Expatriates have been urged to take advantage of internet savings accounts to ensure their cash reserves accrue as much interest as possible.
A survey conducted by Alliance & Leicester has found that over two thirds of UK citizens living abroad fail to save their wages in savings accounts. In all, 70 per cent of expats do not set up an offshore savings account in the immediate aftermath of their move. This is despite the fact that the majority have ample opportunity to do so.
Nearly three quarters (70 per cent) of expatriates use the internet every day as, being so far away from home, they are dependent on emails to keep in touch with friends and families and the web to keep up to date with international news and views.
In fact, 40 per cent of expats use the internet for up to an hour every day, meaning they have a limited basis for citing opportunity as an excuse for not setting up an internet saving account.
Furthermore, 46 per cent of current expats have spent between one and five years living abroad, suggesting paying money into an offshore account would be a long term, rather than short term measure - once again limiting the scope for choosing not to do so.
Opening an internet savings account would be especially pertinent for expats given that many chose to move abroad in the first place as part of an attempt to accelerate career development and increase earnings potential - meaning that ensuring money is well looked after should be high on the list of their priorities.
The survey also found that Britons are moving to more remote corners of the globe in a bid to land their dream jobs. Although around 40 per cent relocate to established destinations such as the Middle East, Australia and the USA, there has been a surge in the number of Brits moving to Africa, Singapore, Thailand and Russia.
A further study by the Alliance & Leicester has highlighted that not all expats are career-driven, though. Weather was found to be the decisive factor behind the decision of 40 per cent of expats to relocate to a foreign country.
This evidence has been backed up by website Propertymartoverseas, which states that "soaring prices, spiralling debt, rising interest rates and a seemingly ineffective government are all contributory factors for this mass exodus with expats seeking a better quality of life, a lower cost of living and more reliable weather".
