Australia and Spain Amongst Top Choices for British Expats
The results of a survey that was recently published by The UK’s Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), show that Australia, Spain, the US and Canada are the top choices of country for British expats, and two-thirds of those Brits living abroad do so in order to further their careers.
Australia and Spain are the most popular choices, hosting 1.3 million and 761,000 UK expats respectively.
Below, you will find the top 20 countries for Britons living abroad, according to the IPPR’s survey:
| Rank | Country | Number of UK expats |
| 1 | Australia | 1,300,000 |
| 2 | Spain | 761,000 |
| 3 | United States | 678,000 |
| 4 | Canada | 603,000 |
| 5 | Ireland | 291,000 |
| 6 | New Zealand | 215,000 |
| 7 | South Africa | 212,000 |
| 8 | France | 200,000 |
| 9 | Germany | 115,000 |
| 10 | Cyprus | 59,000 |
| 11 | UAE | 55,000 |
| 12 | Pakistan | 47,000 |
| 13 | Singapore | 45,000 |
| 14 | Switzerland | 45,000 |
| 15 | Israel | 44,000 |
| 16 | The Netherlands | 44,000 |
| 17 | Thailand | 41,000 |
| 18 | China and Hong Kong | 36,000 |
| 19 | Turkey | 34,000 |
| 20 | India | 32,000 |
Dubai is the most popular Middle East destination for British expats, with the UAE at number 11 in the table. Elsewhere in the region, Israel makes a surprise entry at 15th, and Turkey is 19th, with most expats living in either Istanbul or along the southern coastal region of Antalya.
The UK’s Office for National Statistics estimates that 300,000 citizens emigrate each year, a figure that has remained relatively static over the past 20 years. An estimated 5m British people live permanently abroad – almost one in 12 of the UK population. About 30% of expats seek to improve their quality of life, usually in retirement.
International Investment recently pointed out some strange but interesting pieces of information pulled from the survey, in one of their articles:
- Cuba is home to six British expat pensioners, and Mongolia to just two
- North Korea hosts no UK expats
- Just 930 Britons live in the Falkland Islands, while 8,300 call Argentina home
Forth Capital specialises in expat pensions and investments – to speak to one of our advisers, click here or call 00 41 22 311 1441
