Why I Left The U.S. To Move To Taiwan

As someone who had moved to Brazil, lived there for a year, and did my overseas internship there, listening to stories of people who have relocated and started a new life never fails to bring a smile to my face. It kind of feels like I’m reliving the halcyon days of my early to mid-twenties (cue “that guy who peaked in high school” meme).

When Ahrefs held their first-ever Ahrefs Evolve SEO conference in Singapore, I had the pleasure of connecting with Christine Orchard, Head of Marketing at remote hiring platform Arc.dev.

Her chirpy demeanour made it so easy to open up to her for an engaging conversation.

Imagine my excitement when she shared about her relocation journey and actually stayed in her host country for 14 years. I just had to learn more about her story.

markonmag: Take us back to the point in time when it all started. What made you want to leave the U.S. 14 years ago to move to Taiwan?

Growing up in a less diverse part of the states

It probably started before that.

I grew up in a small city in what we call a flyover state in the U.S. So from the West Coast to the East Coast, we go from California to New York. And I'm from the Midwest, which is in the middle.

My home in Bedford, Cleveland.

I lived in a city called Bedford (suburb outside of Cleveland) where it's very homogenous and has a bit of a slower pace compared to the busy states. And when I was growing up, even speaking foreign languages was uncommon. 

Most people in Cleveland probably don't know a second language. Again, this is different from life on the coast states and cities where you have more diversity.

A burning desire to experience something so drastically different

So this is the way I grew up. I remember when in high school, I participated in a debate where I argued that we should offer Chinese and Japanese in schools as languages that you can learn.

Back then, they just offered German, French, and Spanish. The classics. And so I was thinking to myself,  “Can you offer more options for us for those?” Maybe learn something else. So I was just always very interested in the most different things that I could experience in the world.

And that's probably Chinese or Japanese. I learned both languages when I was younger. And in college, I decided to study Chinese because I had decided that was the language I wanted to focus on.

So I think it's because of the way I grew up that I wanted something so drastically different. I wanted to experience it. And languages are basically keys to a new culture or history that I probably could not have accessed.

I later minored in Chinese and I majored in international studies. And then after you graduate, the best thing to do with the language is, well, use it. If you don't use it, it’s not going to be imprinted onto your brain.

Shanghai vs Taiwan: A choice between modernity and tradition

I applied and got into a master’s program at Fudan University in Shanghai, which is more of an international city.

And it’s not that I didn't think Shanghai was a cool place, but it's a lot different from Taiwan in that it was changing very rapidly. This was in 2010 when Shanghai was quickly becoming a very modern city. Every year, you’ll notice massive shifts to the city.

But there was a voice within me that told me to go to Taiwan, this quiet island where traditional Chinese characters, symbols of Chinese culture and history, are still used. 

So I had to dig deeper to find my ‘why.’ Firstly, I knew that I always wanted to live abroad. Secondly, I wanted to try to be as local as possible and get in touch with a culture that is less in tune with modernity and still connected to its rich history and roots.

Deep down inside, something just told me that I didn’t think I could live in Shanghai. I could live there for a few months, but I'd probably be ‘spat out’.

So I turned down the offer to do a program in Shanghai and I was going to give Taiwan a try, just because it just felt like the better decision for me. And traditional Chinese was very intriguing to me.

markonmag: What are some pieces of advice you would give to someone who’s thinking of moving to Taiwan?

1) Define your ‘why’

Okay, this goes down to an even more important question. Why do you want to go abroad?

In the aftermath of the U.S. elections, people in my network started messaging me because they knew I grew up and went to college in the U.S. before eventually moving to Taiwan to start a new life. Naturally, I have a lot of American friends.

So many of them told me that they were genuinely considering moving abroad and wanted to know how they could do it and how they could do it as well. Several of them were even asking about tax-related questions and how they could get certain things they needed to make the move.

Personally, I think it's a gut reaction. Some people disagree with the election results and so they want to move abroad to maybe escape or for whatever reasons. 

I would say it's not necessarily a bad reason. But just make sure that your reason for relocating is not one that’s driven by your desire to run away from something, but one that’s inspired by your desire to run towards something.

And for some, maybe that means experiencing a new culture. For others, perhaps the goal of moving abroad is to take your kids out on a new adventure and teach them about the world. Make sure you're running towards something.

I would say come to Taiwan, well, because I’m here and there’s a reason I picked this place. But I think there are a lot of places in the world you can go.

More and more countries are offering digital nomad visas.

A lot of people go to Portugal. Spain and Colombia are popular destinations because of their lower cost of living. Meanwhile, Estonia has good digital nomad visas. So there are a lot of destinations you can go to. The world’s your oyster.

Nowadays, it's easier than ever before to move compared to when I did it.

2) Find the right time to do it

I started learning Chinese in 2008, and it's 2024 now. So I've been speaking Chinese for quite a long time and I decided to move to Taiwan right when I graduated. 

Honestly, if you're about to graduate, that’s the best time to move somewhere. I mean, you can do it later in life, but it's going to get harder and harder.

Say you're a fresh grad. And assuming that you’re not married and have no kids. If you're at that stage of your life, I would say it's okay to just go. Or, you could be older, single and have no kids.

You're eventually going to find a partner, you're going to get married, you're going to do all those things. And with those things, come heavier responsibilities.

So do it when you can. 

3) Listen to your heart

I don't want to say don't listen to other people. 

And I know it sounds cheesy. But I would honestly say listen to your heart. You know what you want to do. And if you don't know, have someone else decide for you. Let's say I asked you this question. Nigel, you decide. Do I go to Shanghai,China or Taipei, Taiwan?

And if you were to tell me, okay, Christine, you're going to Shanghai. What's my instant response going to be? 

If I feel disappointed, that means that I don't actually want to make that decision. Sometimes you can ask someone to pick for you, and then listen to how you respond when they pick. And 14 years later, I'm still here. 

4) Assess your need to find a job in your target country before making the move

Realistically speaking, it depends on where you are in your life and career. 

When I left the U.S. as a fresh grad, I just decided that I was going to go teach English because that's the easiest job to do at that point of time in my life when I knew I could make the move.

Back then, I studied in the mornings and taught English at night to make ends meet. If you're single, I would say it's okay not to have a big backup plan lined up. As long as you have a little bit of savings, finding something locally can help even if it doesn’t pay as well. 

You're going to make enough to maybe go out on the weekends and eat out, but you're not going to be making and saving money. And that's totally a fine option if you want a quality of life and experience and are not so worried about savings.

But if you're on the other end of your spectrum where you're married, or you have a family and need to earn enough money to save, I would say focus on building a set of specialised skills. 

When it comes to finding remote jobs where you can earn money in a stronger currency, the more specialized a skill you have (such as marketing, design, or programming skills), the better chance you have of finding a job. 

Specialist vs Generalist

Let’s take the field of marketing for example. Ideally, you're not just a generalist. You could be an SEO specialist or a content writer. You've got a skill that is in-demand, you can easily show examples of your work, and getting a remote job will be a lot easier.

Specialized skills make the remote job hunt easier to find a job because you have the proof and you have the experience behind you that people need when they're hiring someone for a remote role.

So let's say you have this specialized skill, I encourage you to find a remote job that could be paying equal to what you would make in your home country. If you were to use salary rates in the U.S. as a benchmark, you could be making a great salary while living in a lower-cost-of-life country.

That said, it's not easy as everyone wants remote jobs. To stand out, you’ll need to have the skill, as well as proof of the skill. Proof of the skill comes from experience and evidence of your work online in the form of portfolios or a personal website. Say you’re looking to apply for a remote developer role, they'll look at your GitHub repository.

So finding a remote job is great, but it's definitely more difficult. That's why our platform Arc exists because we try to help people do that. 

At the very end of the day, let's say you want to move abroad, you can still find a local job in Taiwan. There are a lot of companies that need English-speaking talent, but you're gonna make a very local rate.

4) Settle in

Understand local banking and taxation

I think that banking internationally is fairly straightforward nowadays.

But the one thing to note is that if you are an American, you’ll have to report your banks abroad (you may have to file an FBAR). So it's a little bit tricky. There are a few things you do including reporting the income you earn. And while you don't always have to pay taxes in both locations, you have to report it.

As an American, I have to report my taxes and the amount of money I have in my bank accounts in Taiwan annually. It's just something that Americans have to follow.

So being an American abroad is a little trickier from a financial standpoint. But honestly, it's just paperwork. You just have to do it. Everything else is, I would say, easier.  

Set up your social network

Your mental health is also very important. 

If you move abroad and you have no friends, it can take a toll especially because you're getting your feet into a new culture.

Luckily, there are tons of expat groups for whichever nationality you're looking for. If you're looking for other Americans or other Singaporeans, I would say try to find those.

Even though you might want to try and be super local and only hang out with Taiwanese, sometimes you just need people who speak your own language or share cultural similarities to share ideas and thoughts with. 

I think such groups can be helpful as a resource. You can always find them.

There are Facebook groups for expats to find their communities. That's an important part that I didn't have because this was back in 2010. I had to go do things on my own during my first year because I didn't have other people who could help me figure things out. 

At that time I had some Taiwanese friends, but it would have been nice to have an American friend, who was ideally a few years older than me. Someone who maybe you say, “Hey, you know, I've been there.” Someone who could give that kind of advice.

Moving to Taiwan from the USA: A move I’ve never once regretted

14 years ago, I made the pivotal decision to leave the U.S. and relocate to Taiwan.

Almost everyone at the time would tell me “Go to Shanghai!” because that was where everyone was going. And that's where you make all the money. But despite all of that, I turned down the master’s offer at Fudan because it didn't sit well with what I really, really wanted. 

I booked a ticket, got on a plane, started teaching English, and that was it.

I later pursued my MBA locally before finally diving into Taiwan's startup scene. Working with local startups and then transitioning into a global remote marketing role has given me both career growth and an amazing quality of life in Taiwan. 

I would not trade my experience for anything in the world.