Moving to a new, foreign country is a daunting task which many expats find very overwhelming. At Asia Expat Guides, we understand your concerns and your specific needs as an expat. We routinely share articles and expat tips about moving to Asia at http://asiaexpatguides.com/expat-tips/. In this particular slide, we compile the top 5 problems faced by expats and how you can overcome it.

1. Top 5 Problems Faced by Expats
A Guide for New Expats
By: Asia Expat Guides

2. •
It is almost inevitable that you will feel some form of alienation having
uprooted yourself from your home. Loneliness will set in as you make the
move to a foreign land and having toadjust to foreign culture and
language. There will be things that you missed about home, mainly the
food and your family. As a result, many expats may ended up they
preferred to cooped up indoors, at times for months, after their initial
move as they have difficulty adapting to the new environment. You may
begin to feel home sick and the thoughts of having your family and
friends far away and are in a different time zone, does not help either.
You will need time to get over the initial phase of adjusting but you
would have to remain positive or it may affect your physical health and
mental health.

3. • If you are moving to another country especially across the
continent, the issue of cultural differences would be very
prevalent. Most expats would initially find it difficult to
comprehend the other culture and assimilate those in your own
beliefs. However, you need to be open and receptive about many
new ideas so to reduce the misconception about others. Being
very accepting and learning to respect the local practices and
local culture in your new found homeland should help you
integrate with the local population.

4. •
One of the biggest challenges of adapting to a new culture is learning to
communicate effectively. According to the Expat Explorer report
commissioned by HSBC Bank International, 58% of the 3,100 expats
questioned said that learning the local language is one of the biggest
challenges faced by international assignees. Even in America and
Britain, despite the use of English as the main form of communication, it
could still be a problem as there would be variations in pronunciation and
common lingo and slang between the countries. A harmless comment
from one culture may be misconstrued as being rude in another.
Thus, you need to be aware of the differences to avoidembarrassing
episodes.

5. • There is no doubt that more attractive pay package is one of the
major reasons why the vast majority of expats move overseas.
However, the opportunity cost of getting a larger pay package
would be a significantly higher cost of living. It is also worth
remembering that, in some countries, the difference between the
cost of living in the suburbs of the major city and the cost of living
within a major city could well be enormous. There are so many
aspects to consider, including property, food, utilities, local taxes
and other issues, that many people will seek professional advice in
this particular area.

6. •
Healthcare has become a major issue amongst the expat community over
the last few years as the cost of private healthcare continues to grow and
the level of public healthcare in some countries continues to fall.
Additionally most expats are not accustomed to the food and weather
during the early days, thus fall victims to stomach flus, coughs and other
illnesses. Most new expats have no idea where to seek medical attention
in their host country, without medical benefits and local insurance, it
could cost a huge fortune for every visit to the doctor. Therefore, a
comprehensive medical plan will be needed to avoid the huge cost of
medical care. In most countries in Asia, it would be good to have a good
insurance plan to cover cost such as hospitalization and terminal illness.

7. Having understood the potential problems that you may
face as an expat living outside your comfort zone, our
company are committed to provide quality service to ensure
your smooth transition to move into Asia. Hiring us is like an
investment, as the services we provide are thorough enough
to assist you and defray any potential cost or unforeseen
problems in the future. So do not hesitate to take up our
service and you can be assured that you and your family
would be well covered and be able to live happily in your
host country.

8. For more information about
being an expat in Asia, visit
http://asiaexpatguides.com