Workers who leave Britain for a job overseas can get a 43% pay rise, a report says today. A professional gets an average wage of £47,000 in this country but overseas they can earn £67,000.
But it is not just a higher salary that lures record numbers of Britons to a life abroad. The survey of more than 1,100 expats found that compared with life here, those who go to work in a foreign country:
• Find themselves better off, partly thanks to a higher salary;
• Have a better quality of life;
• Are happier than in Britain;
• Find that life abroad is less stressful; and
• Enjoy tax-free wages.
Those interviewed included engineers, teachers, economists, accountants, IT professionals and those working in financial services and marketing.
When asked about their new life, they spoke in glowing terms about their decision to quit this country. More than 90% said they were happier, while more than 80% had 'a greater sense of well-being' and felt 'better all round for moving abroad'.
Ninety-nine per cent said they had made 'a good decision' to live abroad, with many saying their decision to move was 'excellent'. More than 60% said they had 'no reason' to return to Britain, according to the study conducted by NatWest International.
David Isley, head of NatWest International Personal Banking, said: 'Expats who have moved abroad appear to be wealthier, healthier and happier. All these factors have contributed to a better quality of life.'
There are many reasons for the salary premium, said Dr Frank Shaw, a director of the Centre for Future Studies think-tank. Many worked for multi-national companies in the UK and were offered a salary increase to go to work in a foreign country.
Other countries are so short of certain skills, such as those possessed by IT professionals, that they offer generous salaries to lure workers from the UK.
Dr Shaw, who was involved in the research, said about 20% of the expats who took part in the research were self-employed. Many of the workers who have moved abroad are still employed by UK-based companies.
'An increasing number of professional people are choosing to take their skills and expertise abroad,' Dr Shaw said. 'In some instances, we found there is an emerging generation of professionals who are choosing to work outside the UK for companies in the UK. Work is no longer a place that we go to but a thing that we do.'
Official figures show record numbers are joining the exodus. For the first time, more than 200,000 Britons left in 2006, according to the Office for National Statistics.
Dr Shaw predicts the number of expats will continue to soar. Around 5.5 million Britons live overseas and a further one million will leave over the next five years, according to the Centre for Future Studies.
Researchers spoke to expats living in ten countries - Canada, France, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates. The biggest winners were those moving to the United Arab Emirates, who earned an average of £79,000, tax-free. Even in Portugal, which came at the bottom of the top ten, British workers were paid an average of £58,000.
As well as earning a better salary, most of those living in eight of the ten countries said the cost of living was lower than in the UK. Singapore and the United Arab Emirates were the exceptions.
WHY GO ABROAD?
• More than 90% of those asked about their new life said they are 'happier' living abroad
• More than 80% have 'a greater sense of well-being' and 'feel better'.
• An astonishing 99% said they had made 'a good decision' to emigrate.
• About 80% rate their decision to move as 'excellent'.
• The majority - more than 60% - said they had 'no reason' to return to Britain.
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