The Netherlands was ranked lowest when it comes to affordability and accessibility of housing in InterNations’ new Expat Essentials Index.
As part of its annual Expat Insider Survey, InterNations, a network of expats around the world, asked 12,000 expats, representing a total of 177 nationalities and living in 181 different countries, to provide information on various aspects of expat life.
Participants were asked to evaluate 56 different factors, which were divided into five different categories. Within the scope of the survey, expatriates; digital life (offering administrative services online, high speed internet, cashless payment services and unlimited access to online services.), housing (access to affordable housing, ease of finding a place to live.), administrative issues (ease of local bureaucracy, opening a bank account and visa receiving.), language (Ease of living without speaking the language, ease of learning the language.) were asked to answer the questions.
Among the 52 countries included in the survey, Bahrain topped the list, performing well, particularly in the administrative, housing and language categories. At the other end of the spectrum was Germany, which ranked 52nd and lagged behind countries such as China, France and Kuwait.
The Netherlands was ranked in the top 10 when it comes to the ease of living without knowing the language, as well as the ease of obtaining visas, the availability of online administrative services and the accessibility of online services. And also; Among the 52 countries and nations included in the ranking, the Netherlands ranked 49th in the housing subcategory. According to InterNations, 53% of expats in the Netherlands have difficulty finding housing (the Global average is 27%), while 69% rated properties in the Dutch housing market as “unaffordable”.
Here are the 5 countries where it’s easiest for expats to start a new life, according to the 2023 Expat Essentials Index:
1. Bahrain
2. UAE
3. Singapore
4. Estonia
5. Oman