A British Expat will be the next Prime Minister of Australia, regardless of the outcome of the election:

Welsh-born Labour premier Julia Gillard, 48, will come head to head with 52-year-old Liberal leader Tony Abbott, who was born in London, when the election, expected to be called tomorrow is held in late August.

The article goes on to note that this will not be the first time that a British expat has held the position. However, it has been quite some time since the last expatriate won the post:

Since the office of Prime Minister was created in Australia in 1901 only four others were born in the United Kingdom – George Reid (1904) and Andrew Fisher (1908) were born in Scotland, Joseph Cook (1913) in England and William Hughes (1915) in Wales.

Is this a sign of the times? Will the globally mobile be more likely to win high office going forward? While Australia’s political attachment to the U.K. is of note here, it’s interesting that it has been so long since it last occurred, and here we have expats on the ticket for both the Labour and Liberal parties.

Of course, much to the chagrin of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenneger, this couldn’t happen in the U.S. Foreign-born citizens are disqualified for the office of U.S. President by Article 2 of the U.S. Constitution.

Expats often don’t know exactly how to start the process of moving overseas – or even researching the possibility of moving overseas.

ExpatExchange.com member Russell has posted his thoughts on what one should do first when moving to another country. Here are a few of his thoughts:

We attended immigration fairs, signed up to expat forums, spoke with distant relatives in our chosen new home, and undertook endless research on the web. This culminated in a fact-finding trip to Vancouver to research areas to live in, jobs to work at, and things to see and do. We were ready to go. However, the Canadian authorities were not ready for us to go. In fact, little did we know it but we were two whole years away from getting our visas. Two years of endless waiting, total frustration, and a complete lack of communication from the powers-that-be. There was nothing more we could do but wait.

At the end of his post, he adds a short list of his thoughts as to what one should do first when moving overseas. Here’s number 5 from his list:

5. Be brave. Loved ones will be upset/angry/annoyed, friends may question your decision, and work colleagues will think you’re mad. Keep reminding yourself of the reasons for leaving and stay the course in search of your better life.

This type of direct insight from people that currently live abroad, or have recently, is what makes our members so valuable to one another!

A recent Gallup survey, highlighted on Forbes.com, found that the world’s happiest countries tend to have something in common… money! Here’s a few excerpts from a Yahoo summary article about these happy countries:

The Gallup researchers found evidence of what many have long suspected: money does buy happiness — at least a certain kind of it. In a related report, they studied the reasons why countries with high gross domestic products won out for well-being, and found an association between life satisfaction and income.

“Money is an object that many or most people desire, and pursue during the majority of their waking hours,” researchers wrote in the report. “It would be surprising if success at this pursuit had no influence whatsoever when people were asked to evaluate their lives.”

Social and psychological prosperity, fostered by tighter social networks, also contribute greatly to happiness. That is why some countries with cultures that exhibit these traits, such as Costa Rica, ranked highly in the survey.

Where does your destination country rank? Do the findings resonate with your own experiences?

We’ve covered the impact of politics on expats extensively in our blog in the past, but how about expats impacting local politics? European expats, particularly Brits, are taking to the political arena to address issues at the heart of a great deal of turmoil in recent years:

British national Tony Cabban is already a councillor in the municipality Javea. He was one of the first expats to get involved in local politics and form an independent political group.

AIM was launched in January 2007 by Spanish national Manuel Barrera
Mr Cabban, now running with the independent party Nueva Javea, says the mushrooming of expat-dominated political parties is a result of a lot of issues coming to a head: “There’s a lot of dissatisfaction with the way towns are run.”

One of the biggest issues is corruption in urban planning.

There has been a great deal of coverage on the British homes that have been knocked down due to improper permits, so it’s encouraging to see expats working within the political process of Spain to address the issue.

British Expats have rated Australia as the best country to live in away from home. The South Pacific island/nation/continent has taken the cake in the survey, which was conducted by the Centre for Future Studies:

More than three quarters of expats cited the better environment and quality of life for their children as the number one reason for living in Australia.

Nine out of 10 said it was the overall lifestyle which kept them there, while four out of five said the weather was one of the top five reasons for their contented state.

Additionally, the survey found that it is simply easier to do things like get a job or a mortgage in Australia than other countries.

How many people out there know where Luanda is? No?

It’s in Angola, and it’s the most expensive city to live in for expats. Here’s an excerpt:

The Angolan capital Luanda is the most expensive city for corporate expats, according to a study Tuesday which includes three African cities in the top 10 for the first time.

Tokyo is second and Moscow and Geneva are also among the most costly cities in the world. At the other end of the scale Pakistan’s second city Karachi is the cheapest, according to consultants Mercer.

It’s amazing to see how this list evolves over the years in a rapidly shifting global economy and political landscape.

The Cost of Living Survey on Mercer.com

Expats in Vilacabamba, Ecuador are enjoying their lifestyle immensely, according to this article on Boston.com:

Three years ago, he and his wife bought a house with six acres in Hacienda San Joaquin. “We looked all over the world for a place to live, and we like this Valley of Longevity,” he says. “There’s a closeness with nature here. The climate here truly is paradise.” The couple grows most of their food and hike the hills.

If you’re an expat, what have been the health implications of your move abroad? How much thought did you give this before you moved abroad?

These are important questions to consider both before and during your time overseas!

Tokyo is expensive for expats. Really expensive. This according to a survey by ECA International that was highlighted by InvestorOffshore.com.

The devaluation of the yen briefly sent the city out of the top 10 most expensive cities for expats. But recently the yen has strengthened, and so here it is again atop the list of the most expensive cities for expats again:

“Three years ago, the weakness of the yen pushed Tokyo out of our global top ten, but as the currency has strengthened, the cost of living for international assignees has risen,” observes Lee Quane, Regional Director – Asia, ECA International.

According to the survey, The top 5 are: Tokyo, Oslo, Luanda, Nagoya, Yokohama. Click the link above for more information on InvestorOffshore.com.

Britons abroad may take advantage of the benefits system, according to this article by MailOnline.

Taxpayers are paying millions of pounds to Britons living abroad who claim they are too sick to work.

Expats living in countries including Spain, France, Cyprus and Portugal are claiming incapacity benefits of nearly £46million a year.

Incredibly many of the 10,000 claimants have been receiving the payments for more than five years without having their cases reviewed.

This is obviously reminiscent of similar articles about British expats receiving benefits to help pay for heat abroad.

Looks like a down economy sends the government scouring for every possible bit of savings, and these expats are unlikely to find much sympathy from those who aren’t also living abroad in similar circumstances.

Expatriates find all kinds of jobs to make a move overseas. Some in China are finding that one job that can be had is that of a fake executive – as long as you have a pale complexion:

I’d be paid $1,000 for a week, put up in a fancy hotel, and wined and dined in Dongying, an industrial city in Shandong province I’d also never heard of. The only requirements were a fair complexion and a suit.

There are all kinds of industries that engage in this practice:

And so I became a fake businessman in China, an often lucrative gig for underworked expatriates here. One friend, an American who works in film, was paid to represent a Canadian company and give a speech espousing a low-carbon future. Another was flown to Shanghai to act as a seasonal-gifts buyer. Recruiting fake businessmen is one way to create the image—particularly, the image of connection—that Chinese companies crave. My Chinese-language tutor, at first aghast about how much we were getting paid, put it this way: “Having foreigners in nice suits gives the company face.”

Draw your own conclusions from this practice, but it is something interesting to note. Perception is obviously critical.