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The 10 Best Countries For Working Abroad

Do you dream about living full-time outside the United States? The best countries to work abroad are affordable, safe and offer job opportunities for foreigners (or at least reliable WiFi for virtual entrepreneurs). Here are 10 international destinations where you can unpack, get to work, and stay a while.

New Zealand

The best countries for working abroad: New Zealand

Pros:

Cons:

Singapore

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Pros:

Cons:

Switzerland

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Pros:

  • Great for outdoor adventures.
  • Taxes are low.
  • Even as a foreigner, you can go to college for next to nothing.
  • Extremely high quality of life rankings from Mercer.
  • Chocolate. Chocolate everywhere.

Cons:

China

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Pros:

  • It’s easy to get a job as an English teacher, and the benefits are great.
  • Expats can make a lot of money working for multinational corporations tapping into the Chinese market.
  • The low cost of living makes it easy to pay down debt or save for the future.

Cons:

  • Air pollution in industrial cities makes China a poor choice for raising children.
  • As a foreigner, you’re going to get stared at a lot.
  • The Internet is subject to heavy censorship.

Hong Kong

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Pros:

Cons:

India

Best countries to work abroad: India

Pros:

  • Every dollar goes a lot farther.
  • English is one of the many official languages.
  • IT, media, film, banking, and engineering fields are growing, along with job prospects.

Cons:

  • If you wait to find a job until after you move there, expect to make about 25% less than you would back home.
  • Adapting to the culture can be challenging.

Ecuador

Ecuador cropped

Pros:

  • Enjoy spring-like weather year round.
  • Health care is inexpensive.
  • It’s easy for a couple to live on about $1,600 a month.

Cons:

Thailand 

Best countries for working abroad: Thailand

Pros:

Cons:

  • Locals tend to hate confrontation, which can lead to passive-aggressive behavior.
  • Two-tier pricing means that, if you’re not careful, you pay more as a foreigner.

Belize 

Belize cropped

Pros:

  • It’s possible to live on $1,500 a month.
  • The US dollar is accepted as currency at most businesses.
  • As a former British colony, the locals speak English.

Cons:

  • Visitors will probably encounter government corruption.
  • Bugs.

Find the latest travel deals now at Expedia.com

Image credits: Via Flickr: New Zealand (Chris Gin), India (MalayalaM), Thailand (ak_phuong), Belize (stokes rx), U.K. (Geof Wilson), Switzerland (Uwe Häntsch), China (jo.sau), Hong Kong (Mr. Wang), Ecuador (MunicipioPinas), Singapore (Shahzeb Ihsan).

About the author

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Charlotte Edwards Zhang

Charlotte is a teacher-turned-freelance writer who has spent much of her life abroad. She has written about personal finance for both digital and print publications around the world, including LendingTree, The Penny Hoarder, Dough Roller and contributions to Money Under 30.

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