83 pct expats optimistic about Vietnam life: survey

This is similar to the rates in Australia and New Zealand, while Taiwan has a rate of 85 percent, according to HSBC’s Expat Explorer Survey 2021. As many as 20,460 expats based in over 46 countries and regions were questioned in April and May 2021.

A total 51 percent of expats in the country say the local community has become more supportive of each other since the start of the pandemic, against 46 percent globally.

Vietnam has an overall rank of 19th globally as the best destination for expats, up three places from last year. It ranks as the 5th location in the Asia-Pacific region.

Despite the very real challenges that the entire world has faced with the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a growing sense of optimism that with the vaccine rollout picking up pace that we will all return to a more normal existence, said Tim Evans, CEO of HSBC Vietnam.

In Vietnam, this will mean a return to strong economic growth in a very vibrant and exciting country, where apart from the benefits of being in a fast moving and vibrant economy, the country also offers a wide variety of geographies from mountains, jungles to beaches, wonderful food and very hospitable people, he added.

"As an expat living in Vietnam, I would not want to be anywhere else at this exciting time for the country."

There were 101,550 foreign workers in Vietnam as of April, most of them from China, South Korea and Japan, according to the Ministry of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs.

The top three places to live and work in 2021 are Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand.