Some people believe that retiring overseas would be paradise. The cost of living may be less than it is in the United States. However, Forbes.com, in its October 15 posting, wrote that seniors will not find paradise anywhere. Each country is unique with its own assets and liabilities. The key to a successful retirement as an ex-pat is carefully matching your own personal priorities and finances to the country that has caught your eye.

Forbes identified its own list of the 10 best retirement havens, based on a wide variety of criteria ranging from safety to retiree-friendly visa requirements to decent medial care. The countries on their list included Austria, Thailand, Italy, Panama, Ireland, Australia, France, Malaysia, Spain and Canada.

While no place is perfect, some countries rank high in one area but lower in others. Australia is well-regarded by one rating service, the Country Brand Index, as the most livable place in the world. (For information on the Country Brand Index go to http://www.countrybrandindex.com/country-brand-rankings/. But if you plan to return to the U.S. frequently, it’s a long flight. Canada is No. 2 in the Country Brand ratings and certainly convenient for Americans, but its harsh winters are well-known. Italy scores high on quality of life, medical care, and even cost of living and climate for retirees residing in the Southern parts of the country. But its complicated taxes and bureaucracy require patience. >

If you’re a sun-worshiper determined to protect your assets from overreaching Western governments, consider countries like Panama or Malaysia.

If you are solidly middle-class with a taste for high culture, then there are pleasant surprises to be found in Europe. Who would have known, for example, that France is so friendly to American retirees?

Or consider Ireland. Its top personal income tax rate is 43%. That’s not terribly appealing on the surface, but a couple over 65 is entirely exempt from Irish tax on any income below $59,000.

If you are you eager to live abroad and not interested in learning foreign languages, that’s a good argument for Australia, Ireland or Canada. The key to lowering costs and receiving first-rate medical and other services in foreign countries is the ability to “work the system,” and to do that, you have to speak the local language passably well.

On the other hand, going totally native can bring on unexpected and powerful bouts of homesickness. Kathleen de Carbuccia, president of the Association of Americans Resident Overseas, recommends that prospective retirees seek out cities, towns or villages where there is an existing American or English-speaking ex-pat community. Fellow ex-pats will be of great help during those inevitable moments when cultures clash, and they’ll perhaps help you see the humor in the situation.

Decent and affordable medical care is a key issue for retirees, of course. Most nations, when a retiree applies for a visa at their consulates, require proof of income, such as private or public pension payments and bank account statements, as well as proof of private medical insurance. They don’t want seniors who haven’t paid into their health care systems to become a burden on the locals who have been paying into the system all their lives. Nevertheless, it is possible to find health insurance.

Keep an eye out for problems in your plans. Most American retirees abroad receive their income in U.S. dollars; their expenses are in a foreign currency. Managing this current risk is one of the most difficult elements of living abroad, and it is likely to be a growing issue, as we enter a period of prolonged dollar weakness.

If you calculate you’ll have to live month-to-month on your pension and Social Security payments while in a European city, then consider village life, or a lower-cost alternative like Thailand, where you’ll have enough income to maintain a cash reserve and a fine quality of life. No one, after all, wants to be forced home when the dollar drops 25 percent, as it can sometimes do in a period of just a couple of years.

But there is a way to eliminate even the currency risk, if that is your priority. Panama, the gateway between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, has adopted the U.S. Dollar as its official currency. Move there and your assets and liabilities are matched.

A good resource to help you sort out the best places to live overseas is International Living Publishing based in Ireland. Its Web site –http://www.internationalliving.com/ — provides access to a wide range of information and publications, and includes its own top retirement haven list.

Our Guest Blogger today is Tom Wetzel, Editor-in-Chief
http://www.retirementliving.com

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Filed under: Travel In Retirement

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