With over 6.5 million U.S. citizens living abroad, expatriate living has become a significant trend. As the world economic and political atmosphere becomes more uncertain, more and more people are looking for other economic, political, and cultural alternatives, many outside of their own country. And retiring abroad has always been a favorite alternative to remaining at home.

Coming from Latin “ex” (out of) and “patria” (country), the term expatriate applies to any individual who lives in a country or culture different from his native birth country or country of citizenship. This residence can either be temporary or permanent.

There are at least three types of expatriates:

Those who are working in a country for a short or extended period of time. After the industrial revolution in the 18th century, this became more common. Multi-national corporate businesses have further increased this type of expatriate. Their stay may be as little as a few weeks or may be for several years. Often, the country in which they reside has a special status reserved for this kind of expatriate.

Those who are living there temporarily with no intention of doing so permanently. This includes college and university students, long term tourists, and in some cases religious personnel.

Those who intend to remain there permanently. This group is generally looking for some type of permanent status through the government of the country in which they reside. These are generally classified as immigrants.

The expatriate type into which you fall really isn’t important except when considering the economic, legal, health, and citizenship ramifications of your expatriate status.

Why Do You Want To Be An Expatriate?

The country to which you move will depend largely on the reason for which you wish to go. Every expatriate is not cut from the same mold. As the old expression states: “One man’s fish (French poisson) is another man’s poison (English poison)”. Your first task is to determine why you wish to become an expatriate.

Once you determine why you want to move to another country, you can begin to research countries that fit your goal. Make a list of what characteristics a country has to have in order to meet your criteria.

After finding several countries that appear to meet your criteria, you can then begin to research them in more detail to further shorten your list.

EscapeArtist.Com probably has the most comprehensive listing of links on information related to expatriate living on the internet. It is a great place to start. Their comprehensive listing of links will eventually lead you to most other sources of links that you might find in an internet search on “expatriate living”.

Check Out Your Prospective Destination Physically

A person should never make a decision to move to another country permanently without first visiting it to get acquainted with it first. There are various ways of doing this and differs depending on how you have answered your why and where questions.

If the expatriate living is necessary due to a job change, you may have less options to visit beforehand and will have to rely on other information sources.

However, if you are anticipating a residence change for your retirement years, it is a different matter. For example, let’s say you have decided that your ideal lifestyle is best carried out on a Caribbean island. How could you begin?

You could take extended vacations for a few years before your anticipated move or you could visit different destinations on cruises. Cruises give a quick overview of a destination but you will only have at most one day in each destination.

Coping With Culture Shock

Culture shock occurs when your cultural expectations come into conflict with the living styles and expectations of the new culture. You have learned a certain set of values and habits by which you unconsciously and subconsciously live. Culture shock occurs when these values and habits are disturbed and things go contrary to your expectations.

The more unlike your own country the new country is, the more likely that you will have a greater degree of culture shock after a period of living there.

Some cultural shock is inevitable, but the more you learn about the culture of your new living destination beforehand, the less severe it will be.

There are numerous books that deal with the subject of cultural shock and adaptation and you should study at least one of these before you move.

Health & Insurance Concerns

The Social Security Medicare Program does not cover hospital or medical services outside the United States. The Department of Veterans Affairs will only pay for hospital and medical service outside the United States if you are a veteran with a service-related disability.

When considering medical insurance, first find out how citizens of the country where you will reside pay their medical bills and if the same coverage is available to resident foreigners. Some countries have government-sponsored health insurance that may also provide coverage to foreign residents, while others have a dual system with national health supplemented by private insurance. In countries where many American expatriates reside, such as Mexico, you may find that local private international health insurance companies will offer coverage to U.S. citizen residents. Once you arrive, check with organized groups in the American community to learn about these companies.

Before taking up residence abroad, learn which U.S. medical services or health insurance plans provide coverage for Americans living overseas. Check with the insurance company on whether the coverage offered abroad includes both routine and emergency medical treatment, hospitalization, and medical evacuation should it be necessary. Once you obtain health insurance, remember to carry your policy’s identity card and to keep a supply of insurance claim forms handy. The U.S. government cannot pay for hospital or medical services for Americans overseas and cannot pay to evacuate you for treatment in the United States.

Temporary Or Permanent Resident?

Expatriate living has an extreme range of possibilities. One might want to be a permanent tourist or go to the opposite extreme by officially becoming a citizen of the new country of residence.

There is even the possibility of obtaining a second passport from some countries without renouncing your present citizenship.

This may have legal ramifications that will effect your present citizenship, so taking this step should be carefully considered before deciding to do it. You get to choose to what extreme you will go in your expatriate living. You are the only one who knows what you want.

For more detailed information and links to more resources, go to my Expatriate Living site on Squidoo.Com .