Considering moving to pp

Hello sonyaleec.

Welcome to Expat.com!

I hope you will soon get some advices.

Aurélie

All what you need to live in Cambodia is get a business/ordinary visa on arrival at the airport (bring a passport photo and $25) and then you can just extend the visa for $285 at any travel agent. Nothing else is needed as long as you can pay for the next year's visa. Open an account with Acleda bank and get money transfers into it. Proof of funds aren't necessary.

If you're disabled, then I guess you're already driving around, right? I'm an athlete and it's impossible to take marathon walks on sidewalks cause people park everywhere, so I'm pressured to buy a car cause walking or cycling isn't safe next to a sidewalk with so many parked scooters and oversized Lexus cars (it's a status thing). A safe walk is only possible in parks and at the riverside (if you don't mind beggars selling you stuff).

Here are some of the costs. You can easily eat for $3, $4 a day or even $1.5 if you know a good place (Vitking restaurant and The Vegetarian for example), Lucky and Bayon supermarket have cheap bread, rice, corn, fish, stuff like that but fruits and cheese are expensive. Electricity is around 20 cents/kW (with lots of blackouts), water and garbage collection aren't much, insurance is about $1000 per year (hospital care is poor but western clinics should suffice for all your needs) and you will be spending a lot on rent. A $150 apartment won't have an elevator nor is it livable by western standards (people won't clean up the staircase, paint is peeling off). You'll have to spend $300 and up, unless if you can manage to find something outside of the city. You can get a house/villa for $250 if you're willing to drive through the dangerous traffic (locals don't drive by the rules nor do they know how to perform first aid, helmets are only for the driver).

In short: you gotta take a two week vacation and see if this place is for you. I watched documentaries about Cambodia for two years before I came but I still changed my mind. Now I love it.

Thank you thomasway

Aged care is probably not needed here as the elderly are either cared for by their family members, or sadly have to beg for money on the streets. Many expats seem to be able to survive teaching English.

I'll add some comments on living cost. For $ 1000 you won't get any health insurance that includes medevac. Be aware that living in Cambodia without the option of medevac means risking your life. Cambodian healthcare does not suffice.

Living on $4 or even $1.5 for food per day should be possible. Keep in mind that this probably means not to have any "Western" dishes at all (three rice dishes a day with a variety of vegetables and meat, probably not very healthy).

Internet connection is quite expensive. We pay $35 for a 3000 kbps line.

There's no public transport. Taxis are rare and cost about the same as in western countries. Getting around by Tuk-Tuk or motodop is also a bit costly. Buying your own car or moto costs about double price as anywhere else (100% import tax).

There's no public pension fund in Cambodia. It might be wise to invest in another insurance for the case you're unable to continue working at all.

Best wishes,
Jan