) 

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As long as you speak the local language well enough to remain on the run, all's well, I guess...

[prestonhunter]

The funny thing is:

Upwork's marketing and promotional imagery meant for freelancers actually promote the idea of "digital nomadism."

But the policies and verification protocols really are intended for NON-nomadic freelancers. As compelling a notion as digital nomadism may be, Upwork's systems are not at all set up to accommodate freelancers who truly have no "fixed address."

[abinadab-agbo]

I've always felt like this idea of being a "digital nomad" isn't a thing.
It's not real.

[florydev]

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Abinadab A wrote:
I've always felt like this idea of being a "digital nomad" isn't a thing.
It's not real.

---

I like how they always show people working on their laptops at the beach...with all that sand.  Plus when was the last time  you went to a nice beach when no one else was around.  I like solitude and comfortable chairs when I work.

But there are definitely people who are not really firmly attached anywhere living the life.  I am somewhat envious of that even as I realize it probably isn't for me.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Mark F wrote:

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Abinadab A wrote:
I've always felt like this idea of being a "digital nomad" isn't a thing.
It's not real.

---

I like how they always show people working on their laptops at the beach...with all that sand.  Plus when was the last time  you went to a nice beach when no one else was around.  I like solitude and comfortable chairs when I work.

But there are definitely people who are not really firmly attached anywhere living the life.  I am somewhat envious of that even as I realize it probably isn't for me.

---

It's very funny if you look up "digital nomad" videos on You Tube. They tell you things like how you can learn web design in 2-3 months and then start earning $200/hour while your bikini-clad supermodel girlfriend hovers in the background, bringing you martinis. I'm sure that these videos are why so many people are desperate to get onto Upwork.

[florydev]

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Christine A wrote:

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Mark F wrote:

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Abinadab A wrote:
I've always felt like this idea of being a "digital nomad" isn't a thing.
It's not real.

---

I like how they always show people working on their laptops at the beach...with all that sand.  Plus when was the last time  you went to a nice beach when no one else was around.  I like solitude and comfortable chairs when I work.

But there are definitely people who are not really firmly attached anywhere living the life.  I am somewhat envious of that even as I realize it probably isn't for me.

---

It's very funny if you look up "digital nomad" videos on You Tube. They tell you things like how you can learn web design in 2-3 months and then start earning $200/hour while your bikini-clad supermodel girlfriend hovers in the background, bringing you martinis. I'm sure that these videos are why so many people are desperate to get onto Upwork.

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I knew that I should have learned web design!

[martina_plaschka]

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Christine A wrote:

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Mark F wrote:

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Abinadab A wrote:
I've always felt like this idea of being a "digital nomad" isn't a thing.
It's not real.

---

I like how they always show people working on their laptops at the beach...with all that sand.  Plus when was the last time  you went to a nice beach when no one else was around.  I like solitude and comfortable chairs when I work.

But there are definitely people who are not really firmly attached anywhere living the life.  I am somewhat envious of that even as I realize it probably isn't for me.

---

It's very funny if you look up "digital nomad" videos on You Tube. They tell you things like how you can learn web design in 2-3 months and then start earning $200/hour while your bikini-clad supermodel girlfriend hovers in the background, bringing you martinis. I'm sure that these videos are why so many people are desperate to get onto Upwork.

---

Good thing that I'm no nomad then, because I've absolutely no use for a supermodel girlfriend.

[clarkmarcell]

It's definitely a real thing. Plenty of people do it. It's just a different lifestyle. Sometimes we fall in cracks where society hasn't created solutions for us yet. Like how to verify your PayPal account when they flag you for making overseas transactions but they send a verification code to your home country number but you have a new number out of the country and you cannot attach an international number to your home account but you can't create a new Paypal because you don't have an international bank account...ugggggghhhhhhhh. It's worth the struggle though.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Martina P wrote:

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As long as you speak the local language well enough to remain on the run, all's well, I guess...

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I don't like the direction this is going in. I'm not a fugitive! 😞

[florydev]

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Christine A wrote:

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Martina P wrote:

---

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As long as you speak the local language well enough to remain on the run, all's well, I guess...

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I don't like the direction this is going in. I'm not a fugitive! 😞

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So you SAY...

[martina_plaschka]

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Mark F wrote:

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Christine A wrote:

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Martina P wrote:

---

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As long as you speak the local language well enough to remain on the run, all's well, I guess...

---

I don't like the direction this is going in. I'm not a fugitive! 😞

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So you SAY...

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Right. That's EXACTLY what a fugitive would say....

[clarkmarcell]

Hey Christine,

I guess it is a bit of an anomaly. I began traveling while working online for a few months then received a working holiday visa to Australia where I worked a full-time that sent me traveling as well. I'm only in one place for 2-3 months at a time and I have no permanent address since my address is the job site I'm currently attached to which always changes. I recently left Australia and have come to Thailand but will only be here for 2 months then I will move to my next destination. 

Because of visa restrictions, I haven't found a place I'd like to settle down for 6 months at a time but more so I do not wish to move back to the U.S. which is why I continue to travel. It's actually beneficial for me to spend less than 30 days of the year within the country, this way my income taxes are waived up to $100,000/year.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Marcell C wrote:

Hey Christine,

I guess it is a bit of an anomaly. I began traveling while working online for a few months then received a working holiday visa to Australia where I worked a full-time that sent me traveling as well. I'm only in one place for 2-3 months at a time and I have no permanent address since my address is the job site I'm currently attached to which always changes. I recently left Australia and have come to Thailand but will only be here for 2 months then I will move to my next destination. 

Because of visa restrictions, I haven't found a place I'd like to settle down for 6 months at a time but more so I do not wish to move back to the U.S. which is why I continue to travel. It's actually beneficial for me to spend less than 30 days of the year within the country, this way my income taxes are waived up to $100,000/year.

---

Cool! Where in Thailand are you? I want to spend next winter in Chiang Mai.

How do you get health insurance?

[florydev]

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Marcell C wrote:

Hey Christine,

I guess it is a bit of an anomaly. I began traveling while working online for a few months then 

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It is, but has been going on for a long time but I think there is a lot of marketing hype to it.

That being said, the answer to your originally question remains the same.  You are not working in the US you technically cannot apply for US Only jobs.  

[feed_my_eyes]

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Mark F wrote:

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Marcell C wrote:

Hey Christine,

I guess it is a bit of an anomaly. I began traveling while working online for a few months then 

---

It is, but has been going on for a long time but I think there is a lot of marketing hype to it.

That being said, the answer to your originally question remains the same.  You are not working in the US you technically cannot apply for US Only jobs.  

---

But then where do you say that you're living? "Nowhere in particular" isn't an acceptable response, I find.

[florydev]

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Christine A wrote:

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Mark F wrote:

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Marcell C wrote:

Hey Christine,

I guess it is a bit of an anomaly. I began traveling while working online for a few months then 

---

It is, but has been going on for a long time but I think there is a lot of marketing hype to it.

That being said, the answer to your originally question remains the same.  You are not working in the US you technically cannot apply for US Only jobs.  

---

But then where do you say that you're living? "Nowhere in particular" isn't an acceptable response, I find.

---

Heck's if I nose.

If it were me I wouldn't ask this question 🙂

[feed_my_eyes]

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Mark F wrote:

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Christine A wrote:

---

Mark F wrote:

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Marcell C wrote:

Hey Christine,

I guess it is a bit of an anomaly. I began traveling while working online for a few months then 

---

It is, but has been going on for a long time but I think there is a lot of marketing hype to it.

That being said, the answer to your originally question remains the same.  You are not working in the US you technically cannot apply for US Only jobs.  

---

But then where do you say that you're living? "Nowhere in particular" isn't an acceptable response, I find.

---

Heck's if I nose.

If it were me I wouldn't ask this question 🙂

---

If someone is a U.S. citizen and paying taxes in the U.S., then IMO they have a case for applying to U.S.-only jobs. As far as I'm aware, there has never been a concrete answer from any of the mods as to how long you need to be living somewhere in order to be considered a "resident" vs. when you're considered to be merely "travelling". 

[abinadab-agbo]

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Marcell C wrote:

Hey Christine,

I guess it is a bit of an anomaly. I began traveling while working online for a few months then received a working holiday visa to Australia where I worked a full-time that sent me traveling as well. I'm only in one place for 2-3 months at a time and I have no permanent address since my address is the job site I'm currently attached to which always changes. I recently left Australia and have come to Thailand but will only be here for 2 months then I will move to my next destination. 

Because of visa restrictions, I haven't found a place I'd like to settle down for 6 months at a time but more so I do not wish to move back to the U.S. which is why I continue to travel. It's actually beneficial for me to spend less than 30 days of the year within the country, this way my income taxes are waived up to $100,000/year.

---

Of course by now you would have found that whatever you gained in tax, you blew it on fares. Travelling isn't free.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Abinadab A wrote:

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Of course by now you would have found that whatever you gained in tax, you blew it on fares. Travelling isn't free.

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For me, it more than pays for itself. Renting even a tiny apartment in London costs a minimum £1,200/month; somewhere like Mexico or Thailand, £100-300/month. Not to mention the cheaper cost of living in general. Also, it's fun, and the weather is better. What's the problem?

[abinadab-agbo]

There is no problem at all.
But if you are truly a nomad, you should always be on the road. Everytime.
Only Mexico and Thailand is not enough.

[feed_my_eyes]

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Abinadab A wrote:
There is no problem at all.
But if you are truly a nomad, you should always be on the road. Everytime.
Only Mexico and Thailand is not enough.

---

I don't really see your point, nor did I say that I only travel to these two countries. Are you having a bad day?

[abinadab-agbo]

Hey, I was merely responding to your question, "What's the problem?".

If the nomad life is working for you, rest assured I have absolutely no problem with it.

And, I had a great day today.