Czech Republic ranked in world’s top 10 best countries for expats

Prague, Czech Republic – The Czech Republic ranks among the best countries for expats to live, according to a survey conducted by the international expat community InterNations.

Ranked 10th worldwide out of 64 destinations – and third in Europe – the Czech Republic secures the same spot as last year, performing particularly well in some specific categories: the Central European country is ranked second in the world for working abroad (after Vietnam), 4th best destination for families (with 90% of expat parents satisfied with their family life) and 7th for its quality of life.

According to the survey, expats in the Czech Republic are particularly happy about the country’s transport infrastructure and the opportunities to travel, ranking third in the world behind Singapore and Hong Kong in that category.

A vast majority of expats (84%) also ranks the state of the economy positively.

However, most foreigners established in the Czech Republic, ranked only 56th for the ‘ease of settling in’, harbour negative opinions about the friendliness and openness of locals (ranked positively only by 40% of respondents).

The language barrier appears to be one of the most significant problems foreigners’ struggle with during their integration in Czech society: 77% say they struggle to learn the language (vs. 45% globally), while less than one expat in ten (9%) declares mastering the Czech language.

Hungary (30th) and Poland (34th) lag behind their Czech neighbour, but significantly improved their ranking compared to previous years (+15 and +5 spots, respectively, compared to 2018). Both countries rank in the top 15 in the world when it comes to travel and transport infrastructure. Slovakia wasn’t included in the ranking.

If you’re thinking about a change of scenery, this might help you: check out the 10 best destinations for expats in 2019:

1. Taiwan
2. Vietnam
3. Portugal
4. Mexico
5. Spain
6. Singapore
7. Bahrain
8. Ecuador
9. Malaysia
10. Czech Republic

At the other end of the scope, here are the places best to avoid if you’re thinking about an expat life, according to InterNations:

1. Kuwait
2. Italy
3. Nigeria
4. Brazil
5. Turkey
6. India
7. U.K.
8. Greece
9. Russia
10. South Korea

The InterNations Expat Insider survey 2019 was carried out in March with more than 20,000 expats from over 180 different nationalities scattered in over 60 different countries around the world. Respondents were asked to rate some 50 different factors to evaluate the quality of their life and integration in their respective countries.