Are you ready to japa and live your best expat life?
According to The Oxford Dictionary, an expat is a person who lives outside their native country. When I was younger, I used to think expatriates were fancy people, international, important professional that move to a new country to render their expertise.Â
Whether you are leaving your country and moving abroad for an extended period of time or you’re moving permanently, you’re regarded as an expat.Â
There is a joke that flies around on Twitter, where people talk about how sometimes they wish they could change their names, change their numbers, and move to a new country and start a new life. Maybe that is a tad too dramatic, and maybe you won’t go that far and make such drastic changes but if you’re ready to start a new life and move to another country and you’re been trying to figure out the best country for you to move to and which country would give you what you need in terms of quality of life, good work-life balance and whatever else is important to you then you have come to the right place.
With the situation of the country and how terrible things have gotten in Nigeria, a lot of Nigerians are looking for options of either going to live in other countries for a while or moving permanently and not just wanting to do this alone but with their entire families.
A lot of Nigerians want a country that works, a country where things work, a country where the government cares about the citizens, a country where their children will be able to grow up well and a country where they feel safe, a country where there is job security, a country with a good economy, a country with good healthcare, a country where they stand a chance to actually live a prosperous life.
As a Nigerian looking to move out of the country and become an expat sometime soon, here are some countries that you can move to, depending on what you need and what fits your goals best as an individual.
Countries You Can Move To As An Expat
Canada
This is a very obvious option to a lot of Nigerians as quite a number of Nigerians have actually moved to Canada in recent times. The Canadian government aims to make life as easy as can be for its citizens. The quality of life is amazing. Ranking 12th out of 189 countries on the human development index, Canada is a great place to get an improved quality of life.
They have got good health care. Canada’s healthcare is State funded, ensuring that at the point of delivery, essential medical treatment is given for free. Once you become a permanent resident of Canada one of the things that you can enjoy is both outpatient and inpatient services. Great education as some of the best universities in the world are in Canada, there is job security, and Canada’s visa is also one that you can get quite easily.
Portugal
A tweet I saw the other day talks about how Portugal is one of the easiest places to settle down and how you can get your permanent residence after a short while.Â
The fact that you can work to pay for your Masters, PhD and can become a citizen (not even PR) in 5 years will forever make Portugal 🇵🇹 appealing to me.
Atleast I know 2 people who recently migrated via studies.
RT
— Oludayo Sokunbi (Deewon) (@Oludeewon) December 10, 2022
Move to Portugal now 🇵🇹
📌 Budget of just 3 – 4m.
📌 Gpa of 2.2 accepted.
📌 Schools already opened more to Open by Early next year.
📌 Schengen visa that allows you move to 26 other Schengen countries without a visa.— Abraham Okah(info hub) (@AbrahamOkah2) December 9, 2022
Portugal has got a rich culture that you can immerse yourself in, and a stable economy that will give you peace of mind. It has also got a relatively low cost of living, affordable rent, a low crime rate and locals that are welcoming and friendly to newcomers.
The NetherlandsÂ
I don’t think it’s a secret anymore that one of my favourite places in the world is the Netherlands. There’s just something about life over there that is so attractive. To avoid the high cost of living in the city, you can live in smaller cities and easily take trains to wherever you need to go, there’s so much culture to experience, and the quality of life is great.
IndonesiaÂ
Ahead of Mexico and ranking 41 out of 52 for good quality of life, Indonesia is a place to be as an expat. It is one of the most affordable cities in the world to live in. You can afford the housing, and also enjoy the amazing cuisine that they have. The work-life balance of the Indonesians makes it an attractive place for expats to want to move to.
Singapore
Although Singapore can be an expensive city to live in, its exceptional infrastructure and the existence of modern amenities are ones that will provide expats with the right incentive to want to stay in the country. The country has got a vibrant culture and great quality of life.
New Zealand
One of the most common things that I have heard spoken about New Zealand is how laid back the lifestyle over there can be. New Zealand will provide you with a great quality of life and amazing work like balance, and political stability which translates to good governance and a government that cares about the citizens.
New Zealand is known for being a safe country. Apart from the low cost of living that you get to enjoy you also get to experience favourable tax systems, and
low crime rates, and the icing on top of the cake is the great scenery and favourable climate.