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Native Brazil Indian greeting a visitor.

The key to finding the best countries for expats is – asking expats!

The answer is the InterNations Expat Insider 2017 survey, conducted by InterNations, the largest community of global expats, with 12,519 members. Expats were asked if they ever felt unwelcome in their current country of residence over a twelve month period due to any of the following factors: nationality, culture, race, ethnicity, language or accent, age, gender, or sexual orientation.  Responses to these factors revealed the top countries that make expats feel welcome and the countries that don’t.

The survey can you give you a bit of insider knowledge to pick the best country for expats that suits your big move.

The 7 Best Countries for Expats

Most expats felt positive about their experience responding with ‘never’ or ‘very rarely’ feeling unwelcome. Those expats likely reside in these 7 countries:

  1. Bahrain
  2. Costa Rica
  3. Malta
  4. Mexico
  5. New Zealand
  6. Portugal
  7. Spain

The Five Least Welcoming Countries for Expats

Feeling unwelcome had much to do with three factors; gender, religion, and language and accent. Those that felt unwelcome are most likely to live in these 5 countries:

  1. China
  2. Denmark
  3. Kuwait
  4. Qatar
  5. Saudi Arabia

You never know how your own personal experience will compare to others and all of these countries from the most welcoming to the least have something great to offer. Use this list to see who’s putting out the Welcome Mat and who’s saying Do Not Disturb. For more details read the full Expat Insider 2017 survey.

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