There are more than 200 million expats worldwide. They face a niche set of challenges associated with their mobile lifestyle. They are required to make critical decisions on where to move to, and adapt to cross-border differences and regulations.
Good news is, many organisations have taken the initiative to lay the groundwork and inform this large community as well as the human resource department that manages their overseas assignments. The organisations conduct extensive research and regularly update their findings on their websites so that expats do not have to go through the time-consuming process.
In this article, we tell you where to assess credible expat advice with a click of your mouse.
Mercer’s 2016 Quality of Living Rankings
Thinking of where to live? Mercer’s Quality of Living Rankings, which cover 230 expat-prevalent destinations, is a good guide. The rankings are derived from a survey, which analysed living conditions based on 39 factors in 10 categories:
- Political and social environment
- Economic environment
- Socio-cultural environment
- Medical and health considerations
- Schools and education
- Public services and transportation
- Recreation
- Consumer goods
- Housing
- Natural environment
The top five cities in the respective regions are ranked as follow, with the underlined ones being the winning five overall.
| America | Europe | Middle East & Africa | Asia Pacific |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vancouver, Canada | Vienna, Austria | Dubai, UAE | Auckland, New Zealand |
| Toronto, Canada | Zurich, Switzerland | Abu Dhabi, UAE | Sydney, Australia |
| Ottawa, Canada | Munich, Germany | Port Louis, Mauritius | Wellington, New Zealand |
| Montreal, Canada | Dusseldorf, Germany | Durban, South Africa | Melbourne, Australia |
| San Francisco, USA | Frankfurt, Germany | Cape Town, South Africa | Perth, Australia |
HSBC Expat’s Expat Explorer Survey
The latest edition, conducted last year, garnered responses from nearly 22,000 expats in 100 countries. The countries are rated based on eight career factors and there is now a search function on their website for you to rank them according to your priorities. The system will then generate the top two recommended countries for you to work in based on your preferences.
Expatfinder.com has tried the system first-hand and done an analysis by sorting priorities into three work personality types. Below are results:
| Work personality | If you’re ambitious… | If you’re welfare-driven… | If you just want to be happy… |
|---|---|---|---|
| Priorities | • Earning Prospects • Career progression | • Job security • Employment benefits • Opportunity to acquire new skills | • Fulfilling work • Work/life balance • Work culture |
| Result | • Hong Kong • Singapore | • Singapore • Germany | • Germany • Sweden |
If you are retiring, you are probably more concerned with other aspects such as the environment and lifestyle. This index handpicks 23 retirement-friendly and puts them on a scale. They are scored based on these 10 categories:
- Buying & Renting
- Benefits & Discounts
- Visas and Residence
- Cost of Living
- Fitting In
- Entertainment and Amenities
- Healthcare
- Healthy Lifestyle
- Infrastructure
- Climate
We will say that there is no surprise that Panama, which has always been everyone’s favourite, earned the top spot. We can see why with the stress-free lifestyle, excellent healthcare and low cost of living across the board. It is always sought-after as a tax haven and a land of smiles, where the locals are always welcoming. Oh, and don’t forget the white-sand beaches, lush pastures and diverse dining spots!
Coming in second is Ecuador, where luxury property rental and farmland purchase are very affordable. It is also well-loved by elderlies for the transport discounts and tax rebates. The climate there is almost always on-point, and said to be spring-like all year round.
Meanwhile, in Mexico, expats do not have to worry about visas and permits much. A tourist visa lasts six months and is extendable; temporary residence visa goes up to four years and a permanent one is not difficult to obtain. That helped the country make the to the third position in the index. Besides, who doesn’t love a good laugh with the jovial locals and expats there?
AIRINC’s Expatriate Country Tax Update
According to the site’s first quarter update for 2016, there are three countries that have tightened their tax regulations. For Indonesia, the maximum contribution to the healthcare portion of social security has increased from IDR 567,000 to IDR 840,000. Meanwhile, Norway has increased the minimum deduction for charitable contribution and personal allowances.
Notably, a new law enacted in December last year in the United States will now come into play for taxpayers. The law allows the U.S. State Department to revoke a U.S. passport or deny an application for a U.S. passport if any U.S. citizen racks up a huge federal tax debt. This applies for any liability due to the Internal Revenue Service in excess of $50,000 with an issued notice of levy or tax lien.
Do you know the U.S. is one of the only two countries that taxes citizens on their income, no matter where they live? The other country is Eritrea, Africa. All the other countries tax the people based on their residency, not their citizenship. This regulation by the U.S. has been often debated about in the international media.
