Moving abroad: Escape or a fresh start?

Moving abroad to get back on your feet financially

They're American, British, French, Australian, Italian, German, and many more. And they've all made the same decision: to move abroad in search of better living standards. The fallout from Brexit is still being felt by thousands of British people. Far from the growth promises made during the referendum campaign, the numbers simply don't add up. The cost of living keeps rising. Wages aren't keeping pace. According to official statistics, British emigration is nonetheless showing signs of stabilizing (around 246,000 departures in December 2025). 

But the figures reveal a striking overrepresentation of young people: 16-to-34-year-olds accounted for two-thirds of all emigrants in 2025. This mirrors broader global trends, where young people consistently make up a larger share of emigrants than other age groups. In the UK, these young adults are leaving primarily to work or study abroad, with a common goal: a higher standard of living, greater independence, and better earnings.

Emigration and immigration patterns also show that perceptions of the cost of living vary widely from person to person. British people are moving to Australia, where they consider the cost of living lower than back home, even as many now express a desire to return or move elsewhere for the same reasons, as countless Facebook group posts make clear. Australians, meanwhile, are making the reverse journey, driven by identical motivations. It all comes down to your starting financial situation and what you're hoping to find abroad.

Young professionals ready to leave everything behind and start over abroad

Are we seeing a growing wave of young professionals moving abroad in search of something better? In Germany, nearly 289,000 citizens left the country in 2025, the highest number since 2016. Two-thirds of these expats were between 25 and 40 years old, and the majority held university degrees. This amounts to a new "brain drain," a phenomenon that isn't new but appears to be taking hold for the long term. In 2024, an estimated 300,000 Germans were leaving the country every year, many of them highly skilled. Italy knows this story all too well.

Italy has long been a country of emigration, and the figures from the Observatory on Italian Public Accounts and the Fondazione Nord Est confirm it. As of December 2025, 6.4 million Italians are living abroad, out of a total population of around 59 million. By comparison, 5.5 million foreign nationals live in Italy, meaning the country is seeing more people leave than arrive. Those leaving are predominantly young working adults aged 18 to 34, who account for 48% of emigrants, followed by the 34-to-39 age group at 38%. These brain drain episodes tend to intensify during severe economic crises, as seen during the Italian debt crisis of 2011-2012. Briefly interrupted by the pandemic, emigration among Italians, particularly graduates, picked up again from 2022 onward.

Are the French following the same trend? According to a Gallup study published in December 2025, 27% of French people are seriously considering moving abroad, up from just 11% in 2024. Those who have already taken the plunge have largely opted for other European countries (Germany, Georgia, Portugal, Poland, and others) or Canada.

Leaving to escape the social climate

What's driving these departures? In Italy, the reasons tend to be consistent: those leaving point to fragile institutions that they feel are unable to support the economy, persistent job insecurity, and deep regional inequalities. In France and Germany, economic and political factors are equally central. In France, the dissolution of the National Assembly in 2024 following the European election results and the political instability that followed left a lasting mark on public confidence. The rapid succession of prime ministers damaged France's image both at home and abroad. A fragile economy and a gloomy social climate are also frequently cited.

Is the grass greener in Switzerland? Despite ongoing debates about immigration (the most recent being the "Switzerland at 10 million" initiative, which Swiss voters ultimately rejected), Switzerland remains one of the top destinations for young Germans, ahead of Austria and Spain. Yet the reasons driving Germans to leave are strikingly contradictory. On one side, young people are leaving to distance themselves from the growing influence of the AfD, the far-right party. On the other, young people are emigrating in protest against immigration into Germany itself. Meanwhile, Germans with immigrant backgrounds are also leaving, worn down by a system they feel is increasingly excluding them.

Thailand's cost of living draws foreign retirees

In Australia, it's a different demographic making the move: seniors whose pensions simply don't stretch far enough to live comfortably at home. They're heading to Thailand, joining Swiss, French, and American retirees already there. The Global Retirement Index 2026 ranks Thailand as the "top Asian country and 9th in the world" for retirement. Seven criteria were assessed: visa accessibility and any benefits available to seniors, housing, climate, healthcare, quality of life, and cost of living. That last factor pushed Thailand ahead of its competitors.

What expats really mean by "earning more"

What does "earning more" actually mean? And is that gain always measurable in financial terms? The most obvious interpretation is moving abroad to increase your income. In the United States, an estimated 210,000 to 405,000 people left the country last year. The "American dream" is losing its shine, both for Americans heading out and for foreigners finding it increasingly difficult to get in. For some Americans, moving abroad has improved not only their financial situation but also their relationship with their social environment. Trump's election in 2016 triggered a wave of departures, and the same pattern repeated itself in 2025. Americans are moving primarily to Mexico and Canada, with growing numbers choosing Costa Rica, Panama, and Uruguay, or settling in Europe, particularly Portugal and Germany.

But "earning more" isn't purely about money. Expats have done the math. Living abroad doesn't necessarily mean a higher salary than back home, especially once you factor in the hidden costs of expat life (inflation, housing, and so on). The real gains often lie elsewhere. For some, it's about working hours: no more endless days, replaced by schedules that are actually manageable and leave enough time to get home at a reasonable hour and take care of yourself. For others, the gain is in everyday comfort. Shops and leisure venues are well located and affordable. The countryside is just around the corner. It's easy to get away and recharge.

Others find that the accessibility of their new city makes a genuine difference to their quality of life: sustainable and affordable transport, well-connected neighborhoods, easy access to schools and public services, the ability to handle admin online with support available when needed, and real efforts to accommodate people with disabilities. These are gains that can't be measured in numbers, but they matter just as much to everyday wellbeing.

What if "running away" is actually the answer?

The word "escape" tends to carry negative connotations. "Running away from your problems." "Avoiding your responsibilities." But in some situations, leaving is precisely what makes rebuilding possible. Running away isn't always the wrong choice. Expats who leave a toxic social climate aren't expecting to find a perfect utopia in their new country. They're clear-eyed about it: no country is without its flaws. What they're looking for, as much as possible, is a better life abroad, better for their mental health, better for their future plans. Their decision, which can sometimes read as a form of political resistance, is also a hand extended toward a future worth building. Abroad, they're committed to living alongside others, precisely so they don't recreate what they left behind in a new setting. For them, genuine coexistence is possible, whether at home or somewhere else in the world.