The Land of Smiles, otherwise known as Thailand is fast emerging as the number one choice for thousands of westerners looking to emigrate to an exciting new life in the sun.
A recently released survey of more than 3,000 expats scattered across 100 countries placed Thailand at the top of the list of the most desirable countries to relocate to – overtaking traditional destinations such as Spain, Australia and Canada.
The Expat Explore Survey by HSBC, conducted in 2010, rated the general quality of live led by expats compared to how they used to live at home, as well as their general experiences of beginning their new life in their adopted countries.
Factors rated included accommodation, entertainment, work-life balance, social life, cuisine, healthcare, travel and recreation opportunities, as well as how easy it was to organize the essential things in life like children’s schooling and setting up bank accounts in their new home.
Thailand has started getting accustomed to being the number one choice in a bunch of similar surveys. Its capital Bangkok was recently voted as the best city in the world, while Chiang Mai, Thailand’s second most populous city, came second in the vote at the Travel and Leisure Magazine Awards in 2010.
Richard Walters of GlenAsia, a firm which specializes in selling beachfront properties in Thailand to foreigners, is probably one of the best placed to understand the reasons why so many expats have ended up in the Southeast Asian country.
“Bangkok is one of the world’s most modern, truly cosmopolitan cities,” he said. “It offers top quality international hotels, world-class cuisine, exclusive shopping and nightlife, it’s a major international transport hub and it offers sophisticated services to match anything on offer in European capitals”.
Outside of Bangkok, a journey to the countryside reveals a nation with a vibrant culture, dozens of wonderful historical sites, deep-rooted traditions and a number of superb tropical beaches.
With all this on offer, it’s not difficult to see why a growing number of expats are relocating here permanently. Drawn by the fantastic year-round climate, the low cost of living, laid back lifestyle and Thailand’s unique charm and friendliness, why would anyone want to go home?
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The difference between "Spain, Australia and Canada" is that they allow immigration, Thailand does not unless for cheap labour from poorer, neighbouring countries like Burma, Laos and Cambodia.
You cannot just emigrate to Thailand. Visa laws ensure you are always just a temporary resident even if you marry a Thai woman (Western women marrying Thai men different laws apply and are entitled to citizenship) or are retired. There are strict quotas on foreigners becoming Thai residents, and the process is costly and difficult, the process to obtain citizenship even more so, and only about a dozen people with the right connections succeed each year. The vast majority of ex-pats in Thailand stay perennially on tourist or non-immigrant visas. This means that at any time, on the whim of an official, you could find yourself back home.
If you want to relocate to Thailand and continue a lifestyle equivalent to the one you had in the West Thailand is more expensive and will offer a lower standard of living. If you want to live like a local by eating street food and use public transport then yes, Thailand is cheaper, but very few expats are able, and only the ones on a shoestring live that way. Thailand is a great place if you have bags of money, but can be hell if you are skint or on a permanent budget. Inflation in Thailand is currently pushing prices of commodities up past Western levels, the cost of living is now equivalent to the UK or Australia.
As a foreigner, you cannot own land in your own name which means you cannot legally own a house, meaning the property you can own is restricted to condominiums in buildings where foreign ownership of units does not exceed 49%.
Thailand is renowned for its nationalism and xenophobia, and although the Thais seem friendly enough on the two week holiday to Phuket, they are deeply distrustful of Westerners and in the main dislike us.
Doing business in Thailand is also difficult. Majority foreign owned companies face a host of restrictions and there are many business prohibited for foreigners.
Working is also not easy and jobs scarce. There are few jobs Westerners can do legally and again are subject to a host of restrictions. Most Westerners teach english as a foreign language, as there simply isn't any other choice for them. Thais will work for much less in most jobs and many professions are restricted to Thais only including labour work, bartending, cooking and housekeeping.
There are good points to living in Thailand speaking as an expat personally, but it is ridiculous to even compare it to Canada or Australia as a viable destination to emigrate for the reasons I outline above.
Hi Peter,
Thanks for your comments. Speaking as an expat based in Bangkok myself, I do agree with some of the points you have made, but I don't agree it is ridiculous to compare with other destinations that allow permanent emigration. Admittedly you are right, we are only ever here on a temporary basis, and that might make it difficult for a western family to move here, but for single people who are determined to make a go of it, it can be done. The visa situation is a pain, and while I 'could' be kicked out at any time, I personally have never known anyone living here to be sent home. It seems there is always a way to get round the visa restrictions so long as you really want to.
As for costs of living, I think you are exaggerating the situation slightly. Okay, so some things cost as much as the west, things like nice clothes in shopping malls, computers, perfumes and so on. Cars are incredibly expensive. But I don't agree that the day to day living costs can be compared with the west. I don't eat Thai street food every day, but my food costs are certainly much lower than back home. Just down the road I can get a western breakfast with bacon, sausages, eggs and pancakes, and a coffee, for 80 Baht, about $2. Try getting that in England! Even relatively 'nice' restaurants are not that cheap, and you can get good meals for 400 baht ($10).
Many other things are also cheaper, for instance gasoline (if you have a bike), or else taxis. Even going out drinking is not as expensive compared to my home. Rents too, are much cheaper. I pay 10,000 Baht ($250) a month for a one bedroom apartment. I know buying a property is difficult, but as you say expats can own condos, and lots of us do find Thai partners they can trust enough to put a home in their name.
Regarding the job situation, I think you are a little wide of the mark there. Yes, lots of foreigners here teach English, but there are also a great many running their own businesses (while these may be restricted, the guys I know all seem to be doing okay). There are also a lot of people here working for western companies on expat salaries and making a very nice living. Many more expats are retired, living on pensions and so they don't need to work. And then, there are also a number of people like me, who do some kind of freelance work. So you can see, it's really down to you and what you make of the whole situation.
There are certainly more difficulties to emigrating to Thailand, but if you are really determined to stay here and enjoy a great life, it can be done! I know because I do it myself.
*sorry, I meant relatively nice restaurants are not that expensive!
The point of my comments were to put it into perspective that if you emigrate legally to one of the other top countries mentioned; Australia, Spain or Canada then there's none of the restrictions that will apply for those living in Thailand perennially on tourist visas or non-immigrant visas (which are the only ways to stay initially). Indeed, if one emigrates to these countries one can expect to become a citizen with the full rights that entails. That will never happen in Thailand thus it is not eligible as a bonafide destination to emigrate to. Thailand also has very strict quotas on permanent residents and even stricter quotas on those being made citizens - the numbers are so low it could be argued that Thailand does not want immigrants and the quotas reflect their hostility towards immigrants from Western countries in particular.
I agree with you that it is what you make of the situation regarding work and business opportunities but I stand by my statements that legal jobs are very hard to come by and business is very difficult to do in Thailand especially legally. I have lived here 27 years and for every success story in business I can name you 10 others that have failed. The amount of people I have seen during that time that have left with their tail between their legs is innumerable!
Regarding the cost of living I said equivalent lifestyles; think German car, nice house in the 'burbs, bottle of wine with dinner, a few drinks down the pub after work, that sort of thing. An equivalent Western lifestyle in Bangkok will cost you more than back in the West. If you compromise, living in a high-rise apartment, using public transport and eating local food then it is cheaper, but bear in mind those costs are rising rapidly too.
All in all Thailand can be at attractive proposition for those of us that look longingly to the East from the West but it lags behind countries like Malaysia as a retirement destination, Cambodia as a pure experience, Vietnam and of course China for business.
Cheers and please come over and visit us on the forum Mike!
Well if there's one thing we can agree on it's that us farangs love to argue about Thailand lol
I'll definitely come and take a look at your site. Keep your eyes peeled for more Thailand travel news coming soon!