As international travel has been drastically reduced (and the environment takes a well-deserved breather), you might wonder if the people will still move abroad post-COVID. We believe that migration will:

• Increase gradually
• Not increase to the levels before COVID
• Be purposeful and intentional, eliminating unnecessary moving

My friend Ana from Romania asked me for tips on how to decided on what the best location would be for her and her family to move after the pandemic. Shauna, which I met through my business, Smoovster, just moved to Vancouver, Canada in June. My agent Stephanie, who helps me with the Amazon sales for my book Moving Abroad: The Essentials, tells me the sales is going up.

At first, I was surprised by all of this, but giving it a thorough thought, here are 5 reasons why we should expect migration numbers to pick up mid- to long-term:

• The reasons for moving stay the same
• Remote jobs opportunities provide location flexibility
• Healthcare systems have proven unreliable
• Countries aim to resume travel for economic purposes
• Eventually, a vaccine will come out

Let’s dive deeper into each.

1. The reasons for moving stay the same

Why do people move abroad? For a better quality of life, to reunite with family, for more trustworthy systems, for international experience, for better education, etc.

Unless not strong enough – and in this a person shouldn’t move at all – these valid reasons have not gone away, but rather have become stronger for the people who were really determined to move.

2. Remote jobs opportunities provide location flexibility

Companies have adapted and offer more remote jobs than before. Work from home, or anywhere for that matter, might be an incentive for people to try out different potential locations, while having a steady income and financial security.

This is a trend that has started years ago, but has been accelerated by the pandemic in unexpected ways. It will be interesting to see how this will affect people’s work-life balance, mental and emotional wellbeing and overall life and work satisfaction.

3. Healthcare systems have proven unreliable

People around the world were able compare live how each of the countries’ political, economic and most of all health systems have responded to an emergency situation of this magnitude. This has proven to be an excellent test for the countries worldwide.

Just like my friend Ana, disappointed by how the situation has been handled in her country, people will move away from systems that have proven unreliable, towards ones they can trust.

4. Countries aim to resume travel for economic purposes

As many economies rely on travel and tourism, governments will support the resuming of the operations, within the COVID guidelines, as soon as possible. Although gradually, at different times and with country specific regulations, the pick-up of international migration will follow naturally the reopening international travel.

5. Eventually, a vaccine will come out

Is it true that this is not really around the corner, as a vaccine, like any other drugs, needs to be tested over a defined period of time, but mid- to long-term this will happen. At that point, the expectation is that the migration numbers will increase, but as said, not to the amounts from before.

As a side note here: Although we might expect or want things to “go back to normal”, realistically speaking the world will not be same as it was. Change is constant and inevitable, and is not only good or only bad.

Change can mean going through a pandemic, starting a family or moving to another country. As human beings one of the biggest skills we can acquire is to successfully deal with change.

If you are looking for guidance on how to manage your move abroad smoothly, let us know. We have plenty of resources created for you by people like you, who have moved abroad successfully.