More people than ever are now deciding to leave their home countries and become an expat or digital nomad. Once you start to seriously consider moving abroad, the preparation process may seem overwhelming, time-consuming, and difficult to navigate.
As someone who moved abroad nearly one year ago, I am here to assure you that making this move is possible. Like any other major life decision, the process just requires some planning and preparation.
In this blog post, I will share the 5 most important factors to consider before you move abroad and become an expat.
#1: Desired Lifestyle
So you know that you want to move abroad. Great! The next step is to determine where you’d like to move. Maybe you already know exactly which country or city you’d like to relocate to. For others, the process of deciding where to move can be more difficult than actually making the move abroad.
To make this process easier, spend some time thinking about what type of lifestyle you want abroad. Start drafting a list of places you could envision yourself living in. Think about the region of the world you’d like to live in, what type of climate or weather you’d prefer, what languages are spoken in each place.
Do you want to live in a big vibrant city? A small coastal town? Somewhere tropical? Do you want to live somewhere you can have all the same day-to-day conveniences that you do currently? Do you want to live somewhere where your native language is spoken, or are you willing to branch out a bit?
Have fun with this process and don’t limit yourself! There are no wrong answers.
Once you’ve spent some time thinking and developing a list of initial options, it’s now time to consider other factors.
#2: Cost of Living and Personal Budget
Cost of living is one of the most important factors to consider before you move abroad.
We know that some countries and areas of the world are more expensive than others. It’s important to choose a new country that will not stretch your finances too thin.
Assess your personal financial situation and envision how your income and expenses will reflect when living abroad. If you already track your spending with a monthly budget, analyze your current spending habits.
Examine how much money you allocate to different areas in your current country such as: housing, insurance, utilities, food, and leisure. Determine how much you will be comfortable spending within each category on a weekly or monthly basis when living abroad.
Assess your personal financial situation and envision how your income and expenses will reflect when living abroad.
From there, determine which countries from your drafted list fit within your personal budget. The best way to do this is to use a worldwide cost-of-living index. I’ve found that Numbeo offers the most up-to-date information.
Through this resource, you can search nearly any city or country and it will display a score and worldwide ranking regarding cost-of-living.
This will give you a general idea of how expensive it is to live in another place. You can use the comparison calculator to compare two cities. It will tell you how much money you will need in your destination city to maintain a similar standard of living that you have in your current city.
You can also click on each city to find a breakdown of cost categories such as housing, transportation and food. This is a great way to estimate a weekly or monthly budget in your destination city.
I’ve found that YouTube is also a great resource for updated cost-of-living videos. For example, you can search “Cost of Living in Istanbul 2022” on YouTube and find recently-uploaded videos with information from locals or other foreigners living there.
Housing will likely be one of your biggest costs. Spend some time searching for housing using local apps or websites – do a Google search for “apartments for rent in ____” in the country’s primary language, and you will likely find a few apartment rental websites with prices listed.
International apartment rental agency websites such as Blueground may also be worthwhile to scroll through to get a sense of the housing market in your destination city.
#3: Feasibility of Obtaining Residency
At this point you have probably narrowed down your list of potential destinations based on your personal lifestyle and budget preferences. The next factor to consider is the feasibility of obtaining residency in your target country.
If you plan to live abroad for more than a few months and you are looking to settle permanently (or even semi-permanently) in a new country, you will need to assess the immigration policies for the country you would like to relocate to.
How feasible will it be for you to obtain a long-term visa or residency? Would you be eligible to work there? What restrictions do foreigners have in that country? Some countries’ immigration processes are easier than others.
Ensure that you relocate to a country with a relatively straightforward immigration process for foreign expats and digital nomads.
Ensure that you relocate to a country with a relatively straightforward immigration process for foreign expats and digital nomads.
Many countries, like Turkey, offer short-term residency for foreigners and the government makes it relatively easy to obtain a permit. Other countries, like Portugal and Costa Rica, offer special visa programs for digital nomads.
Upon my arrival in Turkey, I applied for short-term residency and requested to live in the country for one year for the purpose of tourism. Under my specific residence permit, I am not legally allowed to work in Turkey. As a digital nomad working online, I knew that would not be a problem.
Every expat’s situation is unique. Determine the rules around factors important to you such as: allowable length of stay, housing requirements, and work permits.
Spend some time researching each country’s residency process for foreigners. The best way to do this is to read up on each country’s immigration website. If the information is confusing or seems complicated, consider reaching out to an immigration lawyer or migrant specialist for your target country.
#4: Healthcare Access
Access to affordable and quality healthcare is a factor many expats consider before moving abroad. If you frequently rely on the healthcare system in your home country then you will want to ensure that you move to a country with a robust healthcare system.
Our World in Data has a Healthcare Access and Quality Index which can help give you a broad overview of a particular country’s healthcare system. The index ranks each country’s healthcare on an international scale so you can compare data for your countries of interest.
A quick Google or YouTube search on “healthcare system in ____” can also bring up valuable information from locals or other foreigners living in that particular country. Depending on the costs of healthcare, you may want to obtain local health insurance once you relocate to your destination country.
Many countries – including Turkey – require foreigners applying for residency to have proof of health insurance under a local policy. This will typically be done after your arrival, but it may be worthwhile to research the process beforehand to better prepare yourself.
In addition to accessing local health insurance in your destination country, you should also consider equipping yourself with travel health insurance. Before moving abroad, I obtained global nomad medical insurance through SafetyWing.
I did a lot of research to determine what other expats and digital nomads used for global health insurance and from my research it appeared that SafetyWing was the most popular option.
For around $40 USD a month, I am covered under their global medical insurance policy. I haven’t needed to use it yet, but it’s nice to have the peace of mind and security that I have coverage and can access it if needed. It was very straightforward to sign up and receive coverage – and for that reason I would highly recommend it! You can learn more here if you’re interested.
#5: Safety
Among other factors, safety is important to take into consideration before you move abroad. Almost every place on earth experiences some level of threat to safety – whether it be criminal or ecological. Everyone will have their own limits with regard to safety and risk – this comes down to personal preference.
When I made plans to move abroad, many of my American family members and friends questioned the safety of foreign countries. I reminded them that America wasn’t very safe itself by global standards. The point is: no place on earth is 100% safe but you shouldn’t let this hold you back from making the move abroad.
Instead, do some research and equip yourself with the resources and information you need to feel comfortable in your choice.
No place on earth is 100% safe but you shouldn’t let this hold you back from making the move abroad.
Vision of Humanity offers a variety of data around global safety. They have a Global Peace Index which ranks all countries on an international scale regarding safety and crime. They also have Ecological Threat and Terror Risk indexes.
These indexes can help give you a better idea of a particular country’s safety relative to the rest of the world. Doing research into a country’s current political climate is also helpful to be aware of any tensions or upcoming elections that you may want to prepare for. Knowing a country’s history can also give you context and better peace of mind.
There are a variety of factors to consider before making the move abroad. With a little research and planning, you will be ready and prepared to become an expat in no time! In my opinion, the most important factors to consider are: your desired lifestyle, cost-of-living, ease of obtaining residency, healthcare access, and safety. What do you think is most important to consider before moving abroad?
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