Thanks, Tills, for sharing your journey through Ireland and the ensuing discussion. Enlightening and encouraging for anyone considering relocating, and for those of us who can merely fantasize about such a thing.

How does one even leave their country. Most people can't even afford to move across town to a different rental property yet alone to another state or even country or even across the world....

Sell everything you own and hope it's enough to get you and your immediate family safely to another country, and then hope and prey they let you stay there under a temporary visa.

Sadly many people can't and unfortunately this results in discrimination prosecution detention and even death in their own country. Granted obviously not over night just a slow steady compromise of morals over time which leads to bigger and bigger compromise, and eventually to ethnic cleansing...

Like at what point is enough for leaders of the world to be like this is evil and wrong... How much will it take for intervention?

Sadly I fear I won't survive to see how all this plays out in history and that's the realistic hard truth.

It is too bad you may move mostly for safety.  That is just not right to have to do.
But, Ireland apparently has many nice places too.

Chrissy

Well it's certainly tough @Robbyv213 especially if you have roots to a place.

I've lived a very nomadic life, including one six-year period in a very remote location without any contact without the outside world (it was wonderful!). Without wanting to trivialise this, digital nomads are a real phenomenon now. People live and work all over the globe. Global travel is pronounced. The beautiful city of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand, for example, is now full of international people 'working from home'.

I believe, if I may be so bold, that this kind of outward-facing attitude is less true of US citizens where 45-50% have passports compared to, say, the UK where the figure is over 85%.

So a lot comes down to what you are used to. I don't know if I've spent a single year of my adult life, except during covid, when I haven't travelled abroad. And as a child my parents took me on some epic adventures. I don't feel that I belong to any one country anyway. In fact, having spent so much time in other cultures enjoying the very best they have to offer and seeing their darker sides, I'm an internationalist. I'm the very last person you'd find waving a national flag. I see positives and negatives in every country and I believe that generally extreme nationalism and religion are the two curses that have caused more conflict on this earth than anything else. Just my opinion, mind

There's a big psychological and practical difference though between travelling and living, especially if you are forced to uproot and flee. And the older you get, the harder it becomes. Culture Shock is a real deal.

Apart from recalibrating mindset the other factor which holds people back is often friends and family that they will leave behind. The internet has of course made this less of a factor but not wholly.

On a practical note, as @Devlyn has reminded us, there are no restrictions on a UK citizen living in Ireland. And an Irish citizen can live and move anywhere within the 27 member states of the European Union.

Other countries have visa policies that range from nigh-impossible to very plausible. Thailand, for instance, has a Retirement Visa scheme which really isn't too onerous and neither is it particularly expensive. At the other end of the scale there are Golden Visas for those with serious money, and many countries offer various options in-between.

So don't be overly negative. It's perfectly possible to live in another country. You need a positive mindset and then to go and do it.

xx

Quote from: ChrissyRyan on July 03, 2025, 06:53:02 PMIt is too bad you may move mostly for safety.  That is just not right to have to do.
But, Ireland apparently has many nice places too.

Chrissy

Yes Ireland is gorgeous.

xx

Quote from: Robbyv213 on July 03, 2025, 04:33:20 PMHow does one even leave their country. Most people can't even afford to move across town to a different rental property yet alone to another state or even country or even across the world....

Sell everything you own and hope it's enough to get you and your immediate family safely to another country, and then hope and prey they let you stay there under a temporary visa.

Sadly many people can't and unfortunately this results in discrimination prosecution detention and even death in their own country. Granted obviously not over night just a slow steady compromise of morals over time which leads to bigger and bigger compromise, and eventually to ethnic cleansing...

Like at what point is enough for leaders of the world to be like this is evil and wrong... How much will it take for intervention?

Sadly I fear I won't survive to see how all this plays out in history and that's the realistic hard truth.

I hate sounding like a broken record, but that isn't how immigration works. You can't just move to a foreign country because you want to. Usually you need a sponsor, almost invariably a partner, who is a citizen and resident of the host country. Some countries issue skilled worker visas. Fewer offer entrepreneur visas. "Golden visas" where you simply buy your way into a country are going away fast.

I'm not trying to be a killjoy, but anyone thinking of moving to another country should do some serious research.

Entry refusal at a border is not an enjoyable experience. I was initially refused entry to the UK on a flight from New York. After being searched and questioned, I was put in a unisex holding pen (with metal prison toilets) for nine hours. Then shoved in the back row of a plane going back to New York. On landing they charged me $1,900 for the last minute one-way ticket.

Why was I refused entry? They thought I might overstay because I didn't have strong enough ties to the US. I was traveling on a sabbatical. I had sold my house and quit my job. They didn't like that.

Hugs, Devlyn

Quote from: Devlyn on Yesterday at 03:32:42 AMI'm not trying to be a killjoy, but anyone thinking of moving to another country should do some serious research.

It would be quite useful to run a separate thread on visa requirements of different countries.

There are loads of countries where you can reside with a work visa but, of course, that's not quite the same thing as emigrating.

As well as the Golden Visas which still exist in a number of countries there are a range of others like Retirement Visas.

I've mentioned Thailand and if you're over 60 you can stay there on a Retirement visa which needs to be renewed every year. You also need to be able to lodge £16,500 in a Thai bank account. I should also point out that the Thai Government habitually moves the visa goalposts: for instance they recently cut down the length of a tourist visa because digital nomads were using it for up to 3 months of work. The Visa Run has long, long, been a favoured option with Thailand expats and I did it myself for many months. Basically you enter on a tourist visa or visa exemption and then nip across the border and back. It's slightly frowned upon but has been going on for donkeys' years.

EU citizens can live and / or work in any of the 27 member countries but you may need to register as a resident.

UK citizens can live without needing a visas in the following countries:

Ireland
Jersey
Guernsey
The Isle of Man
Gibraltar
Paraguay
Belize

I'm very lucky as a UK citizen to have the Ireland option, which I may well be taking up shortly.

Generally I'd say to everyone, which has been my policy in life: don't give up. Do your research and then even if things look bleak, don't despair.

xx

p.s. I was out and about in Birmingham UK today and there was noticeable hostility and toxicity. Admittedly the demographic I was mixing with was 50+ yr olds but it was a rather unpleasant atmosphere for me to be honest.

Such a contrast with Ireland where no one looked. Or if they did they instinctively called me 'Ms' or 'Madam'.

xx

Quote from: Tills on Yesterday at 12:49:10 PMIt would be quite useful to run a separate thread on visa requirements of different countries.

...

That's a piece of homework I'm not about to take on! But if anyone else is willing, I'm sure Danielle can arrange for a payment equivalent to Moderator pay. 

Hugs, Devlyn

There is another radical option and I'm not necessarily recommending it but it's something a few hardy types might want to consider. And it's one some youngsters nowadays practice.

You can be a nomad without needing formal resident visas.

If you're prepared to travel around with your home on your back, you can go from country to country and back again. I've lived much of my life like this. I got rid of nearly all of my possessions, dropped a bag or two with friends especially for different types of climate, and then I travelled. I own no property and have very few possessions of my own.

It would be possible for me to alternate between, say, Australia, Canada, Thailand, and Ireland with my rucksack. And I wouldn't need a resident visa. All of them are trans-friendly countries. I could pop into Fiji for a few months each year on the way without needing a visa too. I'm allowed to spend 6 months in Canada and 6 months in Australia. Fiji is en route: I did it last year and Fiji Airways were good.

But if you're going down this line there are some considerations such as having medical and travel insurance, how and where you get your hormones if you're on them, and whether you are willing and able to live your life out of a rucksack. I find it gloriously liberating, thrilling even, but it's quite tough at times too.

Birds do it ...

xx

Quote from: Tills on Yesterday at 11:13:15 PMThere is another radical option and I'm not necessarily recommending it but it's something a few hardy types might want to consider. And it's one some youngsters nowadays practice.

You can be a nomad without needing formal resident visas.

If you're prepared to travel around with your home on your back, you can go from country to country and back again. I've lived much of my life like this. I got rid of nearly all of my possessions, dropped a bag or two with friends especially for different types of climate, and then I travelled. I own no property and have very few possessions of my own.

It would be possible for me to alternate between, say, Australia, Canada, Thailand, and Ireland with my rucksack. And I wouldn't need a resident visa. All of them are trans-friendly countries. I could pop into Fiji for a few months each year on the way without needing a visa too. I'm allowed to spend 6 months in Canada and 6 months in Australia. Fiji is en route: I did it last year and Fiji Airways were good.

But if you're going down this line there are some considerations such as having medical and travel insurance, how and where you get your hormones if you're on them, and whether you are willing and able to live your life out of a rucksack. I find it gloriously liberating, thrilling even, but it's quite tough at times too.

Birds do it ...

xx

The cost and availability of medications are significant concerns when travelling. In Australia we have government subsidised medications, so visitors can have prescriptions filled, but at the full manufacturers price. And travelling with hormones can cause problems at borders, so you must have a valid prescription with you. While those countries are legally safe for trans people, there are still the same risks that all people face and a common sense approach to your own safety is still required.

Hugs,

Allie