Living in Belize

Belize is the rare place in the region where getting hired is not the whole battle, since the door opens more readily here than among its neighbors and English as the national language smooths the rest. Pay sits middle of the road and tax stays light, and set against ordinary local costs it leaves a solid amount to live on and save. Tourism and hospitality drive the economy and give someone arriving without a history here the most natural place to start.

Belize draws its newcomers from Central America. About 67K residents — 16% of the population — were born abroad, led by 29.6K from Guatemala, followed by El Salvador and Honduras. The foreign-born population has grown 26% over the decade, and against a small diaspora of about 7,400 abroad, the country is firmly a net destination within the region.