Ask Lemmy

I'm German and as far as I'm concerned the people who want to flee the current US administration are exactly the type of people you want to welcome with open arms.

I went to Norway. Big recommend. That said, I refuse to call myself an expat or use the term expatriate. I am an immigrant. I think it is weird that white westerners get a special word and everybody else are filthy immigrants.

Brit here. I'd be happy to accept Dem voters. Fart voters can stay at home and eat their own dogshit. Non-voters too; they knew exactly who FartV1 was and I am genuinely surprised Harris couldn't get in simply on "I'm not Fart". They really thought she'd be worse?

And for those who get over here by lying about their vote; they incriminate themselves, and will be deported the moment we discover the truth.

Non-American here. All Americans, except MAGA muricans, are welcome.

Tbf most migrants are either damn smart, hard workers or damn smart hard workers.

So, for a good future we should welcome them!

I'm very concerned that people who choose to go to France will just find themselves in the exact same situation along with the rest of us not too long from now. I'd advise looking for a country with a lower fascism approval rating...

We do have lots of cheese, though, if it's any consolation.

The kind of american that usually comes to Mexico is very nice, very welcome. Maybe the exceptions are the very loud and self absorbed ones that go to resort locations and act like they're better than everyone there.

As long as people want to integrate and cooperate they are more than welcome.

Now, the sad part is the gentrification that comes with a lot of people moving and outpaying rent vs the locals. Now the average cost of living in Mexico city is about 50% higher than the average salary, and about 100% higher than the median salary. Another very negative thing is that now a lot of locals have to communicate in english because American people will come and not learn spanish over multiple years living here. There are zones where everything is in english now. It's okay speaking english, it's not okay expecting english from everyone.

So a few pointers:

1. Integrate, pay taxes, consume locally
2. Try and move into already gentrified places, avoid displacing more people
3. Push for social policy, increased affordable living spaces, invest in the country where you move into to improve the locals' life

Be friendly, but that's always

So, it's not just theoretical for me. I left the US earlier this year and moved to Iceland. Planning started almost a year before that. It is hard for Americans to move to a lot of European countries, and Iceland isn't an exception.

I hired an immigration attorney in Iceland to help make sure I did everything correctly. That cost about $10k as a retainer. It was worth every penny. If you're taking notes, that's pretty much the only one you need. Every country has different rules and laws regarding Americans moving to their country. And just like in America, if you have an issue with the law, you need to hire an attorney. They will help you understand every relevant law that exists that applies to you that may very well not be available in English. Hire a local expert.

I'm not very young, so I paid to move my stuff here. I also paid to move my electric vehicle because gas costs the equivalent of about $10 per gallon, plus there are some serious CO2 taxes here. That cost about another $20k. About two thirds moving the stuff, and one third moving the car.

In retrospect, moving the stuff was a good idea. I have lots of things that are just incredibly hard to get here, or take forever to get if you want them. And I saved enough money to be worth it. If you look at something like a KitchenAid mixer, it costs the equivalent of $1k here. If I sold my old one for used price and bought a new one here, I'd lose most of a thousand bucks. So you only need to do that a few times to make moving your stuff worth it.

I also saved money on importing my car over just buying a new one, but it was such a fucking hassle that if I were to do it again, I'd have just bought one here. I didn't save enough to make it worth it.

I'm not sure how useful my experience will be now. When I started talking to my immigration attorney, I explained that it seemed likely to me that after trump was reelected that Americans were going to panic and rush for the exits. I felt that it was likely that the countries would respond by doing exactly what America does: freak out about having too many immigrants and change the rules to make it harder to get in.

Based on a recent conversation with my attorney, it seems that I was right. The rules have changed enough that the path that we used for residency has now been more more seriously restricted. The attorney's office was inundated with requests from Americans and they were working 12+ hour days for a few months just trying to respond to all the requests.

I know some folks have strong feelings that people should stay and fight. But I feel like we have fought the good fight for a long time. That went all the way from starting non-profits, to being involved locally, and all the way to running for public office. I'm not interested in identifying myself too much, but I will say that that the person we lost that election to was openly known to have been fired previously for having embezzled money, but voters didn't care because they got to vote for team (R) in our red state.

So from my perspective, there is a cancer that is eating America. I've tried hard to remove it. I've tried hard to treat it. Ultimately, it seems to have metastisized to the point that it is incurable. You can either keep up with the radiation and chemo and be miserable until you die, or you can stop treatment and do your best to enjoy the time that is left.

For me, moving to Iceland is my version of stopping treatment to enjoy what life I have left. And if you want to fight to the bitter end, or if you want to search for a better life in another country, I wish each and every one of you the very best on your journey.

Any country where healthcare and higher education are considered human rights and not commodities will work for me.

Don't come to Ireland. I've lived in the US for nearly two decades, made lots of friends and even helped some to immigrate here. The harsh reality is, however, that we're going through a really bad housing crisis, with our own homeless numbers growing every month, and house prices and rents exploding (a recent statistic showed that our growth in rents is four times the EU average). So, please, for our sake and yours, try a different country.

GingTFO isn't actually a huge problem for Americans. I've looked into it and the only reason I'm still here is that my wife refuses to leave and I love her too much to leave her. Dozens of countries will give Americans residency, although citizenship is usually a lot more difficult and/or takes years. There is usually a minimum income requirement, but you don't have to be rich. I've seen it in the $1200-$2k/mo range in multiple places. Of course this has to be income you can still make while you're in the new country, not a US job you're going to give up. Makes it pretty sweet for "digital nomads" tho who can work remotely.

A few countries highly rated by expats are Costa Rica, Panama, Uruguay (esp good environment for LGBTQ+), and Thailand. Vietnam doesn't even have a visa limit - technically it's 3 or 5 years but all you have to do to reset it is go away for like 30 days. There are lots of others. If you want to get started google "Americans moving abroad", there are tons of helpful videos and articles.

As a member of the CAF, if the US Armed Forces are getting rid of LGBTQ folks, I would be proud to welcome them as my comrades in arms.

For anyone who's thinking UK, I'd advise not - we're about 4-5 years behind you in terms of imminent fascism and whilst there's still technically a chance to avert it, its very unlikely - especially since Starmer is being even more awful than the Tories.

Here in Canada we're trying to catch America's brain drain. We especially need doctors quite desperately.

at least currently these countries are mostly looking for PHDs, MDs in specialities, some engineers, but degrees in stem lower than that isnt encouraged at all. because they know there will be a job waiting the moment they set foot in those countries, but its unwise for someone with a undergraduate/MS since you would have to do much more.

i knew a white guy in my CC that "expatriated" to mexico after my semester with him in a stem class this was a long time ago, kinda wierd he even bother going to school in the CC anyways in the USA, he was gone the next semester.

Germany. I might be able to claim ancestry rights. Ironic that my great grandmother fled fascism in Germany but I'd flee America to return to the motherland.

Californian - i want us, oregon, and washington to join canada.

Ireland. I'm a firm believer that if you move to a region that speaks a different language, you need to make a genuine effort to learn that language. After having 3 years of foreign language (including a year of Gaelic when I lived in Ireland as a child for a year), I know it's not my thing, so an English speaking country is a requirement for me. Ireland is gorgeous, and still in the EU. Scotland would also be top of the list if they split from the UK and joined the EU.