Expat England News

Latest 10 news items tagged England

20 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Consumer watchdog Which takes on airlines not paying refunds

Consumer watchdog Which is now supporting expats and tourists whose flights to Spain were cancelled due to the coronavirus. The consumers’ group is now demanding airlines which cancelled flights in the early days of the pandemic should stop prevaricating and speed up refunds to those who missed out on holidays or flights to and from Spain. According to a Which spokesperson, expats are suffering emotional distress as well as financial losses due to the carriers’ reluctance to refund those affected. In support of its accusations,...
17 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Brits in Portugal furious over UK refusal to initiate air bridge

British expats living in Portugal are furious about the UK’s refusal to set up a quarantine-free air bridge for tourists. In yet another chaotic decision, the UK has ruined Portugal’s chances of tourism revenue this year by refusing to establish a quarantine-free ‘air bridge’. Worse still, other world countries have concluded Portugal is an unsafe destination simply by accepting the UK’s flawed reasoning. Professionals in the healthcare sector as well as British expats and university lecturers all believe it’s an...
17 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Hope springs eternal for expats and visitors trapped in Thailand

Expats trapped in Thailand and threatened with deportation on the expiry of the visa amnesty are waiting with bated breath after several local English language media outlets suggested there’s now hope for another extension. Thousands of business travellers, tourists and expatriates whose visas had expired during Thailand’s strict lockdowns have been stuck in the country for months, unable to leave due to border closures and an almost total lack of international flights. Yesterday’s flight listings from Bangkok’s international...
16 Jul at 6 PM 2020

British expat retirees urged to ignore financial sharks

British expats across the world are being urged by sharks to shore up their finances before Brexit finally hits. Given that mitigating the financial aspects of Britain’s looming divorce from the rest of Europe is dependent on the final outcome, taking action now might well make things worse should a no-deal drop off the cliff become the final outcome of four years’ wrangling. The Brexit trade discussions don’t seem to be going well, and the vast majority of expat concerns about their post-Brexit financial health are concentrated...
15 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Expats help revitalize New Zealand’s real estate sector

New Zealand’s real estate market is still defying worldwide doom and gloom. Whilst realtors across the world are predicting massive drops in property valuation, New Zealand’s real estate prices are still on the up on last year’s figures. Whilst this is excellent news for those Kiwi expats who rented out their properties when they left, for those now returning to the home country to escape the coronavirus pandemic it’s a disaster. A June survey by a well-known Kiwi real estate agency noted median house prices across both...
15 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Expat Brits in Spain finally have guaranteed post-Brexit rights

After long periods of silence unappreciated by British expats living and retiring in Spain, the UK Ambassador is urging all to register as residents. Although the message conveyed had already been a central focus of expat media outlets, Britain’s man in Madrid took it on himself to point out there are only 25 weeks to go before the transition period ends and the UK is all alone in the dark. At present, according to social media, both British residents and British expats in Europe are now fearing a governmental rush to compromise as...
13 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Hongkongers and expats mourning the loss of Hong Kong’s soul

As the Hong Kong crisis escalates, Hong Kong expats living in the UK are welcoming Britain’s offer whilst mourning the loss of the city’s soul. The British government’s offer to millions of Hong Kong residents of a pathway to UK citizenship is being welcomed by those expats already in the UK, but it’s being criticised for not being open to many of those desperate to leave. Coincidentally – or not, those Hongkongers born after the then colony’s return to rule by China in 1997 were those most active in the 2019...
13 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Second passports at bargain-basement rates offered by Caribbean nations

Now’s the time for expats to bag a discounted second passport as the Caribbean nations are having a fire sale due to the coronavirus. The tropical island nations in the Caribbean are highly reliant on tourism for their GDP and are suffering due to the pandemic-induced flight bans and lockdowns. As a result, they’re now offering steep discounts on their second passport schemes simply in order to bring in more cash. At the same time, second passports are being seen as one way to avoid being stranded whilst riding out the pandemic....
10 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Brit would-be expats can now visit Spain without self-isolating

If the coronavirus chaos in the UK is the last straw in your broken relationship with your home country, massive discounts on European summer holidays make for affordable checking out of European expat hubs. If you’ve just about given up on the UK as your country of residence, now’s the time to visit Spain. Tourists and potential expats can now travel to any one of Spain’s favourite destinations, and don’t need to self-isolate or get tested on arrival. The only problem is that, as the UK government is backing off from arranging...
10 Jul at 6 PM 2020

Expats on Facebook protest dual pricing at Thai national parks and attractions

One long-term issue roundly disliked by Western expats as well as tourists in Thailand is the long-term practice of charging non-Thai visitors to attractions and national parks at least twice the amount paid by Thai citizens. Known in the country’s large expatriate community as ‘farang price’ – ‘farang’ being the Thai for Western foreigner – the practice has always caused controversy as well as anger as it’s been seen as discriminatory at best and indefensible at worst. Many tourists as well as expats living and...