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The return of Ernst & Young to the British Virgin Islands, combined with OECD approval of the territory's tax information agreements, could mean more job opportunities for expats in finance and law in the Caribbean paradise

Ernst & Young has re-established an office in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) and a company spokesman says that they believe the territory will go from strength to strength in the financial sector in the coming year.

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) announced at the end of last year that the BVI was a jurisdiction that demonstrated "sufficiently strong adherence" to new global regulatory and supervisory standards on international tax cooperation and information exchange. In addition, the BVI has been recognised by the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for tax information exchange agreements at "an established standard".

One of the "Big Four" accoutancy firms in the City, Ernst & Young is seen as a global leader in offshore auditing, alongside PwC, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and KPMG.

The firm has 152,000 employees in 140 jurisdictions globally, with many packages and perks for expats. Dan Scott, managing partner for Ernst & Youngs Bermuda, Bahamas, BVI and Cayman Islands region, was attracted by the BVIs international reputation for financial services, particularly the strength of the financial services legislation, the regulatory regime and the Commercial Court: When I look at the BVI, it ticks all of those boxes very nicely, he said.

International offshore law firm Ogier also has a presence in the BVI. "During the week, working in the BVI is not dissimilar to working anywhere else in the world, in that it principally involves sitting in front of a computer screen and speaking to clients based all around the world," said partner Simon Schilder.

"The only real difference is the daily commute rather than forty minutes or more on a packed tube carriage, it is a 15-minute drive in the comfort of your own car, which you can then park outside the office in the office car park. As for weekends, it may sound like a bit of a clich, but every weekend is a bit like a Caribbean holiday."

Phillip Kite, a BVI-based partner and global head of litigation for Harney Westwood and Riegels, says that the option of working offshore was not explored while he was at school or university it was not until he was qualified and working full-time that he began to consider life overseas.

"I really liked litigation and insolvency and qualified during the early 1990s during the recession, so there was a lot of opportunities for insolvency lawyers," Mr Kite said.

"I was about five or six years qualified when I got the inside track on a job in the BVI. At the time there was little information you could get about working offshore.

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Expat opportunities growing in British Virgin Islands

Oil and gas executives can secure the biggest pay packets if they are willing to work in Nigeria, according to a new study

Research released this week by recruiter The Curzon Partnership said that energy firms in the African nation were now paying the biggest country premiums to attract staff.

The news that expats demand more to live in Nigeria is perhaps unsurprising when it comes in the same month as the murder of a British expat in the north-west region of the country.

Chris McManus, a construction worker from Oldham, was killed after the British government attempted to stage a rescue mission for him and an Italian colleague who had been taken hostage by terrorists last May. According to the Foreign Office, at least 24 British nationals and 200 foreign nationals have been kidnapped in the Niger Delta the countrys oil producing region since January 2007.

Some oil and gas executives and their families do perceive frontier markets like Nigeria as riskier than other markets and the high country premium reflects that, said Helen Di Mauro, a partner at The Curzon Partnership. Oil and gas companies recognise that the incentives have to be high because life as an expat in Nigeria is so different from countries with broader industries and higher standards of living.

The headhunter said these incentives were often worth as much as 45 per cent of a basic salary, and had pushed the going rate for those at general manager level up to 290,000 per annum in Nigeria.

But Jake Molloy, secretary of the Offshore Energy Branch of the union RMT, said the big bucks dont necessarily extend to those further down the oil and gas chain, such as those working on offshore rigs.

The average punter doesnt attract a significantly higher salary in Nigeria. There is obviously a supplement for the cost of travel and the location timings, because they have month-on-month-off working down there. They are compensated to some extent for that but its nothing major and in fact there are some cases where they are earning less, said Molloy.

But he said the risks are lower offshore. Senior (Xetra: 852271 - news) people would spend more of their time onshore so they are more vulnerable to being taken than those offshore, who are on installations that are small steel islands many kilometres away from the shoreline, which are therefore relatively secure.

He said the union advises oil workers to check Foreign Office advice before travelling to Nigeria, and to avoid smaller employers, which may not have the same ability to ensure the safety and security of staff as larger companies.

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Expats in Nigeria top for oil and gas pay

Latin America is increasingly being considered an up-and-coming retirement hotspot for expats, with Mexico, Panama and Ecuador in particular all rated highly in recent polls

Favourable weather, low property prices and pensioner perks are a draw for Brits with a sense of adventure. While the cost of living has risen in recent years, the economies of the larger Latin countries are increasingly stable, making it more viable to put down long-term roots in a warmer climate.

In International Livings 2012 Global Retirement Index, Ecuador, Panama and Mexico occupied the top three slots in a report that rated 19 international expat hotspots. Ecuador was top choice in the cost of living category and was dubbed the "world's best retirement haven". The magazine team estimated that a couple watching their spending can live well on $800-$1,500 (about 510-956) a month, while property prices remain low.

Eight categories were assessed to come up with the retirement report: property prices, special retirement benefits, cost of living, ease of integration, entertainment and amenities, health care, retirement infrastructure and climate.

The Ecuadorian government guarantees senior citizens access to free health care and medication and exemption from notary and registration fees. For expats considering a move, embracing the laid-back culture is a must, says Gary Phillips, 65, who moved to Cotacachi in Ecuador in 2006 and runs the expat site Pro-Ecuador.com. "Ecuadorians say maana but maana doesn't mean 'tomorrow', it just means 'not today'," Mr Phillips told Reuters.

The International Living team also point out that many South American (Frankfurt: A0MLL6 - news) locations have discounts you can access as a retiree, in particular in Brazil, Chile (Berlin: G4R.BE - news) and Panama. Panama has an organised programme of discounts and perks called the pensionado , open to all foreigners. Expats simply apply for a visa that gives them discounts on everything from theatre tickets to public transport to eating out and medical services.

Mexico ranked third in this year's index but occupied the top spot in 2008. The country ranks highly in terms of property prices and entertainment and arts, with many retirement communities ideal for expats.

A Expat Forum poll earlier this year, sponsored by Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) Wealth International , asked Brits about their motivation for moving to Mexico. More than a quarter, 27 per cent, of respondents said that they moved there to retire. The cost of living was the main draw for 24 per cent of expats polled, while a further nine per cent quoted quality of living as their reason for moving to Mexico.

But expats who have already made the move say the cost of living is on the rise and the region may not represent good value for money for long.

Bob Sheth from the Expat Forum said: "Expat living costs in Mexico seemed to have increased by at least 10 per cent over the last quarter, according to members who are discussing the topic at Expatforum.com. The reason for the sharp hike seems to be the peso losing value against the US dollar. Expats in Mexico are reliant on US imports, resulting in some alarming increases in the cost of living."

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Growing financial incentives to retire in Latin America

The clinic offers a full spectrum of services for children, adults and couples in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, for both local and expatriate clientele.

Both are qualified to work in their home countries: Canada and the United States, respectfully, as is their third partner, a neuropsychologist who specialises in assessing and treating developmental disorders in children.

Jefferson uses gestalt techniques to treat the symptoms and disorders his expatriate clients seek help for primarily depression and anxiety but is eclectic in his approach, adding cognitive techniques and role play. Marshall says she relies on narrative therapy, which she describes as helping people re-story their lives.

People with shattered or self-defeating narratives and those with chapters ripped out or forgotten are encouraged to reconstruct the stories they tell about themselves in order to make sense of their lives and alleviate distress and negative behaviour that results from unhealthy scripts that have been imposed.

Both Marshall and Jefferson have been away long enough to know there really isnt that much of a difference between those who leave and those who stay. The issues are the same but the stories are different, Jefferson says.

Marshall is quick to admit that some people would not end up in therapy at home, but do so here because they lack support systems, like long-term friends and relatives.

Sometimes all they need is to be reassured that what they are feeling is natural, she says in answer to questions about culture shock, which can be triggered by relatively trivial things, like constant bartering and the custom that foreigners should pay a bit extra because they have more money.

People get infuriated by having to pay more. Then, they freak out at themselves for freaking out, Marshall explains. Culture shock, however, is usually pretty easy to get over once identified, and most people do so within a few months, both therapists agree.

On the contrary, they dont ask clients who complain at overcharges whether they also object to being paid far more than their Khmer colleagues.

That would be antagonistic, Jefferson explains, adding, that some therapists do use antagonism as a technique to jolt clients.

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Expert advice from expats | 7 Days | The Phnom Penh Post - Cambodia's Newspaper of Record

I came to Cambodia to cover the fighting, especially in 1997, Amat says. I became interested in Cambodian culture. But at the same time, I became interested in foreign communities living in Cambodia. This was a poor country at that time. It started with nothing. There were a lot of expats and many expressed a lot of arrogance towards Cambodian people. I felt so much shock by the way these expat families treated the locals. This was the idea for me to write a book.

Amat says that many expats first come to Cambodia as tourists with an idealised picture of the countrys people and its natural beauty, leading to unrealistic expectations when they decide to settle here over the long term.

When they just visit as a tourist, Cambodia is like what they saw in postcard, a beautiful country. When they decided to live, then they turn to the back of the postcard and they begin to face a lot of culture shock: bad traffic, poverty, beggars.

Rather than confront these issues, many instead decided to form their own expat communities and separate themselves away from local people.

They dont really open the window to Cambodia. They dont try to speak the language. They are not interested in the culture. When they finish their job, they just go to the foreign bars, have beers with friends. They live in Cambodia, but they dont really live with Cambodians.

Frdric Amat took at least seven years to compile the activities, routines and problems of the expat community into his book. Of particular interest to him were those foreigners who travelled to Cambodia to look for a prospective partner.

A lot of single men come here because its easier for them to find love in Cambodia than their own country. They go to the bars in Cambodia. Some of them have the Cambodian girls from the bars. I write about the girls in the bars, who do not adhere to the usual traditions of Cambodian girls, he said.

In the last chapter, Amat gives his formulation for how expats can enjoy life in Cambodia to the fullest. To him, Cambodia is not a hard place to live and people are not hard to communicate with; the only barrier lies in foreigners refusing to truly open themselves to the society. If they open their mind a bit, they will enjoy their life here.

Jrme Morinire, the publisher of Cambodias Tuk Tuk Editions publishing house, has printed 4,000 copies of Amats work in English, with distribution planned for Thailand, Laos and Myanmar in the coming weeks.

Mostly our writers wrote books about Angkor temples or the Khmer Rouge; this is the first time that weve published a work about peoples daily life, their social life and their culture, Morinire said. - Expatriates Strange Lives in Cambodia is available at Monument bookstores and the airports in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap for US$12.

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Expatriates’ Strange Lives in Cambodia | 7 Days | The Phnom Penh Post - Cambodia's Newspaper of Record