U.S. and U.K. Becoming Less Desirable to Expats

Worldwide, there are more than 50 million expats – corporate executives, skilled workers, students and retirees who live outside their home countries.  While living and working abroad can be a positive and rewarding experience, how much so depends on factors like the quality of life, economic stability and work/life balance the country offers.

InterNations’ annual “Expat Insider” survey, which offers “an in-depth analysis of expat life across the globe,” ranked 65 destinations based on responses from some 12,500 expats. The survey looked at more than 40 individual factors that influence an expat’s experience living abroad, from ease of settling in to family life. Turns out, the U.S. and U.K.’s reputations as being good places to live and work have slipped (a lot) since last year’s presidential election and the Brexit vote.

U.S. and U.K. rankings have steadily fallen since the first “Expat Insider” survey in 2014. The U.S., which ranked 5th in 2014, fell 17 spots from last year’s ranking to 43rd place (out of 65) this year – marking the country’s largest ever year-over-year drop. Meanwhile, the U.K. showed a similar trend. Ranked 21st in 2014, the country now sits at 54th, after falling 19 spots from last year’s position – another record drop.

Volatile politics have made the U.S. less attractive to expats. Only slightly more than a third (36%) of those surveyed rate the U.S.’s political stability favorably. That’s 20 percentage points lower than the worldwide average (56%) and a huge shift from 2016, when 68% rated this factor positively. While the survey does not specify immigration as a concern, continued policy changes have likely played a role in making the U.S. less desirable to expats.

The cost of healthcare is, not surprisingly, another area that dims expats’ perception of the U.S. Some 72% of expats say the affordability of healthcare is generally bad – and a third consider it very bad. The U.S. ranks 50th overall in the survey’s Health & Well-Being subcategory. And when it comes to school, 32% describe education as completely unaffordable. (For more, see U.S. Healthcare Costs Compared to Other Countries.)

As far as family life is concerned, 91% of expats report that U.S. Americans have a friendly attitude toward families with kids, and about half describe leisure activities available for kids as very good. Still, almost three-quarters (74%) of expat parents living in the U.S. think that childcare is not easy to afford – much higher than the worldwide average of 39%.

Like expats in the U.S., expats in the U.K. are unhappy with the political situation. Last year, 77% of expats living in the U.K. viewed the country’s political stability favorably. Today, that number has dropped by 30 percentage points, and fewer than half (47%) of expats are optimistic about this factor.

Personal finances are also a concern. The weak pound and rising inflation have contributed to the U.K.’s low ranking – 59th place – in the survey’s Personal Finance Index. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of expats rate the U.K.’s cost of living unfavorably, and almost a third (31%) say their disposable household income isn’t enough to cover daily expenses (11% say it’s nowhere near enough). Sixty-nine percent of expats are unhappy with the cost of housing.

Expat parents in the U.K. are unhappy with the cost of childcare – less than a fifth (19%) rate the cost and availability of childcare favorably, and 27% say the availability is very bad. However, unlike the U.S., about two-thirds (66%) of expat parents are generally happy with the quality of the British education system, and 40% consider the leisure activities for kids to be very good.

(For related reading, see How to Retire in the U.K. as an American.)

Who are the expats, and why do they move? The “Expat Insider” survey found the top three reasons expats relocate to the United States are for work (sent by an employer), moving for a partner’s career and studies. The top nationalities are German (11% of expats), French (8%) and British (8%). The average age of expats in the U.S. is about 42 years, and there are twice as many female expats (67%) as male (33%).

In the United Kingdom, the findings are similar. The survey found the top three reasons expats relocate to the U.K. are for work (found a job there), moving for love and studies. The top nationalities are U.S. American (9% of expats), French (8%) and German (8%). The average age of expats in the U.K. is about 40 years, and there are about twice as many female expats (68%) as male (32%).

It’s worth noting that Americans still have a reputation of being welcoming, but that view is changing: Three years ago, well more than three-quarters (84%) of expats rated the U.S. favorably on “friendly attitude to foreign residents” – and just 5% had a negative view. Today, the positive ratings are down 16 percentage points (to 68%), and the negative ratings have tripled.

Expats in the U.K. seem to be even less comfortable. Just half think the attitude toward foreign residents is generally good, and only 12% consider it very good. More than a quarter indicate they have felt unwelcome because of their nationality at least sometimes (18%), frequently (6%) or all the time (2%).