Why half of you are losing sleep over money
Inertia is the biggest destroyer of expat savings.
People often move overseas to make more money and save, yet end up going home with much less than they hoped or even nothing at all.
If you have found yourself earning more now that you live and work abroad, you should take steps to ensure you don’t fall into this typical expat trap.
Our research has found more than half of expats like you are not saving as much as they would like.
This is despite 80% of them earning more money than before they moved overseas.
Simply by not putting in place good spending and saving habits, expats are jeopardising their financial future – even their retirement.
Sleepless nights…
These financial fears play on many expats’ minds. When we asked expats what keeps them awake at night we found that money is the biggest cause of a sleepless night.
Expats say they are kept awake by a range of financial worries, from losing their job or being prevented from working by an accident, to not having enough money to retire or look after loved ones.
Perhaps one of the biggest reasons why expats struggle to save is because they treat their time working abroad like an extended holiday.
When asked what the single best piece of advice they had been given while abroad, several expats said “not to treat it like a holiday”, while many more also recommended saving as early as possible.
There was other practical advice offered too, such as to integrate as much as possible into the country in which you live and to become part of the local – not just expat – community.
How can you make the most of your time overseas?
We understand all too well the challenges of living abroad, as most of us here at AES International are expats ourselves.
Building a new social scene, increased travel and constant visitors (albeit lovely) is challenging and not necessarily conducive to saving.
However, we also know, with proper planning, and some valued advice or guidance, everyone can take some simple steps which will ensure their own financial future is prosperous.
There is one simple building block we all advocate and have ourselves (in fact, most financial professionals offshore will use this as a rule) – an offshore bank account. It is, quite simply, all you need to ensure your finances are secure, accessible and most importantly growing as you would expect.
Saving in an offshore bank account also offers you:
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Security – your money will be held in a highly regulated, secure and stable jurisdiction
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Tax mitigation – keeping your money offshore opens tax planning opportunities
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Foreign exchange services – moving money around the world and into different currencies at low cost
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Investment platform – full suite of investment options from discretionary to “DIY”
If you are interested in finding out more about opening an offshore bank account, click the link below.
