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One would think that if someone is travelling and working overseas for much of his or her career, he or she doesn’t have much available in the way of savings advantages. This assumption is completely wrong. An expat saver has huge advantages available to them in comparison to regular savers, and they take advantage of those benefits on a regular basis. Here are a few of the big pluses that expats have over a saver who lives in his or her own country.

An expat saver has a far greater number of saving choices

Expats, by their very nature, have access to saving options both at home and internationally. They can tap into banks and investment institutions in different markets while traditional savers are generally limited to those resources in their general location. Because of this fact, expats have more opportunities available to them as well as more risks. Yet with the information and comparative ability available, most expats figure out how to save more often than not.

A higher level of general awareness

The traditional saver is usually aware of what’s going on in his or her own city, country, and possibly region. But that’s about it. They’re typically not really too concerned with what’s going on in international markets. As a result, when the world market (which is highly integrated today) realises a shift, then it ends up being a bit of a surprise to a regular saver.

The expat saver is well-tuned into shifts at the international level. Whether it be an awareness of the regular world news or comings and goings in a particular industry, he or she has a lot more information at their fingertips to understand what’s going on in the global market and how it will affect savings at home or abroad.

Currency differences

Unlike a traditional saver, an expat has a huge advantage – he or she works in one country and yet has a home or links in another country. That simple fact allows an expat to play differences between the two countries currencies, which can be significant depending on which monies are involved. It takes a bit of knowledge and information, especially when advantage could bounce back and forth between currency exchanges, product purchases, and then reverse currency exchanges to take advantage of differences in values. However, if one does their homework with a professional, an expat could stand to make a tidy profit on currency trading with his or her knowledge of the two countries involved.

Expat saver advantages

Expat saver tax advantages

One of the biggest advantages an expat will enjoy over a regular saver involves tax savings. Granted, a few countries are closing that gap by telling their citizens that anything they save overseas must be declared and taxed, but the majority don’t have this requirement for their people. And for those expats who are free to earn without limitation when away from home, the tax savings are absolutely huge. In some cases, the money saved can be more than inflation and taxes combined if the money had been earned as regular income at home. No regular saver can match that kind of performance at home; it’s not mathematically possible outside of high-risk investing.

In summary

The expat saver clearly stands at an advantage over regular savers in a number of ways. He or she is able to leverage both geographical locations as well as currency differences and information to produce savings advantages. As a result, he or she can definitely generate some significant asset growth in a short period of time, if they do it correctly.

It is universally recognised that expats have always needed – and always will – specialist financial advice to take advantage of their unique status and as a result, typically, become comparatively better off than their counterparts ‘back home’. As such, it is highly recommended that expats seek independent financial advice from a professional with relevant experience.

How to be an expat saver

About Mike Coady

Mike Coady is an expat expert based in Dubai and is on hand to help with all of the above and more.

Mike is an award-winning money coach and industry leader in the financial sector.

Qualified to UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) standards, a member of the Chartered Insurance Institute, a Founding Fellow of the Institute of Sales Professionals (FF.ISP), and a Fellow of the Institute of Directors (FIoD) and featured as a highly qualified Financial Adviser in Which Financial Adviser.

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Blog published by Mike Coady.