SINGAPORE – When it comes to giving expatriates a feel-good experience, Singapore has all the crisp processes and hardware – from the ease of setting up a utilities account and commuting to work, to organising their healthcare, finances and kids’ school enrolment.

But getting these foreigners to mingle with the locals? Not so easy.

In the second Expat Explorer survey commissioned by HSBC Bank International, the Republic overall provided the fourth best experience for expats – after Canada, Australia and Thailand – out of 26 countries worldwide.

Embracing the local food, language and entertainment was not an issue for expats here, but low on their priority was befriending locals or joining a local community group – a finding that lends weight to policy-makers’ concerns over integration issues.

As was the case with Asia in general, expats in this region made friends readily – Singapore was the seventh friendliest locale in the league table – but this tended to be with fellow expats. In terms of ease of hooking up with locals, the Lion City ranked 18th.

The poll, touted as the largest global survey of expats, explored their quality of life in comparison to their home country, as well as integration and assimilation into a new culture.

More than 3,100 expats across 50 countries were surveyed between February and April, and each of the 26 countries that made it to the league table had at least 30 expats interviewed.

Singapore topped the table when it came to setting up of utilities, with an overwhelming 82 per cent of expats finding it a fuss-free experience. Two in five – double the global average – also said the quality of utilities was better than in their home country.

The quality of the transport system also won kudos, with 64 per cent reporting greater ease in their commute to work, compared to 44 per cent globally. And travelling as a whole was better in Singapore, said 72 per cent.

The Republic came in second to Malaysia where it came to organising school for expat children. Over half felt they enjoyed improved healthcare when they moved here (compared to the global average of 31 per cent), and nearly as many felt the quality of accommodation also improved (global average 42 per cent).

As for food, the multicultural city proved a clear food haven with 43 per cent of expats agreeing that meals have improved significantly – though France still topped the table in this respect with 71 per cent.

The United Kingdom turned out to be one of the worst locations in the survey for an expat lifestyle. Two in five said it was tough to find somewhere to live, over half said the daily commute to work was worse than in their previous country, while a third said healthcare had deteriorated and half said the same about the food.

In general, the survey found, over half of expats had lived abroad for more than five years.

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