Moving Abroad to Live and Work

In this day and age of boundless possibilities and endless choices, think Starbucks and squeezy marmite, we have perhaps become more choice aware.

It is especially true of travel, when in the mid 90’s Easyjet, and in its hoof marks a stream of even cheaper alternatives, knocked down the price we had to pay to go abroad, suddenly we had choices, lots of them, now we could afford to travel to Venice just for the weekend.

So in this now established time of ‘mobility’ and having first hand knowledge of other countries, it is no wonder that we are becoming more adventurous and travelling further a field. Whereas we were once content with Greece in the summer, our appetites have grown (we now travel to Brussels for lunch and are back by dinner.)

According to ITA, international visitors rose 13% to North America in 2008. Asia, Canada and Australia visitor numbers are seeing a similar increase.

With this in mind it is perhaps no wonder that after visiting these (barring Asia) English speaking countries we are opening our eyes to the possibilities of living and working abroad. Now if you have just read the previous sentence and not understood why visiting Canada or Australia would make you think of moving there to live and work, it is likely you have not visited. The standard of living is a lot higher. That’s not to say that the UK is a hovel, the standard of living encompasses aspects of life we have just gotten used to in the UK e.g. the weather, taxes, health, wages, price of goods...

Living and working in another country requires a working visa for the specific country, and for this you will have to seek advice from the relevant Australian immigration, US immigration, Canadian immigration or South African immigration specialists.

Even after being told that you are eligible for such a working visa you will have to wait for between 6-12 months, however, when you have settled in the country for a while you can then apply for permanent residency.

Currently seeing a boom in immigration is Canada. Canada is one of the best places in the world to live in terms of standard of living; also thanks to immigration policy it is seeing economic growth while the rest of the world is in an economic downturn.

Canada’s immigration policy means that city’s like Toronto are becoming multi-cultural cosmopolitans, with new bars and nightlife in abundance. Over half of Toronto’s 2.5 million population were born outside of Canada.

A sunnier option would be Australia, as like Canada the country also has a skills-shortage. The minister for immigration in Australia has just this week announced plans to relax Australian visa requirements in order to rectify the forecasted skills shortage. Again the salaries are higher and the cost of living lower.

As we move on in this time of economic uncertainty in this country, people are becoming increasingly aware of their finances and how far they are stretching. With this in mind it is no wonder people are starting to think outside of the box and asking important questions about their futures.

Although a massive decision, moving abroad to live and work on a working visa is becoming more attractive as people open their eyes to the standard of living here in the UK, why get paid less here to pay more for goods and services?

Whether you feel that you could never leave the UK or you are seriously considering it, one fact is inescapable, the weather’s better in every other country.