Lifestyle

Singapore is number one country for expats

Singapore has topped a poll of the best places to live and work for expatriates, according to a survey of 21,950 expats living around the world.

Sep 25, 2015 | By LUXUO

Singapore has topped a poll of the best places to live and work for expatriates, according to a survey of 21,950 expats living around the world.

Infinity Pool Singapore

In the eighth edition of HSBC’s Expat Survey Explorer survey, expats in Singapore gave their newly adopted home top marks for quality of life, attractive salaries and opportunities for career development.

A closer look at the lives of expats in Singapore offers some interesting and enviable insight: Over a quarter (28 percent) earn more than $200,000 USD a year, compared to the global average of 13 percent.

The majority (67 percent) of respondents agreed that moving to Singapore improved the quality of life compared to their home country, with 65 percent of parents also saying they’ve noticed an improvement in their children’s health and well-being.

Moreover, Singapore is seen as a place of opportunity, with 79 percent of expats expressing confidence in the economy, and 59 percent praising the city-state for its career development opportunities.

After Singapore, expats voted New Zealand and Sweden the top destinations.

The survey polled 21,950 respondents about their life abroad, in categories such as career, financial well-being, quality of life, and ease of acclimatization in their new country.

Results also showed that Switzerland attracts the most career-driven expats; that New Zealand offers the most rewarding and fulfilling life experience; and that Sweden is the most family-friendly country.

Entrepreneurial expatriates, meanwhile, may want to consider moving to Singapore, Dubai, Hong Kong or London, which were cited as the best places for starting a new business given their economic prosperity.

And foreigners working in the Middle East praised their newly adopted home for offering the most generous expat packages and work contracts, many of which include annual trips home and airfare and accommodation allowances.

Top 10 countries for expats to live and work:

1. Singapore
2. New Zealand
3. Sweden
4. Bahrain
5. Germany
6. Canada
7. Australia
8. Taiwan
9. United Arab Emirates
10. Switzerland

 


 
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