u/Accomplished_Win_519

This is a bit of a follow-up to a post I've already shared here, but felt it could be extensive enough to warrant a separate thread.

Context: 27y/o freelancer ($3k+/mo) who's been exploring DNV options lately, bit of a latecomer to the UAE freelance visa scene so wanted to dig into it as well.

As I understand, multiple freezones in UAE allow you to legally work and live there once you submit the relevant documents and payment for the freelance package (be it 1 year, 2 years, or more).

However, given the situation around rejections for us Pakistanis, I was wondering if the same holds true for these visa types?

Specifically, if anyone here has recent experience with the following:

• GoFreelance (Dubai Media City) - seems the most popular
• RAKEZ - seems amongst the more affordable packages
• Fujairah Creative City
• SHAMS
• Any other freezone I may have missed

I'd appreciate some insight on if you were able to acquire both the freelance license AND the residence visa? If so, how long did it take? Any unforeseen hidden costs?

Also, if you’re a creative professional (media, design, etc.), let me know which free zone worked for you and whether you’d recommend it.

Apologies in case this has been addressed extensively on this sub, and thanks again!

Quick context: married 27 y/o, no kids, earning the aforementioned amount as a remote worker.

To further narrow the scope, I want to preface by saying that I've done some rough research into my options already and here's what I know (feel free to correct):

1. Malaysia (roughly $2000 monthly requirement): Great country, been there before and the combo of quality of life + remote work infrastructure is top-notch. Cost of living is great too. Only problem is that it would take me AGES to get a DN visa at this point due to super long waiting times + there's no PR path. I believe you get a visa for 2 years and can maximum extend to 1 additional year, but that's it

2. Spain + Portugal ($3300 - 3600 monthly requirement): I can just about meet this and both countries are beautiful BUT I've also heard horror stories about their systems, how long it takes to get applications processed, the bureuacratic nature, etc so really unsure about this too

3. The hipster European route: Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Bulgaria, etc. Admittedly haven't looked too much into this option so would appreciate advice from someone in the know. However, for Latvia specifically the income requirement might be a tad high anyway at ~$3950

4. South America ($1500 - $2500 monthly requirement): Great value on paper like the SEA countries but for some reason I'm not hot on it, maybe because quality of life is a bit uncertain? I've heard good things about Uruguay fwiw over in r/digitalnomad

Happy to talk about this with like-minded people and discuss my/our options together!