Young people aged 16 to 24 are nearly twice as likely to consider moving abroad due to Brexit, according to new figures.

Young Brits considering emigrating

Just over a quarter (27 per cent) of young Brits said they are more likely to emigrate since the Brexit vote, compared to the national average of 15 per cent.What’s more, Brits of all ages are becoming more likely to consider moving abroad, as the date the UK leaves the EU approaches. The survey of 2,000 Brits also revealed the percentage of young people with concrete plans to move abroad is twice the national average of one in twenty.Foreign exchange and international payments specialist, Moneycorp, commissioned the survey to explore the push and pull factors for moving overseas for work following the EU referendum.

The quality of living factor

Increased living costs in the UK due to weakened sterling and inflation was the biggest push factor for Brits.While nearly half of respondents said they would not consider moving abroad at all, 40 per cent cited better quality of life overseas as the biggest potential pull-factor.Cheaper cost of living and salary increases were other factors most likely to influence Brits’ decision.Young people were more influenced by every pull factor compared to the national average, suggesting this age group is more attracted to the benefits of living abroad. The career benefits working abroad can offer were also most obvious to the 16-24 age group, with nearly three in five (58.8 per cent) agreeing that working overseas boosts a person’s CV and increases employment and promotion opportunities. Nearly half (47 per cent) of young people believe that UK employers should be doing more to encourage people to work overseas, compared to 37 per cent of Brits generally. Moneycorp also explored awareness around managing international payments, finding that almost one in five (19.3 per cent) people have never thought about FX and don’t see why managing international payments would be important.

Appeal of working overseas

Zoe Dawson-Williams, managing director, Private International Payments, Moneycorp, “Our research shows that for 16-24 year olds, Brexit has contributed significantly to the appeal of working overseas, which comes as no surprise, considering 75 per cent of this age group voted to remain within the EU.“Although push and pull factors will change as the Brexit deal takes shape, young people remain the most open-minded section of society regarding global mobility, in both Europe and further afield.“We work closely with students, young professionals, and multi-national organisations to help young Brits realise their dreams of living and working abroad.“Although the lack of awareness around international payments and exchange rates is still a key issue, we are glad to see young people are more likely to explore the options, such as the benefits of using a currency broker.”

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