Panama: The favoured destination for 2024 expats

A global survey of people choosing to live outside their homeland identified the best and worst places to live around the world. The results were surprising.

Millions of people decide to settle outside their country's borders each year. Those who do so by choice, not necessity, are commonly called expatriates. The portal internations.org conducted a global survey among 12,500 of these individuals, asking them to share their thoughts on living and working abroad. The respondents also selected the best and worst places to live on Earth.

Expatriates recognised Panama as the best country to live in 2024. The Central American country rose from a high third place, which it held in last year's ranking. More than four out of five people (82%) are satisfied with their life in Panama, compared to the global average satisfaction rate of 68%. The following countries in the ranking are Mexico, Indonesia, and Spain.

Expatriates rated Kuwait, Turkey, Finland, and Germany as the worst destinations for emigration. The bottom ten also included the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Norway. It can be assumed that satisfaction differences exist among people who decided to emigrate for economic reasons and those whose motivation was solely a high quality of life. About 30% of the respondents are retirees. It is not surprising that retirees who can afford to emigrate to a "nice place" are generally more satisfied than those seeking a better life in countries with better earning opportunities than their homeland.

Panama scored highly for the ease of obtaining a visa and settling, the financial accessibility of real estate, and a good balance between work and private life. Nearly three-quarters of respondents (74%) living in this country are also satisfied with their financial situation, 20 percentage points higher than the global average of 54%.

88% of survey respondents living in Panama believe that their household disposable income is sufficient or more sufficient to lead a comfortable life (compared to 70% worldwide). The ranking did not highlight the fact that Panama is among the countries referred to as "tax havens."