Interview with Giovanni Filippi, Secretary General Italian Association of Digital Nomads

In this column, we have often dealt with digital nomads, a broad category of workers who share the common feature of working remotely but within which there are substantial differences in culture, level of education, goals and earnings. To learn more about some of these aspects and how a country intends to incentivise the arrival of digital nomads, we turned to Giovanni Filippi, Secretary General of the Italian Association of Digital Nomads.  

Who are digital nomads, and what are their needs?

As much as we try to do so, it is impossible to give a univocal definition to the term digital nomad, by which we generally refer to professionals who use digital technologies to gain the freedom to work anywhere without being tied to a specific geographical location.

A macro-category that includes freelancers, entrepreneurs, and employees of companies that allow their collaborators to work anywhere remotely. From here, it is clear that the needs can be very different. However, the common elements are fast and reliable connections and visas that allow one to work legally in countries other than one’s country of residence.

Is there a number or an estimate of how many Italian digital nomads there are?

No, it is impossible to estimate precisely how many digital nomads there are in Italy, but also globally*, as they do not represent a well-defined professional category or target group. Several communities of digital nomads have sprung up on the Internet. Still, many are those who experience this lifestyle without recognising themselves in this definition or the stereotypes shared on social networks.

*In its report ‘How to make Italy an attractive and hospitable destination for remote workers and digital nomads‘, the Italian Association of Digital Nomads itself reports that various statistics estimate the number of active digital nomads globally at around 35 million as we noted in a previous issue of Smart Corner.

The feeling is that with the spread of remote work, we are experiencing an epochal change. What can we expect in this respect, as well as in the comparison between employees and remote workers perceived by companies?

There are many companies globally that use remote workers regularly. However, a distinction must be made between companies that are remote-friendly and those that are remote-first or fully remote.

What main initiatives are the Italian Association of Digital Nomads working on?

We are a non-profit organisation that wants to actively contribute to making Italy an attractive, welcoming and hospitable destination for remote workers and digital nomads from all over the world**.

With this vision, we are working with public and private institutions and organisations to create the right conditions in the territories so that digital nomads and remote workers can choose to move there temporarily.

Some of these are medium- to long-term projects, for example, those financed with PNRR funds*** for several municipalities in Italy; others will be launched soon, such as collaborating with the Tuscany Region.

As a point of reference in Italy for what concerns digital nomadism, we are launching research and studies to collect data to communicate and help to seize the opportunities that this phenomenon can generate, and on the other hand, to assess its social, environmental and economic impacts.

Last but not least, as a non-profit organisation, we are constantly engaged in fundraising activities to pursue our mission and increase the number of initiatives carried out.

**Criticalities, needs, shortcomings, advantages and other elements considered crucial by digital nomads in choosing Italy as a destination are listed in the 1st Report on Digital Nomadism in Italy, produced by the Italian Association of Digital Nomads.

***PNRR funds are linked to the Next Generation EU programme, the EUR 750 billion package agreed upon by the European Union in response to the pandemic crisis

How are you building relationships with institutions, businesses and local administrations to support those who work remotely?

In the common imagination, there is a distorted and misleading idea of who digital nomads are. We want to build relationships based on a different ‘awareness’ of the phenomenon, with public and private entities genuinely interested in exploring digital nomadism for what it is, a constantly growing and evolving movement that can generate opportunities but also risks in our territories.

A point that is by no means taken for granted: those who contact us often do so because, at the moment attracting digital nomads is a trend they have heard about, but when they begin to collaborate with us, they become enthusiastic about delving into the background of the phenomenon and understanding its real potential, opening up a whole new vision for their reality.

Is bureaucracy in Italy an obstacle to digital nomadism?

Undoubtedly bureaucracy is an obstacle, but we often realise that the biggest problems stem from a need for more awareness among those who do business and write projects about the risks and opportunities of attracting digital nomads.

As well as the difficulty of opening up to change without realising that the way of living and working is changing very quickly. As a country, we risk being cut off from this race, missing an important train to bring skills to our territories and activate processes of innovation and regeneration.

Which countries are most sensitive to digital nomads?

There are currently more than 50 countries offering visas****, facilities and initiatives to attract digital nomads. Some of these are historical destinations, such as Spain (especially the Canary Islands) and Portugal, while others are emerging now, competing to see who can offer the best tax proposal.

****With the Sostegni-ter decree, Italy introduced the figure of the digital nomad into its legal system in March 2022, establishing the rules for a dedicated visa for those arriving from non-European countries to stay in the country for a maximum of twelve months

Is there a model country or countries to look for openness towards digital nomadism?

We believe that each country has its own geographical, political, economic and social peculiarities and different elements of attractiveness that cannot be generalised.

For this reason, each nation should develop its own value proposition, starting from what are its territorial characteristics and needs, to transform them into a proposition capable of attracting and supporting this new generation of mobile professionals. It is not enough to copy what other countries are doing.

Let us explain why, in addition to the possibility of discovering corners of the world, stopping to live for 3-6 months in a country enriches the competencies and soft skills of the digital nomad.

In our vision, the digital nomad lifestyle is not just an opportunity to travel but to live and work in a different way than one has done, putting personal well-being and quality of life first and accommodating needs that change with the various stages of a person’s life.

By living new experiences, facing new challenges, in general stepping out of one’s comfort zone and coming into contact with other people and realities, one stimulates the learning of new skills and the improvement of one’s soft skills, each in a way that is most congenial to oneself.