Press release:
​Expats struggling to find their feet lead to increased costs for employers

Although it takes nearly a quarter[1] of expats more than a year to feel settled, on average[2] they go on to spend between five and 10 years abroad, according to a new study.
 
The survey, which recorded feedback from 61 nationalities[3] based in 56 countries, indicts that most expats don’t just move to one place – around 80% of expats have lived in two or more countries. Opportunities to move appear to be greater once people become an expat, particularly in countries with labour or skills shortages. Only 19% have only lived in one country[4].
 
Unsurprisingly, the main reason people move to a new country is for work opportunities (66%)[5]. Just over 13% moved for a cultural experience and 6% moved for financial reasons.
 
The top three advantages of expat life were cultural experience (32%), being financially better off (26%) and travel (16%).
 
It appears to take most people between six and 12 months to feel settled (31%); 19% took between three and six months; For 23% the process took more than a year. Some people (6%) never feel settled. This can contribute to expats returning home early, or unhappiness if they stay.
 
How quickly someone settles is as much about what they have left behind, as it is about getting to grips with their new surroundings. Missing family and friends were the top reasons respondents cited for missing home (62% combined[6]). 10% stated countryside, 3% said weather. A further 2% missed their working life.
 
Just over 4% of expats returned home after a year. Although a small proportion, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the UN’s migration agency: “The international migrant population globally has increased in size but remained relatively stable as a proportion of the world’s population.”[7] This figure is around 3% of the general population.[8]
 
The financial ramifications for corporations and employers can be great, in terms of replacing staff and making repatriation arrangements.
 
Helen McClure, who conducted the study for a new book designed to support expats and repats, said: “Employers are in a great position to reduce costs and employee turnover by preparing expats, and their families. It is often the trailing spouse that feels emotionally unprepared and unsupported, especially if they have had to give up their job to become the enabler and move project manager. This is a role that is often overlooked.”
 
Nearly half of all expats (48%) find it difficult to return home. Survey respondents found it hard to connect with people who didn’t have the same experiences or broader world view. They found that friendships had changed and moved on, even if they’d made the effort to stay in contact while apart. This was either because friends had moved on, or the respondent themselves had changed.
 
One respondent said it was difficult to “find people who could understand our lives. [It’s] Like trying to explain Narnia to people who just see a wardrobe.”
 
Another respondent noted: “Reverse culture shock is a very real thing, you only remember the good of where you have just left and instantly forget the bad!”



[1] 23%

[2] Mode. 29% of respondent.

[3] 675 respondents

[4] 30% have lived in two; 26% have lived in three; 11% have lived in four; 13% have lived in more than five countries.

[5] 43% moved due to their partner’s job prospects and 23% moved due to their own job prospects.

[6] 47% missed family, 15% cited friends.

[7] https://www.iom.int/sites/default/files/wmr/document/WMR-infosheet_no_02.pdf

[8] General migration will include refugees, students and labour migration.
Insights and advice for expats struggling to find their identity abroad. Warning: will make you laugh, and cry...

What's it all about?

There are lots of books offering advice on how to be an expat: how to find schools, work, deal with rules and regulations. This book is different. 

​This book will support you on your emotional journey. It’s like a comfortable pair of slippers, designed to be an expat’s friend, understanding and legitimising feelings and concerns.
 
This isn’t a memoir or a story about a privileged sector of society. It’s a series of insights into a journey millions of people take. It requires strength, open-mindedness and patience.
 
But it’s a wonderful journey, and the opportunity to travel and create unique experiences.
 
Based on international expat case studies, survey results, personal experience, and wider research, this book is a ready-made personal support network, offering witty, and often sad or poignant, insights into this special community.

Did you know?

  • Although it takes nearly a quarter of expats more than a year to feel settled, on average they go on to spend between five and 10 years abroad. Some people (6%) never feel settled. 
  • Most expats don’t move to one place – around 80% of expats have lived in two or more countries. Only 19% have only lived in one country.
  • The main reason people move to a new country is for work opportunities (66%). Just over 13% moved for a cultural experience and 6% moved for financial reasons.
  • The top three advantages of expat life are cultural experience (32%), being financially better off (26%) and travel (16%).
 
These are just some of the insights from an international survey, which recorded the feedback of nearly 700 people of 61 nationalities, based in 56 countries. 

It is the foundation of "Do they eat soup in England?", a new book that offers insights and case studies, enabling expats to connect through experience, across the globe.
The word expat is a contraction of expatriate, derived from the Latin expatriare (ex = out, patria = native country).

The number of expats is difficult to quantify as few countries keep statistics. The total number of migrants is estimated by the United Nations to be around 230 million. The number will continue to grow as globalisation continues. Scarce human resources and skills are redistributed based on local economic needs.

In terms of professional migration, the World Bank estimates that between 4.5 and 5.5 million Britons live abroad, which is around 7-8% of the UK population. Nearly 1% of Americans live aboard, 3% of Spaniards and more than 2% of Australians.
​
49% of expats and 84% of trailing spouses are women. (Source: InterNations)

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