According to the United Nations Human Development Index, Norway is ranked number one of places to live in the world, followed closely by Australia and Iceland. Individuals residing in these countries enjoy an extremely high standard of living and have some of the highest life expectancy rates in the world.

Interestingly, just because they score highly on the report does not necessarily mean that people are rushing to retire in these countries. For example, only 8% of Norway’s population are migrants while it is estimated that about 4% of its population leave its shores for other lands. While Iceland has 11% of its population leaving its shores and around 7% of its population are migrants. 

So what do people look for when moving abroad?

Well according to Expatriate Healthcare, the top reason people choose to move to a certain country is familiarity, rather than the so-called standard of living. They suggest that people are likely to choose locations that they have previously holidayed in. Over the years places like Spain have been hits with Brits looking for a place in the sun to move to, which coincidently is also one of the places most visited by Brits in the world.   

However, the ongoing recession coupled by the weak Pound is making people extremely conscious about their ability to maintain a good lifestyle whilst abroad. One of the key considerations that Brits are taking into consideration is whether they will be able to get their full pension in another country. Current regulations dictate that those retiring in places such as Australia, South Africa or Hong Kong will see their state pension not rise with inflation. The question is how many people will be put off moving to these countries because of this regulation?