I hope this settles things once and for all.
Taiwan Tops Global Expat Ranking, While China And Hong Kong Tumble
Because, you know, Forbes.
I guess it must be for people on company money, not us paying our way immigrants. Granted, love safety and health access and ease in doing things, but this:
[quote]
The Asian Tiger scores second place in the Working Abroad Index. Over one-third of expats in Taiwan (34%) are completely satisfied with their jobs, more than double the global average of 16%. Expats are similarly enthusiastic about their work-life balance (30%) and job security (34%).
This small island country also holds second place for overall satisfaction with life abroad, with 93% voicing their general contentment. Only Spain has higher ratings here. It comes as no surprise then, that a majority of expats in Taiwan (64%) plan to stay there longer than three years; with more than half of these (36% in total) even considering staying there forever.[/quote]
Satisfied with oneās job?! 
: And you may want to stay here forever, problem is: can you?
Family life for foreigners has improved over the years. I remember a thin cows period when you couldnāt find expats with families here, only singles.
Those must be the 3% with kids in international schools paid by the company.
Iām not talking to you, gecko-killer.
They are alive! I have the pictures to prove it!
ā¦according to an exhaustive survey of all 8 expats left in Taiwan. 
Theyād better be holding up the front page of todayās Taipei Times or I aināt buying it, hermanita.
http://havanajournal.com/images/uploads/fidel-castro-newspaper.jpg
Argggggh, you beat me to it.
Them geckos holding front page of any newspaper really.
No paper, no proof.
Iāll ask them tonight once I get back.
Ehem, back on topicā¦
I think much of the article rings true also for professionals like me who arenāt here on any kind of expat package. The health system, relatively low cost of eating out and entertainment, decent school system for kids (at least through elementary school), and affordable rent make Taiwan a good place for me. I wouldnāt even consider living in Hong Kong unless I had an expat package.
Same for me. Have had plenty of chances to move somewhere else in Asia, but thereās not many places that have the ole āCP valueā ration that Taiwan/Taipei has, especially doing the job I do.
[quote=āIcon, post:2, topic:155018, full:trueā]
I guess it must be for people on company money, not us paying our way immigrants. Granted, love safety and health access and ease in doing things, but this:
I donāt seem to remember seeing those quotes from the Forbes article. In fact, I checked again. They are not there! 
They are from the original survey results at Expat Insider 2016: The Best & Worst Places for Expats | InterNations
The newcomer Taiwan is this yearās winner, followed by an aspiring Malta, while Ecuador only just retains its place on the podium. Kuwait, Greece, and Nigeria remain at the bottom of the pack.
ā¢Taiwan named best expat destination in the world
ā¢Malta pushes Mexico off the podium
ā¢Taiwan and Malta perform well in all areas of expat life
ā¢Ecuador loses ground in terms of Working Abroad and Quality of Life
ā¢Kuwait, Greece, and Nigeria remain last on the list
Expat Destinations: The Top Ten for 2016
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Iām thinking the same thing. If you are on an expat package with subsidized housing, paid taxes back home, paid American school, European school, or Japanese school, and maybe a car or driver, then Taiwan is affordable. But for someone just working for a local company. It should be near the bottom.
If you canāt manage to get top (local) bucks in the non-teaching sector, bub, wellā¦it might just be you.
Nothing personal.
Iām not complaining about my salary. My salary goes much further back home.
Iām complaining that the cost of things are more expensive here, especially when you compare apples to apples.
Most foreigners in Taiwan are not on an expat package and do not get perks like 10,000 USD a month in housing assistance, so that tends to skew the results of things like these expat surveys.
Taiwan can only be considered cheap if you have an expat package, otherwise your quality of life goes down. If you got 10,000 USD a month to spend on rent, your disposable income increases and can afford the higher prices here.
My opinion, but you seem to disagree with that.
10000 USD a month? Which company pays that much for rent?
The same ones that assign bobyguards in Taipei! BTW, bobyguards also get pretty niffty packages.
In other news, the InterNations Taiwan chapter is holding a bash tonight. Anyone care to have a look?
Starts today at 19:30
Wed 31 Aug 19:30 - 22:30Voodoo Doughnut
No. 28, Lane 553, Section 4, Zhongxiao E Rd, Xinyi District
Taipei
Join us for this special August Monthly Bash at Voodoo Doughnut with some drinks and doughnuts!
Originally from Portland, Oregon, Voodoo Doughnut opened in Taipei last year. Voodoo makes fresh doughnuts everyday and they offer a different variety and ambiance from the regular doughnut shops you see in Taipei. They also have a wide selection of craft beers and interesting food inventions.
Your entrance fee includes a welcome drink with a selection of beer, margarita or soft drink. There will be a free sampling of different doughnut flavors on a first come first serve basis. Make sure to come-on by and enjoy this special fare!
The survey was done by InnerNations which, I learned today, is an ex-pat community website that is a āfreeā membership although they need to āapprove youā. They say they have millions of members but the actual survey for the entire world was ~14,000 people for 191 countries. That is an average of 74 people per countryā¦pretty small. They do not break down the actual number surveyed for Taiwan, so it could be as low as 50 (a cut off number for the survey) or could be hundredsā¦they did not release actual numbers for each country.
The online survey ran from 18 February through 13 March 2016 and was
promoted through the InterNations website, newsletter,
and social media profiles ā reaching out both to members
of our network and expats in general. A total of 14,272
expatriates took part, representing 174 nationalities and
living in 191 different countries or overseas territories.
From their survey (worldwide stats-- not just taiwan)
- found a job here on my own. 15%
- was sent here by my employer. (including diplomatic service, NGOs, NPOs, etc.) 13%
- wanted to live in my partnerās home country / I moved for love. 11 %
- moved for my partnerās job or education. 9%
- Better quality of life 9%
(the list goes onā¦)
Although they do not release the numbers I think based on the demographics of persons surveyed the majority are not executives brought here by their company with huge rent/family education/tax subsidies.
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Intel. Iāve also met someone from another company who got 6000 USD a month housing allowance.