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 Paul Kurucz lived and worked in Dubai for 6-1/2 years, teaching Emirati college students and later leading a multinational team of faculty members. His home country is Canada and he now lives in a different part of the country from where he was born. “Once you learn all the wonderful places, foods, and lifestyles available to you in the world, you become a master of your own destiny. So I chose to return to the most beautiful and easy-going part of Canada: The west coast.” Paul provides useful information for expats to prepare for the return to Canada on his website. X-expats inquired about his motivations to move back to Canada and the expertise he gained along the way.
X-Expats: You returned to Canada after living for many years in a foreign country, did you ever consider settling permanently overseas?
Paul Kurucz: Raising children overseas presents a unique challenge, particularly if you are never really able to make your temporary working home your permanent one (as is the case in the United Arab Emirates). The challenge lies in what is best for your children: A fixed and stable home where they can embed themselves in the native culture of their parents, or a philosophy of “home is where your heart is”.
In my case, coming back to Canada was a choice to provide a balance: Coming to a liberal, safe, positive place for them to grow up, but a culture that was different from the one I grew up in. In a few years, when my teenagers become adults, leaving Canada for another expat adventure with permanent settlement is very likely for me!
X-E: You compiled a checklist of tasks you recommend Canadian expats complete before and after moving back to Canada. What prompted you to put together such detailed information?
PK: There is so much to take care of when preparing to return home that many people find it overwhelming. Add to this the uncertainty of where you are going to live, where you are going to work, what life will look like socially, and how you feel about moving back. All impact your state of mind and spirit. I hoped to share what I learned and promote a culture of support for people making the transition back to Canada. Moving home can be a joyful, exciting, and fun adventure, just like going overseas was!
X-E: Does the return home require at least 6 months of preparation?
PK: There are two approaches people take:
A: Decide well in advance (1 year or more), start planning early, and take all the precautions necessary for a smooth transition home. At least 6 months is needed for this approach. On the positive side, this approach means a relative smooth move and you get pretty much exactly what you planned for your new life in your home country. On the negative side, you lock in assumptions, decisions, and beliefs early in the planning process and this limits possibilities. For example, I know mothers who planned their children’s return right down to the school they would go to and the “friends” they would make upon return. This level of detail might mean that new work and life opportunities are not noticed or ignored in the focused drive to create a fixed plan for return. Another potential negative is that once you commit to leaving and your new life mentally, the last few months in your expat life can be lonely – you only talk about your new life with your friends, you don’t live right here and right now, celebrating what is good at the moment.
B: Decide at the last minute based on feelings and opportunities that arise. This second approach works well with non risk-averse individuals, couples, and families, but can be nerve-wracking for those who need concrete decisions made. Trusting that all will work out well and that new and exciting things will arise as needed is a leap of faith! Again, if you embrace uncertainty, this results in exciting and unusual life experiences to arise. On the negative side, you have to travel light, be ready to work hard at packing and making things happen, and must live in the moment. This can be hard work for some and unbearable for others. Another negative might be that you are out of synchronization with the patterns and processes of your surrounding peers, friends, and the greater social and governmental systems. For example, if you have to leave right away for a new opportunity that just came up, are you sure you can get your visa in 1 week’s time?
X-E: Is the return home a kind of expatriation? What are the most common mistakes returnees and returning expats make when moving back to their country of origin?
PK: Returning home is very similar to becoming an expatriate, particularly if you have left for a long time. Leaving and returning after 2 years and you can fit back into your home culture pretty easily. More than 2 years, and your life-style diverges pretty dramatically.
Common mistakes include:
- Assuming everything is the same back home as when you left. In most cases it might be, but many subtle things have changed.
- Assuming everything has changed as much as you have changed! Unfortunately, you will find that not much back home has changed…only subtle things. This may lead to feelings of dislocation, frustration, being trapped, restlessness, and the desire to simply leave again.
- Assuming systems work the same as they did when you left. Not so: Rules get tighter, processes change, and thinking does move…even if it seems slowly. Did you choose to not renew your driver’s license in your home country when you are overseas? You may have to take a driver’s test when you return to get a new license!
- Choosing to move back to where you came from. You have changed. Your family and friends have not. This can be quite a shock…especially when they indicate they are not that interested in hearing all you have learned while overseas. “But, would you like to watch the hockey game instead?”
- Honoring how long it takes to adjust. Just as it took you 2-3 years to really feel you can function well in your expatriate country, so will it take you 2-3 years to settle back into your home country. Be ready for reverse culture shock and the resulting feelings of dislocation, frustration, loneliness, and sadness, among others.
X-E: You included stories and testimonials from Canadian returnees. In your experience, what are the main motivations of expats for returning to Canada (i.e. family, retirement, job prospects, etc.)
PK: There are a range of reasons for returning to Canada. Everyone’s story is different. Examples include: To take care of my elderly mother, for my teenagers to go to Canadian schools, my contract was completed., retirement, separation/divorce, health care, access to sport or cultural training, events, activities, processes, to start a family, “just because we were tired of living overseas”,…
X-E: Over the past few years, a number of well-known Canadians living in the US have moved back to Canada (Doug Knight, Shelley Ambrose, John Cruickshank). In your opinion, is this a new trend? Are more Canadian expats returning “home”?
PK: Like a tide goes out and comes back in again, so the tide of expatriates goes out into the world and then after a pretty predictable period starts to come back again. The U.S. economic boom of the late 1990’s lasted a long time. Canadians went to the U.S. in large numbers to take advantage of the opportunities. As the economy of the U.S. goes through major changes, and larger questions come up around lifestyle and uncertainty, many Canadians are considering a return home. Another aspect that counters this trend is that Canadian young people are now choosing experiences further afield than USA, primarily to South America and Asia. And they are heading out in large numbers. Eventually they will be back.
X-E: Do you think there is a typical profile of the Canadian returnee/ returning expat?
PK: No, everyone (individual, couple, and family) is different and comes with a different set of motives and expectations. Canada is a prosperous, peaceful, safe, and healthy place to live and people feel at home living in Canada. So regardless of their profile, coming home is almost always an attractive option.
One common factor: Returnees to Canada have typically forgotten how cold it gets here!
X-E: Thank you Paul for providing these tips and resources to Canadian returnees.
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