Best country to retire to

We moved to Cyprus in 2009. We made some lovely friends but soon realised that many were struggling financially. There was a weekly flea market where many ex pats sold cakes etc. But some people were selling old Womens own magazines. Many people were wearing ancient clothing because of the cost of living. We left when they switched to the euro. Prices rocketed. I’m glad to be in the UK as since we returned I was diagnosed with two life limiting diseases. I am all too aware that the NHS is in dire trouble but now I have incurable cancer I have had good care from the Christie cancer hospital and Macmillan nurses. I don’t think my conditions would have been picked up in Cyprus. I wouldn’t have had regular blood tests for one thing. We’re here in Manchester close to our family. Three grown up children and three…soon to be four grandchildren.

We have owned a house in Cyprus since 2004 and finally retired here 11 years ago. Luckily we got our residency before Brexit ….. it is now quite difficult to retire here, so many hoops to go through. The climate is fantastic and the health service is excellent. No waiting for hip and knee replacements here! We live a far more active and enjoyable life here than we would in UK. We miss our family but they visit and we visit them and it’s very much quality time.

Some NZ people come to Australia for that reason. It is a gorgeous and lowly populated country but there are drawbacks in finding employment. They also have these earth tremors, I find them a bit disconcerting though they all ignore them.

You'd need to check NZ very carefully re Healthcare, I gather they're way behind us for treating some conditions. This article stated emigration guidelines quite clearly :- www.movehub.com/blog/moving-abroad-after-brexit/

SheepyIzzy - I have never ever paid $7.00 for a head of broccoli, or seen it advertised at that price or anywhere near that price. Given, the selection is smaller, there’s only 5.5 million of us and we are isolated regarding imports, but I’ve never wanted to eat or pay for strawberries and suchlike out of season. Retirement here will suit not everyone, but it suits us.

Yes , my uk pension has been frozen at $10 a month for years ! Why even bother, I would say. Still, we don’t even qualify for an Australian one because it is means tested so we are what they call independent retirees. Don’t know why we paid taxes all those years,really.

We lived in the Netherlands for 18 years. Our son was born there, I speak fluent Dutch and loved the life there. However, I always knew I did not want to grow old abroad.
Fortunately my DH’s job brought us back to the UK at a time when the children came with us. It took me a long time to settle but I am very pleased now that we came back when we did.

Maggiemaybe

If you live in a country where your UK state pension has been frozen (ie with no reciprocal agreement in place), your pension does return to the current UK level if you come back, according to gov.uk.

And I added this.

Dinahmo

62Granny

Can I ask a question to anyone who has retired abroad, I know that if you are in receipt of your state pension when you move abroad it is frozen at the rate it is with no further increases, if you move back to the UK does your pension then increase to the UK amount?

It depends upon the country that you live in. We're in France and get the same increases as those in those in the UK. It think that if you move to Oz or to the States and/or Canada then it is frozen at the point of retirement. Someone will correct me if I'm wrong.

You're right.

I posted earlier:

It depends if the country you move to has a reciprocal arrangement with the UK.
Australia does not but I don't know if the pension would revert to the full amount you would have received if you moved back.

Retiring abroad, as far as I am concerned, can only be a short flight, or 1 day drive or train, away. We see more of the children and grandchildren than many friends where they all live in the UK but some distance away. GCs are not old enough to jump on a plane on their own.

We've been in France since 2009 and enjoy living here. In our commune, over 700 people, there are around 20 Brits who live here permanently. There was some trouble amongst a small group because one couple, who have lived here for many years, took French citizenship. They were accused of being traitors. They met up from time to time with some French who were dismayed at the Brexiteers actions. One French lady moaned to me about some of the Brits who boast about the size of their house and the amount of land that they have but do not try to integrate. When the Referendum result was announced the French that we know were shocked and dismayed. They could not believe that Britain wished to leave a Union that had been formed to try to prevent war amongst European countries.

The most difficult thing is trying to remember the French words as we get older. My brain is slowing down. The words are in there but they take a long to get out.

Arto1s

We moved to the States for DH’s job over 30 years ago. I never thought it would be for ever and fully expected to come home to the UK eventually. Well, here we are; been retired for a few years and now living in a wonderful 55+ community with so many friends and a great life. We will come back to the UK to visit friends and family while we are still able, but California is definitely our home now.

Do you feel the same after Storm Hilary?

62Granny

Can I ask a question to anyone who has retired abroad, I know that if you are in receipt of your state pension when you move abroad it is frozen at the rate it is with no further increases, if you move back to the UK does your pension then increase to the UK amount?

It depends upon the country that you live in. We're in France and get the same increases as those in those in the UK. It think that if you move to Oz or to the States and/or Canada then it is frozen at the point of retirement. Someone will correct me if I'm wrong.

Holidayed in algarve for over 10years. Would never retire anywhere but home country. seen expats going from bar to bar etc looking for Brits to have a conversation with. They would extol the virtues of Portugal over UK but obviously deeply unhappy but eere too proud to admit they had made a mistake. The ground is not always greener.

I moved to Spain last Summer with my husband. We love it here. I am learning Spanish and can get by in it. We had to get private health insurance which works out at €20 a week. My husband had a major operation which he only waited two days for. Yes I miss my daughter and grandchildren, but they come over here during school holidays (they left yesterday). I get cheap flights during term time. It’s not difficult. The natural beauty of this country, the weather (of course), the ability to have an outdoor lifestyle without wearing anoraks, the kindness of its people… it’s the best decision we have made. We have both Spanish and international friends. It was more difficult after Brexit, but it was worth it. We never say we are ex-pats. I think of us as immigrants, which is what we are. It’s not for everyone, but it suits us just fine.

I lived in the EU (Menorca, then two different moves in France) ....could have stayed in France after my husband died but to be honest although I was told I would be ok to qualify for their rigorous system in applying to stay, I simply couldn't be bothered !!!! so I moved back to the UK ...where we lived in France was extremely rural, and although I was used to having to drive everywhere, I figured there might come a time when I no longer could .....although at present the licence in France is for life, whereas here it is 70, after which you need to apply again ! and I witnessed other English widows who had never learned to drive, and it was extremely difficult ...taxi to the local (10km being the nearest !) shop were then around 35 - 40 Euros each way ! so even if I had decided to stay, I would have had to move into a less rural environment ......have to say I love it here ..I chose to move into a retirement flat 15 minutes from a big city ...I have everything ..airport, ferry, theatres, cinemas, a huge concert hall, loads of clubs and things to join or volunteer in ..I moved to the coast which is just lovely ....go for lovely long walks in the countryside (hardly walked anywhere when I had my car !) ....so as long as my health lasts I am going travelling on cruises, holidays, etc etc and when I have to stop, I can just look back on it ! SO if I WERE going to move back to either country, I would (I am 76) definitely chose somewhere less rural, with a good transport system, Drs, hospitals, a rail station et ...Menorca has none of these, and it can be quite lonely in winter ...there are some good walks, but little else ! France, yes...loved living there, but again, nowhere rural ...it is sad, but there comes a time when you have to think long term ..............have you visited any of the countries you are thinking about ? if not, then go for a few weeks at a time (not forgetting the restriction on how long you can stay out of the UK) and then decide ! good luck

Here in the UK is the best for me, nowhere else, my families here.

If you live in a country where your UK state pension has been frozen (ie with no reciprocal agreement in place), your pension does return to the current UK level if you come back, according to gov.uk.

We have two sets of friends who retired to Spain but both lots returned to the UK because of Brexit. One couple have been trying to sell their Spanish house for two years with no luck. They can only visit for 90 days in every 180 now Britain is not in the EU.

62Granny

Can I ask a question to anyone who has retired abroad, I know that if you are in receipt of your state pension when you move abroad it is frozen at the rate it is with no further increases, if you move back to the UK does your pension then increase to the UK amount?

It depends if the country you move to has a reciprocal arrangement with the UK.
Australia does not but I don't know if the pension would revert to the full amount you would have received if you moved back.

DH and I both receive our full pensions in Portugal, I think it’s only frozen in some countries linked to the British Commonwealth. Which seems totally unfair to me.

Incidentally, in reference to the earlier point made about learning the language, both DH and I have had many lessons, starting in UK when we were only visiting on holiday. I was fairly fluent, DH has had far more problems. He says it’s because I learnt French at school. I think it’s far more likely to be down to my English grammar lessons aeons ago, they gave me the formal structure of verbs and tenses.
By the way, I said that I speak Portuguese fairly fluently. I used to be far more fluent, I’m finding over the last couple of years that my memory for Portuguese, French and German words is not as good as it was, but then my memory for English words isn’t either. I usually remember them later in the day. I put it down to being 80 and lack of practice.

SheepyIzzy That’s the same story that I get from my Godchildren’s parents. They find the prices they’re exorbitant.
As they say, it’s as well they like it there because they couldn’t afford to buy a house in the UK now.

100 % agree . I know people who lived in France, voted for Brexit and have since had to move ( and are angry?) . So many didn't fully understand the impact and believed the lies of media, like Murdoch, and many more Press Barons , who don't live here or pay taxes .
Excluding the obvious extra difficulties.
Think about family and friends ( support network) .
Then also, if things go wrong, a partner dies/ becomes infirm, or if if you won't be able to cope on your own .

Between 1959 and 1975 we lived in Papua New Guinea but left for UK when the country became independent.

From 1949-1975 I lived in different parts of Australia but in 1959 I lived in Papua New Guinea working for the Australian govt. I have only ever had a British passport. I was silly not to get an Australian passport but now it does not matter. Since 2009 when I was widowed I have visited Australia, but now I am in St Lucia living with my son (60) who has worked here for many years. There is just the two of us and my two little dogs.
I have kept my London home and it is let out. I have English bank accounts and my Australian daughter still lives in UK. I do not know why but at my advanced age I have no desire to travel either to USA or to anywhere else. We have our TVs set up to watch UK programmes and I adore English radio. I cannot speak the local language but everyone speaks English. I have a wonderful doctor here who spends unlimited time with me when I occasionally need to see her but I feel generally much better here. London is just crowded and crime ridden these days judging by friends I speak to regularly on WhatsApp.I don’t do any housework or cooking but my contribution is to pay for our food which is expensive. The local,people are generally friendly. We spend a fortune on electricity as both of us prefer to have our home air conditioned. We have large grounds and encourage the beautiful humming birds to our terrace where we have bird feeders. I went back to UK to pack up my personal stuff and shipped it here. I am still English and I have papers and magazines on line. We do a fair bit of entertaining for friends and visitors. I have an Australian next door. She and I love having tea and a chat. She is married to the French Ambassador and we were a bit nervous about how we would get on with him. However, he is really friendly and speaks English fluently ( I should have known) There are people here of different nationalities and my son knows just about everyone. All in all the only problem would be a decline in my heart or my one kidney. Then I would have to fly to Martinique, a French island with great medical facilities. Other than that I do miss my Anglican Church with its amazing choir and services from the old prayer book. But I am content and do not think I will do any more travelling. My other children like visiting us for holidays. I am enjoying all the stories here and keep,up,with GRANSNET and Mumsnet