India is ranked 36th out of 53 countries in InterNations' Expat Insider Survey 2023, which ranks the best and worst locations for expatriate living and employment. With more than 4.8 million members in 420 cities worldwide, InterNations is a large international expat network.
According to the report, expats find meaning in their profession and are content with their financial condition, but the poor quality of life and challenges navigating the bureaucracy have a negative impact. The top 10 locations for expats in 2023 included Mexico, Spain, Panama, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, Costa Rica, the Philippines, Bahrain, and Portugal. Kuwait, Norway, Turkey, South Korea, Germany, South Africa, Italy, Malta, New Zealand, and Japan are the worst nations for expats.
Expat Insider evaluates nations based on more than 12,000 respondents using five indices: quality of life, ease of relocating, working abroad, personal finance, and the Expat Essentials Index, which looks at housing, administration, language, and digital life.
For the tenth time in a row, India lands in the bottom 10 of the quality of life index (no. 52), only ahead of Kuwait (no. 53). Expats are unhappy with the air quality (73% unhappy vs. 17% globally) and the urban environment, such as green spaces or noise levels (67% unhappy vs. 16% globally). Additionally, 55% agree that the government does not support policies to protect the environment, more than three times the global average (17%).