Whether you moved to a country for work and ended up creating a life there or you just fancy retirement in the sun, many people decide that life as an expat is the perfect retirement. However, there are also some factors which people don’t think about before they have plans to emigrate already in place. Here are some of those factors which you need to consider.
Will Your Pension Be Affected?
A pension is a lifeline for many people in retirement so you want to make sure that you are able to get a hold of your money no matter what. There can be a lot of red tape surrounding foreign pensions so you will need to make sure that everything is in place so you can receive your pension without any hiccups.
Engaging the services of a firm like Tailor Made Pensions gives you the confidence to know that all of the difficulties can be handled by the experts. If you have any concerns, they will be able to point you in the right direction; no matter which country you are thinking about retiring to.
What Will Your Quality of Life Be Like?
Many people choose a country to retire to because they like the idea of it. This can sometimes mean that they don’t do the correct research to find out what it is truly like to live there. You need to make sure that you spend some time working out the cost of living. While you are likely to remember things like food and utilities, don’t forget about other problems you might encounter. From medical bills to the quality of local transport, you should try to build up as clear a picture of life as you can.
You should also look to see what sort of an expat community there is in the area you are moving to. While some people like to move away to fully experience life somewhere new, there are also many who like to make sure that they have a community of people from back home nearby.
How Often Will Your Family Be Able to Visit?
If you have children and grandchildren who you love to dote on, deciding to leave them behind for a new retired expat life can be very difficult. If this is something you are concerned about, you should have a look at how easy it is for them to reach you for holidays. If you manage to live just a few hours away, there is a strong chance that they will find a way to visit you. However, if you choose to move to the other side of the world, you may have to resign yourself to seeing them mainly on Skype or Facetime.
Retiring abroad can often feel like the closing of one chapter and the start of a new one. Don’t let yourself get swept up in the joy of a new life; there are some key things you need to make sure are taken care of first!
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Think thru quality of life deeply. Having been on the road for 8 years, some spots seem awesome – and are awesome – but yield a far different quality of life compared to the Western world. Chantal, keen insight.