Americans leaving US in record numbers

Ever dream of leaving it all behind and heading out of America? You’re not the only one. A new study shows that more US citizens than ever before are living outside of the country.

According to statistics from the US State Department, around 6.4 million Americans are either working or studying overseas, which Gallup says is the largest number ever for such statistic.

The polling organization came across the number after conducting surveys in 135 outside nations and the information behind the numbers reveal that this isn’t exactly a longtime coming either — numbers have skyrocketed only in recent years. In the 24 months before polling began, the number of Americans between the ages of 25 and 34 living abroad managed to surge from barely 1 percent to over 5.1 percent. For those under the age span wishing to move overseas, the percentage has jumped in the same amount of time from 15 percent to 40.

While the United States of America was at one point (and largely still is) a magnet for foreigners in search of work, the statistics makes it clear that an opposite trend is quickly picking up steam.

"There's a feeling among more entrepreneurial Americans that if you really want to get anything done, you have to get out of country and away from the depressing atmosphere," Bob Adams of America Wave tells Reuters. “There's a sense of lost direction, so more people are looking for locations that offer more hope about the future."

Many of those leaving the US have job skills that would transfer quite well in the American market. Instead, however, they chose to bring those out of the States, attracted instead to opportunities elsewhere.

While America offers some employment opportunities unmatched outside of the United States, the country has also seen dire economic statistics since the dawn of the Obama administration, with jobless benefit claims soaring in recent months, and only last week did the Department of Labor reveal an unemployment statistic below 9 percent. On the contrary, the number of Americans that want full-time work and have given up on finding it or unable to locate it is closer to double that figure, while at the same time many of America’s largest employers have outsourced positions across the globe. Banking giant Goldman Sachs announced earlier this year that in the wake of a recession, they would finally be creating 1,000 new positions, yet making them available only to workers in Singapore. Other industries, significantly American, have been relocated as well; the ending of NASA’s space shuttle program this year left many intelligent US citizens with little choice but to continue in their field outside of the States.

“We’ve pretty much outsourced everything else,” aerospace technician Giovanni Pinzon tells RT. He was left scrambling for a job after years working in America’s space program.

America Wave’s Adams adds to Reuters that the statistics prove surprising to him, but noted that it doesn’t exactly make sense to think that it is a fluke.

“They're looking for work because of the sluggish economy, and they've lost confidence that the U.S. is going anywhere,” says Adams.

Favorite

2 members favorited this

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

Comment by Nikki on December 12, 2011 at 11:00pm: The American Dream in Reverse

Comment by Nikki on December 10, 2011 at 3:52pm: Thanks, Maria. Lots of great info here. I had an uncle who retired in Mexico and he dearly loved it.

Many don't realize that their US passport does not belong to them and can be taken away for the flimsiest excuses. That's why many are trying to get a second passport. If you are of Italian, Irish or Polish heritage you may qualify based on ancestry. Other ways are through marriage or residency. It never hurts to have a back-up plan and should be part of your prepper planning.

Comment by Maria De Wind on December 9, 2011 at 9:01pm: "They Expected the Worst – They Did Not Expect the Unthinkable:"

Comment by Maria De Wind on December 9, 2011 at 8:29pm: One can't live fearing what others might say, facts are facts and if one logs in here I assume one isn't very happy with what is going on in America- or the United States- the rest of the continent would say.

Information is provided with the best intention possible, inform about possibilities, no one is forced to leave into exile... yet.

Many have done so because they are open to other possibilities and have found that there is indeed live outside the States, often a very pleasant or prosperous one.

Actually no American Corporation/Company would have ever expanded into other markets without the help of thousands of American Ex-pats willing to move beyond the safety of their borders, among those many never looked back ever again, and that does not in any way means they stopped loving the country and culture of their birth; Like many readers here they found not everything they've been told was as true as they had been to believe. Just living away from the constant barrage from American Media and peers and finding themselves immersed into another culture is often enough to open their eyes.

Those who are still blindfolded and dare not see beyond can stay till they no longer recognize what once was their pride, at least as long as they can afford to.

Those who being aware of what is going on and yet choose to stay and try to avert collapse deserve to be hailed even if their chosen path goes uphill, requires lot of resources and heaps of good luck many don't have.

It is for those who believe the have to right to pursue happiness no matter where and even for those who not having completely given up in on the USA, but feel it might be a good idea to make a -temporal-"strategic retreat"

that this kind of information may be useful. Here are a few links describing what its like living in sunny Mexico because

1.- it is right across the border

2.- it is mostly American people friendly to though not necessarily American Government friendly

3.- there is already huge number of americans living there actually Mexico is now the host nation for the largest American expatriate community in the world.

4.- you can always run for the border in case you feel like it

5.- it is cheaper to live there - though not everything- that is way the US - Mexico is one of the busiest in the world

6.- Many Americans are happily making a living here ... illegally !

YANKS ABROAD: THE NUMBERS GAME

Living In the World's Best Climate

A gringa cat-lover lives in Cancun, Mexico

Living Half a Life in Cancun

Foreigners Living in Mexico

MAGICAL OAXACA

Southern Mexico's Hidden Port

Active Seniors are Choosing Baja California for Value and Lifestyle

American working in Mexico

Many Americans Moving to Mexico in Search of the American Dream

Comment by Nikki on December 9, 2011 at 3:18pm: Maria, you are braver than me. I saw a similar article from Economic Collapse posted yesterday on Infowars. I didn't repost it on this site because I knew I would get a lot of negative responses.

What Is The Best Country In The World For Americans To Relocate To ...

What many on this site apparently don't realize is that Americans have been leaving for decades - long before the economy was starting to collapse. For retirees it's a opportunity to make their social security and savings go a lot further giving them a far better retirement than they would have had in the US, esp if they are from a cold northern state. For others it's for better opportunities and adventure. But when jobs started going oversees, relocating became the only opportunity for many and this has caused a brain drain in the US. Now we're at a point where it's extremely difficult to get a job, open a business, or manufacture anything. Smart people will not sit on their thumbs and wait for the economy to improve, they will just leave. Others will leave because they don't want to live in a police state.

All Americans had ancestors who did the exact same thing. They came here for better opportunities and to escape tyranny. This happens in cycles. Now Americans are going someplace else for the exact same reasons. The idea that I must live my entire life and die in the same place I was born is ridiculous.

As far as Americans not be liked oversees, there is a big difference between moving somewhere and traveling as a tourist. I have to admit that there were times I literally crawled under a table because I was so embarrassed at what another American was doing in a foreign country. But you will find communities of Americans living in many places. Do your research. Pick up a copy of International Living magazine or any other publications/websites like it and you will find there is a big world out there.

Comment by youhavetoforgiveme on December 9, 2011 at 3:16am: No room for argument there, Vincent. And if you're reading this and considering leaving the country, gentle reader, you will also want to note that we as Americans are not exactly well liked beCAUSE of those very same smart bombs. You have been warned.