Repatriation can be more difficult than expatriation
Having successfully moved a family abroad, the idea of the return journey can seem like a relatively straightforward one. It is common for those returning home to think it will be easier to repatriate than it was to expatriate. After all, if you’ve lived there before, how hard can it be? However, unrealistic expectations about home and a lack of preparedness for the reality can in fact make repatriation more difficult than expatriation.
Some of the challenges of returning home are the same as those experienced when moving abroad in the first place. Accommodation needs to be found and prepared, jobs secured, schools vetted and packing and unpacking organised. Preparing for a return home as if for a new global assignment abroad can help repatriates make the practical and emotional adjustments needed. Yet, it can be easy to overlook the very real difficulties of setting up life in a new location because of the assumed familiarity of the destination on return. Even those who received support from an employer on expatriation may receive little support on repatriation. This might further lead families into a false sense of security.
Reverse culture shock
Repatriation also brings its own unique challenges in addition to those accompanying any international relocation. Prior experience of life in home countries brings with it expectations about what it will be like to live there again. These are usually inaccurate, for two reasons. Firstly, home has changed while repatriates have been living abroad. Return visits during holidays, following the news and keeping in touch with friends and family help but do not reflect day-to-day life. Many returnees find they are not in tune with those around them and have to work hard to adjust to a new way of life. As a result, repatriates can experience reverse culture shock similar to the culture shock of moving to a new country. Old homes, social circles, workplaces neighbourhoods and habits are not as easy to slip back into as many people expect making them seem alien and unwelcoming rather than homely and familiar.
Secondly, repatriates themselves have changed as a result of living abroad and simply through the passage of time. Being an expatriate brings with it new world views, ways of life and expectations. These experiences can make it difficult to pick up old friendships and relate to family members. Some repatriates experience significant changes to their quality of life, perhaps finding their means and spending power reduced without the support of relocation packages or an advantageous local exchange rate. The possibility of settling for the longer term can be very liberating for some but can also seem less appealing than the daily thrill of living and working temporarily abroad in an exotic (or just different) location.
Repatriating children
Change in returnees is nowhere more pronounced than in children and young people, whose experiences of living away from their home country may be even more formative in their identifies. If they have lived in their so-called home country before, they may have very little memory of it or their memories may be associated with a more childlike, younger self. Some children who might be considered to be repatriating have never lived in the country to which they are supposed to belong. This is even more significant if children have parents of different nationalities or themselves have dual nationality.
To make repatriations work, it is important to be open to the real challenges (as well as the opportunities) involved and to recognise the needs of all household members. This is just the same as on expatriation but can be harder to do because of rose-tinted glasses or, conversely, negative feelings about going backwards. The differences in the needs of household members can also be more acute. Moving abroad, households might be sharing in an adventure to an equally unknown location but each person will have very different experiences of their home country, which will further affect their return to it.
Madeleine Hatfield is a writer, editor and researcher who lives in London. She has lived and researched in the UK, Singapore and Australia, and has a PhD from the University of London. Madeleine has published and presented internationally on her research about repatriation and return migration. Her blog, Nothing to write home about (www.madeleinehatfield.com), has advice on repatriation and short stories about home.
Expatability Chat Podcast
If you’d prefer to listen to me talk about this topic, here are a couple of my podcast episodes about repatriation
Just about to repatriate to the UK after 12 years in Hong Kong and have been telling myself all the things you mentioned, thanks to lots of helpful advice like your posting. Thankfully my kids are almost university age so were prepared anyway, just having to brief them on TCK issues as they look and sound British but were brought up from a very early age in HK so will be different inside. I’ve made efforts already to contact other people near our home in the UK who have lived either in HK or in Asia so we can share experiences and support each other in the repatriation process and that outreach has been welcomed. Good luck to all those who do it and thanks for the post Madeleine.
Wow! Twelve years is a long time, so I wish you all the very best for your repatriation. I hope you manage to find lots of like-minded people back in the UK. Good luck and enjoy your next adventure!