Expats in India see a purpose in their work and are happy with their financial situation but the low quality of life and difficulties dealing with the bureaucracy take their toll, according to a new survey.
India ranks 36 out of 53 destinations in the Expat Insider Survey 2023 conducted by InterNations that reveals the best and the worst places for living and working abroad. For the tenth year in a row, it is one of the worst-rated destinations in the Quality of Life Index (52nd). It also lands among the bottom 10 in the Expat Essentials Index (44th), which is mainly due to expats’ low satisfaction with digital life (45th) and admin topics (50th).
While the country only does somewhat better in the Working Abroad Index (33rd), it lands in a solid 22nd place in the Ease of Settling In Index. In the Personal Finance Index, India even ranks 9th. Overall, 73 per cent of expats are happy with their life in India, about the same as the global average (72 per cent).
According to the survey, expats in India are very unhappy with the air quality (73 per cent unhappy versus 17 per cent globally) and the urban environment, such as green spaces or noise levels (67 per cent unhappy versus 16 per cent globally). Additionally, 55 per cent agree that the government does not support policies to protect the environment, more than three times the global average (17 per cent).
For the survey, more than 12,000 expats worldwide, representing 171 nationalities and living in 172 countries or territories, shared their opinions on everyday life abroad.
In terms of safety, just 73 per cent of expats feel generally safe in India, compared to 83 per cent globally. And while 49 per cent of expats worldwide consider their personal safety in their respective host countries very good, only 31 per cent of expats in India feel this way. Additionally, 37 per cent state that they cannot openly express themselves and their opinions (versus 15 per cent globally). Overall, India ranks 48th in the safety and security subcategory.
Interestingly, not a single expat in India does not see a purpose in what they do (8 per cent globally). “Maybe this has something to do with their fields of work: an above-average number of expats in India work in education, as well as coaching and consulting — but also in transportation and logistics. It might also help that 72 per cent feel paid fairly for their work,” the survey highlighted.
In addition, 72 per cent are happy with their financial situation (versus 58 per cent globally). In fact, 61 per cent of expats feel that their disposable household income is more than enough to lead a comfortable life, compared to 44 per cent globally.
Close to two in five (36 per cent) rate the availability of government services online negatively (versus 21 per cent globally), and 69 per cent find it hard to deal with the local bureaucracy (versus 38 per cent globally), the survey pointed.
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