Do you want to report "Any foreigners living in Jamaica and what is it like?"
Like the title says, I'm curious, what it is like living in Jamaica for foreigners. Is it safe, are the people welcoming, how hard is it to find a job and is it easy for you to adjust to the culture in Jamaica?
Thanks for the detailed response, yeah too bad about the crime rate.. are home robberies common? Is it bad everywhere or just certain neighborhood or areas? I would prefer living more in a rural area or at least on the edge of a city with nature and a place to grow some food. I get there won’t be a lot of resources in rural Jamaica but to me it isn’t the biggest problem if I can have a peaceful life there.
How is Jamaica towards women? Because I would be going with my girl but she has to be and feel safe of course.
I’m from the Netherlands, well I’m not accustomed to burglaries of course. There is crime here too of course but it doesn’t reach the normal citizen very often.
About women, people are okay(ish) towards women, some more than others, hard to answer question really.. but it is safe for women to walk the streets alone at least in the day and also in a lot of places at night but it also depends where you live
So you’re from a country where the infrastructure is maintained, most people are relatively well educated, and where systems work.
I don’t know if I’d come if I were you. Maybe try staying here for an extended vacation, like 2 months, and see if you like it before making any big moves
You can find pretty much everything u need to know here this lady is a Ukrainian that migrated to Jamaica. U can watch more videos about Jamaica on her channel she has a the unique perspective of a foreigner and honestly she covers Jamaica way more accurately than anything else I’ve seen. As a Jamaican I’ve learned so much from her.
This video should give you great confidence. Good experience.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ezb3WtV3F0M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGMUQSINra4
I was born there and lived there for 13 years let’s just say that Jamaica 🇯🇲 is lovely when you have money and are foreign but it’s a different experience if you’re relying on Jamaican dollars, if you have proper experience and also money before hand then finding a job would be relatively medium easy
Lol brother I would suggest you stay at your house, Jamaica is not an place you can just move to and you, a foreigner, won’t find work there. And you will never adjust to the culture. The will always view you as a foreigner no matter what you do.
Foreigners are treated fine if you are a tourist that is spending money. When you compete with the local population for jobs that is when it becomes a problem. Jamaica has very high unemployment and most people make minimum wage which is $7000JMD which is $45 US per week. Could you survive on that?
I would advise you to go as a tourist and see the place for itself. There’s always the other side of Paradise and until Jamaica can take care of it’s current inhabitants or you can open a business to provide jobs I would recommend you stay where you are.
That kind of a exaggeration… even the lowest paying jobs don’t ACTUALLY pay minimum wage. And to say MOST people are making that is a lie. The problem is people really aren’t making enough money here even with good jobs. Nurses, public doctors, and even junior software developers can vouch for that.
Let me tell you right now, there are many, MANY people making minimum wage. I can place around 8,000 of them off the top of my head. I don’t know about you or where you’ve been living but minimum wage is a way of life for too many people
Okay thanks again now we’re getting somewhere, so lets say I open a business or have enough capital to sustain myself it could be a good place to live?
For sure I have to visit as a tourist first but wanted to collect some opinions. Just the thought of living in jamaica when you don’t struggle financially seems very nice but it would depend on safety. Me and my girl just crave for a tropical place to live that isn’t to expensive and has a nice, friendly and laid-back culture going.
Yes. Once you have sufficient finance you will enjoy living in Jamaica. It is relatively safe for a foreigner and regarding job prospects, if you are sufficiently qualified then you will be able to find a job
The tourism industry is the biggest industry in JA. So the courtesy offered to tourists within the sector which has helped it to be sustainable for so long spills out into the wider environment where tourist/foreigners are generally treated amicably
I think it would a good place to live. Depends on the business you start but hospitality & tourism is #1 here so a hotel or guest house in a desirable area offers steady business (in normal times) and repeat customers.
The thing is though it’s pretty hard to move to Jamaica as a foreigner without ties or not married to a local.
You cannot work legally in Jamaica without a work permit, and you will need to have an offer of employment before you can apply for one via the Ministry of Labor and Social Security (MLSS).
If you are self-employed, you can apply for a work permit yourself via the MLSS. You will need the following documentation:
• Description of the nature and duration of your work• Certified copies of your qualifications• Two passport photographs• Your CV/resume• An up-to-date police clearance record
Take a look at the madeira island, would be my instant go to place to live if i could.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=6hhaoTNu2a4
Also its great if you want to open a business since it only has 5% taxes on business income iirc, food is cheap since its a self sufficient island but its an island so imported wares like electronics are more expensive.
Yeah I’ve looked at Madeira but the Portuguese culture and what I’ve seen from videos at least seems like it’s less of a match than Jamaican culture to me, but who knows of course lol haven’t been there
Hey OP! I recently went there myself on the same research mission. Would you be open to sharing why you opted to not choose Jamaica or what other countries you might be considering? Curious. Thank you!
I’m still doing better than when I was in Jamaica so I gotta give thanks for that, you’re clearly doing well for yourself if you’d rather stay in Jamaica than moving to the US. As 25 year old it was a good move, I can pay my mother’s rent with ease now and soon she’ll be with me.
I’m not doing well but I’m not going to give up being a second class citizen in one country just to be a third class citizen in another. I’m also quite probably much older than you are. I’ll struggle out here for now.
Well it don’t matter to me because I was already a third class citizen or even lower than that.You’re probably too old to do such a thing right now anyways. I would have stayed if I had became an engineer which was my main choice, but a sports scholarship comes with many limitations in Jamaica.
