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Recent developments have increased my interest in this topic. I am interested in education systems, medical systems, crime rates... normal standard of living concerns. I'm curious if anyone have preferred destinations in those regards.

Also, when you move, I've read the posts about US taxing expatriots. But, while moving, is there a way to diversify assets from the USD?

<< Recent developments have increased my interest in this topic. I am interested in
education systems, medical systems, crime rates... normal standard of living
concerns. I'm curious if anyone have preferred destinations in those regards. >>

The questions are somewhat broad, which is maybe why you haven't received
any responses, but I'll take a crack.

In my own case, my decision was based on wanting to experience a different
culture outside of the United States. My first task was the divide the world
into potential destinations:

- North America
- South America
- Europe
- Asia
- Africa
- Oceania

I didn't want to prematurely bias myself against anything outside of
obvious danger areas and I tried to keep an open mind. I'd lived in Japan
for two years as a child and recently conducted business (pre-COVID)
in China, but southeast Asia didn't really appeal to me as a permanent
destination.

So I narrowed down the list to western Europe, but not before considering
countries as diverse as Uruguay, Taiwan, Turkey, New Zealand, Ecuador,
... etc.

As I wanted to experience a different culture, I also wanted to avoid
English speaking countries (New Zealand notwithstanding) as one of
my goals includes the challenge of learning a new language.

Within western Europe, I prefer the warmer climates of France, Spain,
Italy, Greece (maybe Cyprus) and Portugal. The immigration process
of Portugal is somewhat straightforward, so I made a scouting trip
one year before retirement. It's not necessary to retire prior to
relocation, but it suited my situation best.

Here is a website which may be useful to conduct your initial
investigations:

https://www.theearthawaits.com/

It breaks down factors such as:

- Quality of life (subjective)
- Quality of health care
- Crime
- Purchasing power (subjective)
- Freedom index
- Weather

Use this data carefully, as some of the information can be subjective
or out of date. Just checking now, I found that it is reasonably accurate
for Lisbon, but it's just a starting point. In particular, articles
and videos which titles such as "10 Reasons Why You Should Live In XXX",
will probably not be reliable sources of information.

<< Also, when you move, I've read the posts about US taxing expatriots.
But, while moving, is there a way to diversify assets from the USD? >>

That's a whole other topic and it's very much dependent on the specific
country you decide to relocate to. Many countries have reciprocity agreements
with the US, so the taxes you pay in that country can be applied to what you
owe to the US.

I hope that helps you get started. Good luck on your journey!

-Rubic

Recent developments have increased my interest in this topic. I am interested in education systems, medical systems, crime rates... normal standard of living concerns.

On the subject of health care, it of course depends on where you're moving. But for many destinations you may not qualify for local health coverage. Some places make distinctions among visitors, residents with temporary visas, residents with permanent visas, and citizens.

If not, there two main firms I know of which specialize in health insurance coverage for expats, being Expacare and Bupa. You want Bupa, not Expacare. You get to choose which sections of the world you're covered for. Unsurprisingly the big determinant of price is whether you want it to include coverage while visiting the US.

In the UK, to oversimplify a bit, any human in need is covered without charge, visitor or resident.

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Diversifying investments outside the US is not hard. My favourite is to have an account at Interactive Brokers and just buy stocks listed on exchanges outside the US, and/or convert your cash from US dollars to others. I am not a big fan of funds.

For any stock, the biggest thing that matters to currency exposure is where they make their revenues, not where they are listed or incorporated. The currency the price is quoted in is totally irrelevant. A distant secondary concern is the currency of their expense profile. e.g., a US electronics retailer selling goods produced primarily in Asia is essentially a bullish call on the US dollar.

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In terms of destinations, one of the first things I suggest people look into is whether you have a grandparent born somewhere else (or even further back in the case of Italy, probably soon to be cancelled). In a lot of countries the family tree gives you a much accelerated method of obtaining residence or citizenship. Plus, if you ever chose to renounce US citizenship and the tax hassle that goes with it, that process is very much easier if your apparent reason for doing so was ancestry rather than tax dodging.
e.g., I had a grandfather born in the UK, so I would have the right to live and work there. After not too long, that would give me the right to apply for citizenship.

Jim

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