Living abroad, how does it work?

For a reason or another, Italians are turning to other European countries not only for professional reasons but also to improve their own quality of life. Taking a chance abroad is an option that no longer attracts young people or businessmen only, but also pensioners.

Before deciding to settle abroad lastingly, you should carry out some practical valuations in order to focus exactly on your own requirements.

The cost of living in the country where you will move to must be reasonable. This means that even if a country seems to offer interesting job opportunities, the cost of living must be viable in the end. If not, it is better to look for something more convenient. Australia is a classic example. It offers a large number of well-paid specialist positions, but rentals, cutting 70% of the wages, are problematic. Thus, it is useless to earn 3,000 Euros, if it is still difficult to live with such an amount.

A good health care system. Italians are not aware of the level of their health care system. It is not only public, but it ranks in the first places worldwide. You can well realise this aspect when travelling abroad. Some northern areas show an absolute excellence. Thus, it is almost always necessary to ensure to have a good insurance in order to guard against situations that could lead anyone to bankruptcy. Therefore, if you do not have enough income to guarantee a private health care system, you might better choose a country from European Union.

The security conditions. A country can be considered safe if, at any time, day or night, the level of security is sufficient. This is not the case in many Latin American countries, nor even in the United States, which does not offer security guarantees everywhere. The countries offering this asset are European countries, mainly those in the North, Sweden and Norway; then Portugal, Germany, Malta, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Thailand and Japan.

The language is essential also. If it is possible to manage with English in big cities, it is not everywhere else. After a while, any language can be learned basically and technological instruments are a great help, but surviving with English in China is not that easy. It is necessary to make some efforts before leaving for a foreign country.

Bureaucracy never runs out, nowhere. If Italy is considered as the world champion of domestic files which cripple the economy, when going abroad, outside of Europe, you need to follow specific procedures that it is better to know before and in details. Otherwise, they accumulate with language issues. Getting help from locals or agencies that know about this matter can be a solution.

Internet connection. This topic is not really taken into consideration when it is essential for communication and information. In some countries, there are restrictions, as in China and the Emirates. In others, there are difficulties of use or exorbitant prices. Making extensive research is worthwhile.

Motivation. To live abroad, you need to have good reasons because the quality of life offered by our country is undervalued, foremost regarding food. Abroad, the food is not like in Italy, both for its quality but also for the general cleanliness level in restaurants. Italian cuisine is also such popular abroad because anyone who travels brings with him a huge cultural background regarding food and is unwilling to change his habits. We end up recreating the conditions that we had in Italy. Homesickness for our country, so noisy and so communicative. In Anglo-Saxon countries, people seems to communicate less, it is typical in the United States to have a kind of isolation feeling and a lack of general interest. The difference with what is showed on television is so huge that it becomes confusing.

Climate is another element to consider. Especially for countries of Northern Europe: beautiful, organized, clean but at some point, the sun goes away and reappears only after a long time. It is no secret that these countries show a significant number of depression cases. Finally, to move abroad, you must know beforehand what awaits you. Therefore, at the beginning, this should be considered as a test trip. Whoever arrives on a new territory might see the positive side only. It takes a while to understand reality and to get used to it. Culture shock is unavoidable while it seems exotic when it comes to holidays. Living this issue day after day, can create some inconvenience. Strangely, after living abroad for a while, we will get the same feeling towards Italian culture, when coming home.