Surigao Rep. Bingo Matugas’ digital nomad plan moves ahead
MANILA, Philippines – When President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed Executive Order No. 86 on April 25, 2025, the Philippines took its first concrete step toward welcoming the global army of remote professionals known as digital nomads.
The EO directs the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Bureau of Immigration to issue one‑year, renewable Digital Nomad Visas (DNVs) to qualified foreign workers, granting them multiple‑entry privileges and tax‑exempt status on income earned abroad.
For Surigao del Norte, the news feels personal.
First District congressman, and now candidate for governor, Francisco Jose “Bingo” Matugas II, filed House Bill No. 8165—the Philippines’ original Digital Nomad Visa (DNV) Act. Submitted on 17 May 2023, the bill lays out eligibility rules, income thresholds, and safeguards to make the country a hub for legitimate remote workers.
Congressman Bingo Matugas explains the provisions of House Bill No. 8165 at the Digital Nomad Conference held last October 5, 2023 at Del Carmen, Siargao Island.
From House Bill to Executive Order to, hopefully, national law
Although the bill is still pending in committee, EO 86 adopts many of its provisions almost verbatim—minimum income (HB 8165 suggests US$2,000/month), health-insurance coverage, and a clean criminal record—to ensure only sustainable, self-funded workers qualify.
While EO 86 immediately opens the door, Matugas’ HB 8165 remains vital: it would write the DNV into law, lock in investor confidence, and empower agencies to craft detailed implementing rules. Palace support makes passage “much more than a possibility,” analysts say, citing Manila Bulletin headline that the bill is “gaining ground” after Malacañang’s endorsement.
What this means for Surigaonons
Digital nomads, who stay for extended periods of time in one locality, can bring great business and livelihood opportunities to local communities.
Digital nomads mean business, specifically increased business and livelihood opportunities for local Surigaonons.
The Digital Nomad Visa opens the door to year-round consumer spending. Remote professionals typically stay three to twelve months, renting apartments or homestays, buying groceries, hiring local guides, and eating in local food stalls—bringing dependable off-season revenue to local businesses.
The DNV is also a stepping stone to better connectivity in the province. It’s been proven that telcos chase data-hungry nomads. They tend to invest more in areas with a higher demand for connection—a demand digital nomads bring. In Bali and Chiang Mai, for example, the increase of digital nomads translated to faster fiber lines even in smaller and further flung areas.
Gubernatorial candidate Matugas has already flagged Internet upgrades in General Luna and Dapa as a provincial priority for 2025.
With digital nomads, the discrepancy between business opportunities in peak season and low season is reduced. Digital nomads even out the curve, keeping hostels, cafés, and transport co-ops busy year-round.
The DNV also paves the way for increased tourism that maintains sustainable growth. Digital nomads have smaller footprints—often renting existing homes—aligning with Siargao’s protected-areas status under the E-NIPAS Act, which Matugas helped champion. Expect more eco-friendly enterprise, not mega-concrete sprawl.
SDN District 2: Sharing the wave of opportunities
Siargao, which is District 1 of Surigao del Norte, already grabs most of the headlines—and with good reason. During Matugas’ term as congressman, road upgrades, surf events, and community‑run homestays helped the island climb to “World’s Best Island” status.
Now, Bingo Matugas—running for governor—believes that Surigao mainland, or District 2, can shine just as bright. District 2 towns such as Gigaquit, Alegria, Bacuag, Claver, and Mainit, for example, hide cool waterfalls, wide caves, and old shipwreck dive spots that few tourists have seen—natural treasures that, until now, have drawn little investment or promotion from the current administration.
The unique pebbled beach at Barangay Mabua, Surigao City. (Photo credits to Island Trotters)
As governor, Matugas plans to roll out the very formula he and his father, Cong. Lalo Matugas, personally designed and proved in Siargao: repair Surigao Airport and key roads for better access to these tourist spots, roll out fast internet on the mainland, and work with TESDA to train local guides and homestay hosts.
Remote workers could handle their online jobs on weekdays and explore these new tourist spots on weekends. The pesos they spend on tours, restaurants, and homestays would flow straight into the pockets of Surigao mainland locals all year round.
Matugas points out that because the formula he pioneered in Siargao worked there, he can do the same for District 2—giving mainland families the same steady income that Siargao is poised to enjoy with this EO (and the bill’s eventual passage into law).
The national picture
Executive Order No. 86 (page 1) issued by President Bongbong Marcos Jr. last April 25, 2025.
Under EO 86, applicants must show proof of overseas income (the Palace has yet to publish the exact figure) and comprehensive health insurance. Once the House and Senate ratify HB 8165—or its eventual counterpart—these rules will be codified, giving investors and local governments the confidence to build long‑term infrastructure.
Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco has already signaled the department’s support, noting that “remote professionals are high‑value visitors who stay longer and spend more.” Industry observers point to Bali and Portugal, where digital nomads inject millions of dollars into local economies while nurturing startup ecosystems.
The road ahead for Surigao
For Matugas, his message to Surigaonons is simple: the Digital Nomad Visa isn’t just for foreigners in search of adventure and paradise—it’s for every Surigaonon who wants steady work, faster internet, and a future where their children can find promising work without having to leave home.
With Malacañang’s seal on EO 86 and House committees already tackling HB 8165, the groundwork is set. What happens next comes down to the leadership voters choose this May. Voters will soon decide whether to entrust the next steps to the bill’s author—whose track record in Siargao provides a proven blueprint—and, in doing so, perhaps set Surigao mainland on an equally bright course.
