Which Offshore Offers Impartial Help for Growing Number of Nomadic Expats

LONDON, September 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

The increasing practice of expats being sent between several countries for their jobs has left employers in a difficult position when providing benefits.

Complications arise for mobile expats as it is difficult to put them into a pension scheme if they don't know where they will retire whilst health insurance needs to be available cross-country.

The international consulting group at Mercer recently carried out a study of the benefits offered by 288 multinational companies.

They found that the number of expats living a nomadic existence had increased from six to ten per cent since 2008/09. In this period, the number of 'long term' expats nearly doubled to 40% whilst the number of 'short term' expats fell from 17% to 11% due to the increase in the mobile workers.

The research found that nearly a quarter of the companies had no standardised policy for these expats or had no policy at all for them.

Some of the companies did provide offshore retirement schemes and QROPS that weren't attached to a particular country although over a third claimed that there were not enough of these people to justify the cost of the scheme. 17% of the companies did not even consider the plans.

This latest piece of research confirms the findings of previous studies which focus on the growing number of 'commuter expats' who maintain a permanent residence in the UK whilst continuing to stay and work abroad.

Michael Brinksman, Online Content Editor at whichoffshore.com said, "The rapidly globalising world has seen more and more expats adopt a nomadic existence. Moving around from offshore destination to offshore destination can prove troublesome when planning for retirement.

"Which Offshore offers expats the most authoritative and impartial help and information anywhere allowing them to make the right decisions about their financial future"

Expats are reminded to always consult an expat focussed IFA before making any personal finance decisions.

Which Offshore is an online consumer resource for those seeking information and advice pertaining to matters related to expatriate life and offshore finance. A fully independent not-for-profit organisation, our website provides an information hub full of news, guides and advice to help expats manage their work and money matters.

Whether you are a retiree seeking a quieter lifestyle, a younger person taking on a new challenge or a family in search of a better environment to raise children, Which Offshore is your first resource for the valuable and independent information you need to know.

For more information on Which Offshore please contact Michael Brinksman, Online Content Editor. Email: mbrinksman@whichoffshore.com