Phases of the Expat Experience

This blog is about the expat experience as it relates to Argentina. That includes both what it takes to become an Expat in Argentina, and what it takes to live in Argentina as an expat. For purposes of categorizing the content on this blog, I saw the opportunity to label the articles according to how they fit into the different stages of life as an expat. Here are the three phases of life as an expat that we will use on this site to categorize posts in the future (along with other keywords). Posts and articles will be searchable by these keyword labels through new links that will be posted soon in the left navigation bar.

Three Phases of the Expat Experience
1. Pre-Move Preparations (in home country, before you move),
2. Transition Phase, moving to and setting up your new household in Argentina,
3. Living in Argentina as an expat.

It's really two major phases, Pre-Move Preparations and Living in Argentina as an expat. The Transition Phase is really a sub-set of Living in Argentina, but it focuses on the first few months of the expat experience which is quite distinct in many ways. There are so many issues to deal with in the Transition phase that it is worth taking these issues on in a more detailed way. That is why I think it's worth defining this Transition phase as a separate part of the expat experience. Many of these issues will be done once or just a couple times during your whole stay as an expat in Argentina. Chores like leasing an apartment, dealing with garantia issues, buying real estate, getting your all your government IDs and numbers, getting your residency paperwork approved on arrival, getting a bank account opened, getting utilities on in your new place, importing possessions through customs, etc. Whereas the items discussed in the third phase, Living in Argentina as an expat would include things like the issues of living abroad for years at a time, travel tips, restaurant guides, child-care recommendations, communication advice, things to do, places to see, expat interviews, etc.

Over the next few weeks we will be introducing some new blog contributors, and welcoming their posts. A big reason why we will introduce more new contributors on this site will be to bring you more fresh content across all three of the different phases of an expat's experience.

Have a Question or an Idea for a Post? Send us your questions and ideas for posts as comments. We will do our best to answer questions that we can, and when we can't, we will call upon our panel of expats on the ground in Argentina who can help out the Expat Argentina Community. Send us a post if you can help out in that regard, by answering an emailed question every now and then. We are eager to hear from people in the interior of the country in addition to the B.A. residents. We welcome your help in making suggestions for blog posts that will improve the site. You can submit your questions or ideas as a comment by clicking the comment link below any post.