Going to live abroad represents a major decision whatever one’s age, and you need to consider carefully from the outset whether it is the right course of action for you. For the young and unattached moving to another country is a relatively simple matter, but for others who are well established in a particular locality, it can represent a considerable upheaval and expense.

Is it worth it? Living abroad may sound exciting, even glamorous, but one really needs to look beyond the enticing brochures. A warm, mild climate, for instance, may be a breeding ground for mosquitoes, and the summer temperatures may prove overwhelming; picturesque villages may lack vital facilities that you take for granted, especially if your health is poor; and although the social life promises to be enjoyable, do you really want to be separated from family and friends at your stage of life?

Seasoned expatriates who have lived and worked abroad for a number of years will have some inkling of what to expect and be accustomed to examining the pros and cons of living in a particular country. This is something that you must get down to as well, and this chapter sets out a range of matters that you need to consider.

THE THIRD AGE AND BEYOND

I have referred to the fact that people – in the developed world at least – are living longer and staying fitter. Indeed retirement for some can represent a considerable chunk of their lives which can be divided into three distinct phases:

• The active, independent phase. You are in full possession of your faculties and are fit and healthy. You also have sufficient retirement income. Most people who consider retiring abroad are in this condition, ready to live life to the full – and this phase could last for ten, twenty or thirty years, depending on circumstances.
• The less active, partly dependent phase. Unfortunately, increased age takes its toll, and you may find yourself entering the next stage. Your health may start to fail, you may experience the death of a partner or need someone (usually a relative) you can turn to in an emergency.
• The dependent phase. This is the time when you are no longer able to cope by yourself. In the UK there are a wide range of welfare facilities to help you cope with the problems of age which come in the form of home helps, meals on wheels, sheltered housing and residential homes.

I don’t want to sound excessively gloomy. A good many people remain in full possession of their faculties until their final hours, and for a retiree in the peak of condition the idea that some day one could be ‘sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything’ will sound positively grotesque.

However, you need to bear in mind that a sudden illness or disability can strike down the fittest pensioner. We are fortunate in the UK that there is a comprehensive system of services, both statutory and voluntary, to ensure that the elderly disabled are properly looked after.

Elsewhere in the world health provision is less extensive and not really geared up to dealing with frail expatriates. In many countries, care for the elderly tends to be the responsibility of the family or charities (normally religious orders), and sheltered housing for retired expatriates is still comparatively rare.

PERMANENT OR TEMPORARY FOREIGN RESIDENCE?

In view of the fact that your health is almost bound to decline in time, you may decide against settling abroad permanently. Instead, you might opt to limit your stay in another country and return to the UK when you start to become frail or your partner dies.

This is quite a sensible plan, though it does not always work out in practice. People rarely recognise that they have moved on to the second or third phase of retirement, and they put off the evil day when they have to change their lifestyle. It is not really surprising, since returning home can represent a considerable upheaval in itself: it means abandoning your circle of friends, a familiar lifestyle and often an attractive climate to return to the leaden, unwelcoming skies of Northern Europe.

Even if you make up your mind to return to Britain there could be obstacles in your path. Some overseas property owners have experienced difficulty in selling their homes, or have returned to the UK only to find that houses have become so dear that they cannot really afford one with the anticipated receipts from the sale of their foreign property.

One solution is to keep your feet in two camps as it were, and live abroad for just part of the year. Like a migratory bird you winter in Florida or Southern Europe and return to the UK for the spring and summer. Maintaining two residences might sound expensive, but some of the cost could be offset – at least partially – by letting either dwelling at the times of the year when you do not need it.

At this point it is worth noting that the decision to live indefinitely in a country may not be entirely in your hands. Would-be retirees to the USA, for instance, may find a permanent residence visa is difficult to come by, though it is perfectly easy for a foreigner to buy a home there and stay in it for half the year on a tourist visa.

YOUR DEPENDENTS

The working phase of your life is over and you are keen to start afresh. Other members of your family may be in a different position, and you need to consider their feelings before you make plans that are likely to affect them. You clearly need to discuss the implications of a move with them and work out whether they should accompany you or not.

Your partner

When a couple retires abroad, it often happens that the wife has greater difficulty in adjusting than the husband. Various reasons have been suggested for this including the change of life, difficulty in striking up new friendships, new domestic arrangements, homesickness or the very fact of having a husband about the house all day. Separation from friends, children and grandchildren can cause anguish. On the other hand, some couples move so as to be nearer their children.

Your children

By the time most people come to retire, their children will have left the family home and be leading independent lives of their own. However, there will be some who for various reasons (eg a late marriage, early retirement) still have children of school age.

An important consideration will be their education. Although this will not be too much of a problem if you are retiring to an English-speaking country or a place where there are expatriate English-medium schools, elsewhere you may need to consider other options:

• a local state school – this is fine in an English-speaking country, but if your children do not speak the language of the country they could be at a disadvantage, though at primary school level this is less of a problem;
• an English-medium school in your country of residence – most schools of this nature, whether they are boarding or day schools, charge fees;
• a boarding school in Britain – this would work out even more expensive, though some local educational authorities can provide boarding facilities;
• correspondence tuition – the courses on offer from Mercers College are expressly designed for expatriate children;
• teaching them yourself – this is possible using the facilities of the WES Home School;
• leaving them with relatives or friends in Britain to continue their education – this is a sensible option if they are coming up to important examinations. Of course you may decide to delay taking up residence abroad until these examinations are over.

If you want your children to go on to higher education in the UK, you need to bear in mind that if they are resident abroad, they may not be eligible for subsidised student loans.

Elderly relations

Some people have elderly parents or other relatives who are reliant on them to a certain extent – to do their shopping, to get their pensions, to manage their financial affairs. Even if they are quite capable of living independently, they may be accustomed to regular visits and invitations to your home.

Some elderly relatives may be keen to relocate with you - and if they are fit and active, why not? Older ones, however, are more likely to want to stay put. Clearly, you will need to consider their position carefully and explore a number of possibilities, such as

• retirement homes
• sheltered housing
• accommodation with friends or other members of the family
• a home help or live-in companion.

Your pets

There are few problems in taking pets abroad provided they have pet passports with the required vaccination certificates before they go, including anti-rabies injections if you are off to mainland Europe and certain other countries (see Chapter 7).

But some pets are like some wines: they do not travel well, especially over long distances. You may love the sun, but furry Fido may find the heat overwhelming, while Felix prefers more familiar haunts. Besides, some separation may be involved with countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Cyprus imposing a period of quarantine on arrival.

YOUR HOME IN THE UK

The question to consider here is whether to retain your UK residence or sell it.

Retaining a UK base

Some would-be expatriates want to maintain a home base and perhaps spend time in Britain each year. Indeed, a survey by Surrey University found that 20% of retirees in Spain still owned a property in the UK. However, under present tax regulations there is a penalty to pay: if you maintain accommodation for your use in the UK you will remain a UK resident in the eyes of the Inland Revenue and therefore still be liable to pay UK tax.

If you leave your home empty for any length of time, there can be problems. A house can deteriorate quite rapidly if it is not lived in, and there is a danger of it being broken into or taken over by squatters. You may well have to appoint an agent to keep an eye on it, while your insurance company may have qualms and either increase the premium or refuse to insure you.

There is a way out of this dilemma: you can let your home, and then regain possession of it when or if you return for good. Make sure, however, that you draw up a tenancy agreement that will enable you to do this – an assured shorthold tenancy or an assured tenancy. Even then, you may have to apply for a court order to evict a tenant who does not want to move.

Selling up

Often people decide to sell up completely in order to finance the purchase of a home abroad. Such a move might serve to convince the Inland Revenue that you are no longer resident in the UK for tax purposes (see Chapter 6) and with luck result in a cash surplus that you can invest.

Selling up could act to your disadvantage if you decide to return to the UK and need to begin the house-hunting rigmarole all over again. Problems can occur if in the intervening years house prices have risen more in the UK than in your country of residence and you find that the sum you raise from selling your foreign residence is small in relation to the price of a house in Britain.

YOUR FINANCIAL HEALTH

Can you afford to buy a property abroad and, if so, will you have enough to live on? Financial problems are the last thing you want during retirement, and you therefore need to investigate thoroughly the financial ins and outs of retiring abroad. You need to get an estimate of:

• the total cost of buying a residence including taxes and professional fees;
• the cost of moving your personal effects from one country to another;
• the likely running costs of your home (including service charges if you are in an apartment block);
• the various taxes you will have to pay (eg rates, wealth tax, income tax).

You could also find that your travel expenditure escalates, particularly if you and your family make regular visits back to the UK. You may find that insurance premiums are higher than in the UK. Living costs have a tendency to increase over the years and if your income does not rise in line with these costs, you could live to regret the move.

A large part of this book is concerned with financial matters, and this is no accident. As a pensioner you are unlikely to find ways of boosting your income if prices increase. Most pensioners find their real income either remains steady or slowly diminishes. In Britain there is a financial safety net in the form of supplementary benefits, but you cannot count on having access to a similar system abroad. Generally, you will need far more than the basic British state pension to make ends meet.

STAYING ON

If your career has taken you overseas, you may feel inclined to stay on in a country where you have spent a significant portion of your working life. You are, after all, used to the place and should be well equipped to cope.

Whether this is a sensible option or not depends very much on the country. Staying on in the Bahamas is a very different matter from staying on in some poverty stricken township in Africa. In the latter case no matter how much you love the people and the country, if you are no longer able to make a contribution to the community because of failing health, you risk becoming a burden to the very people you want to help.

A DIFFERENT SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT

‘There’s no place like home’ goes the old song, and many people are genuinely attached to the UK no matter how much they may complain about it. Can this attachment be transferred to another country which may have different social customs, a different ambience, different attitudes, maybe a different language? Would you be able to cope when the novelty wears off?

A few retirees imagine that life on the Mediterranean is just like living in Britain but with sun added. This is a mistaken belief, even if you are living in a largely expatriate environment, and you could become irritated or frustrated by little things, such as no milk deliveries, the difficulty in obtaining your favourite food items, or the lack of decent TV programmes.

Things are bound to be different: the water supply may be unreliable; there may be frequent power cuts; the telephone system may be antiquated. You may discover the nationals of the country have strange habits of which you disapprove. The place may turn out to be too darn hot in July and freezing in January.

As frustrations mount up your retirement is unlikely to prove the happy, comfortable time you have been looking forward to. To avoid making a dreadful mistake you need to get to know a place really well before you put down roots, and make certain you can adapt easily to your new surroundings. Why go off to be miserable in Crete when you can lead a much more contented life in Crewe?

GOING TO LIVE WITH OTHER PEOPLE

If you have suffered a bereavement or succumbed to a serious illness, you may well receive invitations from your children, other relations or friends to move in with them. Such an arrangement can work out very satisfactorily in the UK. But what if they live thousands of miles away in a country with which you are not familiar – in Canada or Australia, for instance?

If you have little or no experience of living in other countries or prefer to stay independent, you should guard against hasty decisions. By all means go to stay on a temporary basis, but do not dispose of your home immediately. Then, if things do not work out, you have somewhere to return to.