Collaborative Knowledge
Our network of seasoned expat pros share their expertise and experience to help us produce our guides and information that deliver the most value to our readers.
Much of the knowledge that is required to move to a new country successfully isn’t readily available. It’s either distributed across multiple information sources or, as is often the case, crucial snippets of information that make international moves easier are locked away in people’s heads.
We’re dedicated to gathering that vital information, providing a single resource for anyone planning on starting a new life in a different country. We want to encourage more people to experience more of what the world has to offer.
Expatra Founders
Ola Williamson
Ola Williamson co-founded Expatra, the ever-popular overseas living and retirement blog. Ola loves research, her favorite research being new countries. As an expat, Ola has lived in Ireland and Cyprus and currently lives in Wales in the United Kingdom. Extensive travel fills the gap when overseas moves aren’t on the itinerary.
Andy Williamson
Andy Williamson co-founded Expatra, one of the most popular online publications for overseas retirement. An entrepreneur and digital nomad before digital nomads were even a thing. Andy has lived in multiple countries, including Germany, France, Ireland, Cyprus, and Austria, and has traveled extensively worldwide.
Meet some of our international research experts
We work with hundreds of professionals and researchers around the world to collate and publish country information, including:
Joana Torres Fernandes – Portugal
Joana is an immigration lawyer based in Lisbon, Portugal. She is a Partner at L.V.P. Advogados, where, together with her team, she helps expats make their move to Portugal as smooth as possible.
Maria Luisa de Castro – Spain
Maria Luisa is a lawyer and founder of Costaluz Lawyers, based in the Costa de la Luz in southern Spain. She set up her practice in 2006 to help expats buy real estate and sort out immigration and taxation matters.
Rod Larrivee – Panama
Rod is an expat from Vancouver, Canada, who has been living in Panama since 2011, and is co-owner of Retire in Panama Tours. The company offers services to assist anyone looking to relocate to Panama.
Kate Ozikis (Kate Smith) – North Cyprus
Kate is a British expat living in North Cyprus and running a successful property company Ian Smith Estate Agency, that her family founded in 1985.
Paolo Rigo – Italy
Paolo Rigo is an international tax and business advisor based in Verona, Italy. His Tax and Accounting Firm, Studio Rigo, has over 15 years of expertise in helping expats with Italian taxes and tax planning.
Matteo Spadafora and Heather Lincoln – Italy
Matteo is a licensed real estate agent and mortgage broker based in Milan. Matteo and his team at Invest In Italy assist foreign nationals and investors with buying real estate in Italy.
Stefano Gonella – Thailand
Stefano is an Italian expat in Krabi, Thailand. Stefano has been running his business Krabi Contractor since 2011, helping international investors buy real estate in Krabi. He is also a consultant with Hexedes, a global relocation company assisting expats with relocation to Thailand.
Kostas Sakellariadis and Dimitris Varvatakos – Greece
Kostas and Dimitris are our Greece experts. They represent Eloan, a company that helps expats with residency, property and setting up a business in Greece.
Paola Ricci – Costa Rica
Paola is an Italian expat who moved to Uvita, Costa Rica, in 2018 and runs an Arts Center in Uvita, which has become a community hub for expats and locals alike. Paola is a relocation advisor with Hexedes, a global relocation company assisting expats with relocation to Costa Rica.
Tom Julian – The Balkans and Southern Europe
Tom Julian is an American expat who has lived in many European countries, including the Balkans and Spain and is settling in Italy now. He has helped dozens of expats relocate to the Balkans, Spain and Italy through his site GlobalTalon.
Lenka Babarikova – Chile
Lenka is an expat from Slovakia, living in beautiful Chile with her family. She runs a family business Aguapiedras Spa, and in her free time, she promotes Chile as a great expat destination.
Mimma Zizzo – Dubai
Mimma is our Dubai expert with extensive experience of living in Kuwait and Dubai. Mimma runs Amiche di Fuso, a magazine that tells about expat women’s experiences around the world. As an advisor with Hexedes, a global relocation company, Mimma helps expats plan their move to Dubai.
Expert knowledge and experience from overseas living professionals
We gather our data and research from experts around the world. People who’ve already moved to a new country and are now fully established expats. Professionals who specialise in finance, visas, international removals, healthcare and education abroad.
Expatra is renowned as one of the best expatriate resources on the internet, continually updated with valuable facts, links and data about living in Spain, living in France and other popular destinations, and featuring in-depth country reports on visas, housing, healthcare and top locations.
One of Expatra’s most popular features is our annual report, The Best Places to Retire Abroad, which indexes the optimal countries for British retirees and what advantages each country can deliver in terms of its accessibility, healthcare, tax efficiency, cost of living and property prices.
Expatra, originally called Shelter Offshore, has grown from a small site to one that helps thousands of people to plan their new lives abroad. It has been referenced by some of the world’s most prominent publications, including The New York Times, The Telegraph, MSN.com and The Guardian.
Expatra is the place to visit for essential insights about planning a new life abroad.
Can’t find that precise nugget of info YOU seek? Contact us with your question about moving abroad, and we will do our best to help.
Expatra Ltd.
Portland House,
113-116 Bute Street,
Cardiff,
United Kingdom.
CF10 5EQ