Female expats on assignment prefer Asia Pacific to Europe or North America

These days, there are as many women on foreign assignments as there are men, but some countries are preferable due to their female-friendly policies and conditions.

The revolution of women expats overseas is now well-established, according to a new study which revealed the Asia-Pacific region now has 16 times more women expat professionals than it had in 2001. North America is now home to over four times as many expat females and Europe boasts twice as many as in previous years. Some 55 per cent of the companies taking part in the survey expect the number of women becoming expatriates to steadily increase during the nest five years.

Other results of the survey indicate female expats are far less likely to be joined by their spouses, and an increasing number are single parents. The general opinion seems to be that accepting a position overseas is a positive career move, with women increasingly willing to accept overseas assignments. Preferred locations are all in Asia, and include Hong Kong, Malaysia, Japan, China and Singapore. China made it to the top of the list, with Hong Kong a close second and India coming in at third place.

Hong Kong was favourite for learning new skills, with Singapore the tops for improving earnings prospects for 71 per cent of respondents and Hong Kong a close second. China made it to third place with South Korea and Vietnam close behind. Safety is often a major consideration for female expats, with another recently released survey not placing any Asian country in its top ten. However, women professionals these days are inclined to place a successful career and a high salary in an exotic location well before their chances of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.