Expatriates Moving Back Home: The Pros and Cons

Living abroad as an expatriate is a very challenging undertaking. It is certainly not for everyone. The glamour and hype that many people expect from their new life when they board the plane often never materialises once they move to the new country and they settle into expatriate life. This article will look at the pros and cons of loving back home if you are an expatriate.

Loss of Residence

If you move back to your home country, you will almost always lose your residence rights that you acquired when you moved abroad. That means you must be certain that you really want to move back home permanently before you do so. Permanent Residents in America will forfeit their Permanent Resident Card if they choose to move back home with no intention of returning to America. Would you be willing to stay at home if things did not work out as you had planned? Once you have forfeited your residence rights in America where you have lived as an expatriate, you will have to start the immigration process from the beginning if you decide to move back to that country.

Close to Family and Friends

One of the main reasons why expatriates decide to move back to their home country is so that they can be close to their family and friends once again. Elderly parents will need extra care and where possible, their children may choose to take on this responsibility themselves. It can be very rewarding for expatriates to return home and care for ailing, elderly relatives and spend the last years of their lives with them.

Leaving Friends Behind

Expatriates who move back abroad will undoubtedly build up a new support network of friends, colleagues and so forth. This can help expatriates to settle in and feel more at home in the new country they have moved to. Over the years, this support network can help to take the place of family and friends at home. But if an expatriate decides to move back home, they will be leaving their new friends and contacts behind. This can be just as difficult as leaving family behind in their home country.

Residence Rights for Spouse

Expatriates who are married to a spouse from a country other than their own will need to obtain residence rights for their spouse so that they can move back with them to their home country. The length of this process will depend on a variety of factors, such as the length of the marriage and so forth. With children born from the marriage the process is much simpler. They can claim dual citizenship if they are registered as such and can obtain passports from each parent's home country so that they do not have to go through the immigration process when they move with their parents.

In conclusion, the decision to move back home should not be taken lightly. It can raise just as many issues as it resolves and it will be down to the expatriate as well as their spouse and children to come to the decision that will best suit their particular needs.