by Blake Bachelor
CNN
Drawn by sunshine or a lower cost of living, a growing number of Americans are choosing to live their golden years outside the US, in the hope that it will better suit their financial or lifestyle needs and wants.
While official numbers aren’t available, companies and organizations that specialize in assisting people move abroad have seen a massive post-election uptick in traffic and enquiries over the last few months — anecdotal evidence, some say, suggesting a “momentum, a movement taking shape” among Americans, including many retirees, seriously considering (or already undertaking) a permanent move abroad.
“I don’t think (it’s) going to just dissipate the way it has in every previous election that I’ve been doing this,” Kathleen Peddicord, founder and publisher of Live and Invest Overseas (LIOS), told CNN Travel. “I don’t think this is going to fade away. They’re asking pretty serious questions about this country versus this country, and ‘What would my residency options be, and what will my tax burdens be?’ So they’re not dreamy questions. They’re very practical.”
Established in 2008, LIOS publishes regular content related to moving abroad, such as questions about taxes and health care. In the days following the election, web traffic was about 250 higher than normal, Peddicord says, and the sustained interest has helped fuel “the greatest growth in our readership in our history.”
Retirees make up about 80 percent of the LIOS audience, including those who are already retired and those planning for it, Peddicord said, and its annual list of 10 Best Places To Retire is among the publication’s “most read and highly anticipated” reports.
International Living, a monthly magazine and website that focuses on living abroad, has also seen a significant uptick in enquiries and traffic, which started even before the election, Executive Editor Jennifer Stevens tells CNN Travel. Its data-driven Annual Global Retirement Index is based on factors including housing, visas, cost of living and health care, as well as input from more than 200 on-the-ground editors and correspondents.
At the publication’s most recent annual conference, which was held in Las Vegas in October 2024, Stevens said she spoke to many readers, including retirees, about their growing concern over “(Government) policies making living sort of uncomfortable in the US,” as well as the “social situation in the States” and the “economic implications of tariffs” under the new administration.
At the same time, Stevens said she also noticed a sense of excitement in others over the prospect of potential tax breaks and more expendable income — which could stretch even further outside of the US. “They’re looking for ways they can diversify internationally or spend some of that money abroad,” she said.
Money — or lack of it — continues to be a pressing issue for many retirees in the US. Skyrocketing costs for housing, rent and healthcare are siphoning away savings more quickly than in previous generations — in fact, almost half of US households, have no retirement account savings.
Meanwhile, more than 17 million aged 65 or older — approximately one in three — are considered economically insecure (meaning they have income levels at 200 percent or more below the federal poverty level).
Moving to a country with a much lower cost of living offers an opportunity to “invert your budget, so you could take what you’re currently spending on, say, transportation, and move to a place where you don’t need a car, for instance, and use that budget for discretionary spending,” Sophia Titley, LIOS editor-in-chief, tells CNN Travel.
In addition to their finances, which often are based on fixed budgets, retirees face a specific set of criteria to consider before making the leap abroad. First of all, there’s the issue of whether they are legally allowed — or have the means — to retire in their destination of choice. (For example, some countries may offer attractive employment options for digital nomads — but not so much for those who are no longer working.)
“You need to look at places where you can reasonably get a residency visa,” Titley says. “I would say that’s the best place to start. Look at what you have, what you can afford, the different thresholds to qualify, and look at places that actually offer residency permits for everyday people.”
Another key consideration: determining your eligibility and costs for health care and health insurance in a new destination. Experts recommend researching options thoroughly beforehand, as some countries, including Spain and France, require health insurance as a requirement for granting a visa.
However, Peddicord notes that “the good news … is that wherever you go, the health care is going to be more affordable, because it’s more expensive in the United States than anywhere — not only health care, but also health insurance.”
Finally, retirees who receive Medicare — the federal insurance program available to Americans aged 65 and older (and some younger individuals with disabilities) — should make sure to do their homework about what moving abroad means for their eligibility.
Except for a few situations, Medicare will not cover health care costs Outside of the US. However, experts recommend keeping coverage if possible, which can offer a safety net and sense of reassurance in the event of a serious illness or injury.
“It just keeps your options open,” Peddicord explains. “You can choose to go back to the States, where you may have family and more of a network of support for going through an experience like that, whereas, if you’ve given up your Medicare, it’s not a straightforward thing always to re-engage in the program.”
While visas, taxes and healthcare are among the most important considerations for a move abroad, retirees also should consider destinations — and the smaller regions within those — that align with their preferred lifestyle.
Tomorrow: details about moving to five possible landing spots for disaffected Americans, Panama, Spain, Mexico, Malaysia and France.
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