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Expats in China rate quality of life as low but say it’s good for their careers
- Air quality and restricted access to online services seen as key issues, according to survey of foreigners
- Mainland’s ranking on list of best destinations improved during pandemic – it was 22nd out of 59, with Taiwan the top choice and Hong Kong at 46th
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A new survey found that foreigners in China were mixed about living in the mainland during the Covid-19 pandemic, reporting a lower quality of life but more satisfaction with career opportunities and the state of the economy.
InterNations, a networking site for expatriates around the world, said in its annual report released on Tuesday that Taiwan was deemed the best destination for people living abroad out of 59 places, ahead of mainland China at 22nd and Hong Kong towards the bottom of the list at 46th.
Rankings were based on a survey of 12,240 people representing 174 different nationalities.
While mainland China’s overall ranking in 2021 had increased from previous years – up from the 50th best place for expats out of 64 destinations in 2019 – expats said the country’s quality of life remained low, including because of restricted access to online services and the quality of the environment.
Mainland China landed in the bottom three for the digital life index, and 46 per cent of respondents were unhappy with air quality – more than double the global average in the survey.
But the bright spot was that foreigners in mainland China said they had a satisfying working life, with 87 per cent happy with the state of the local economy and 68 per cent satisfied with their job security. China’s was the only major economy to expand last year despite the pandemic, with its annual growth reaching 2.3 per cent.
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