Taiwan has been named the best expat nation in the world in an annual survey carried out by Internations.
The 2016 Expat Insider Survey ranked Taiwan as the best destination for expats, ahead of last year’s table topper Ecuador. Malta was third, while Mexico and New Zealand rounded out the top five.
Taiwan topped the list of 67 countries after being ranked in the top ten of every individual index used to compile the results. Taiwan holds first place in the Quality of Life and Personal Finance Indices, impressing with the quality and affordability of its healthcare and the enviable financial situation of expats living there.
The Asian Tiger scores second place in the Working Abroad Index. Over one-third of expats in Taiwan (34 per cent) are completely satisfied with their jobs, more than double the global average of 16 per cent. Expats are similarly enthusiastic about their work-life balance (30 per cent) and job security (34 per cent).
The three countries at the bottom of the list in 2016 have remained stable: Kuwait, Greece, and Nigeria. Kuwait has remained steadily at the bottom for three years running. It even managed to go down in each index this year, most notably in the Working Abroad and Personal Finance Indices.
Greece also came in second to last in 2015 while in 2014 it held the third to last spot. It did better in the Ease of Settling In Index this year (up to 27th from 41st) but worse in all the other indices that factor into the overall ranking. It’s now last place for the Working Abroad and Personal Finance Indices and ranks a dismal 43rd out of 45 countries in the Family Life Index.
Nigeria also came in third to last in 2015, and in 2014 it was fifth to last. This year it holds last place for the Quality of Life and the Cost of Living Indices. Compared to 2015, it does slightly better in the Ease of Settling In Index this year (from 42nd to 39th place), but much worse in the Personal Finance Index (from 10th to 32nd).
In terms of some of the other traditionally popular expat destinations for Brits, Australia ranked 7th, Canada 12th, Spain 14th, the USA 26th and France 47th. The UK itself placed in 33rd position overall.
Top ten expat destinations 2016
1. Taiwan
2. Ecuador
3. Malta
4. Mexico
5. New Zealand
6. Costa Rica
7. Australia
8. Austria
9. Luxembourg
10. Czech Republic
Source: Expat Insider 2016, Internations
Article published 31st August 2016