Australian Expat Financial Planning: Brett Evans of Atlas Wealth on Today Extra

Every year, more than 200,000 Australians pack up and leave the country’s sunny shores in search of a better lifestyle, financial freedom, or simply a good old-fashioned adventure abroad. But as Atlas Wealth Group Founder and Managing Director EMEA, Brett Evans, explained in a recent live interview with Channel 9’s Today Extra, the grass isn’t always greener once you get there. At least, not without the right preparation.

Speaking from Dubai, Brett, author of The Expat’s Handbook, sat down with the Today Extra team to unpack the rising trend of Australians choosing to live and work overseas. Along with the financial realities that too often get overlooked in the excitement of a big move.

Watch full interview with Brett Evans on 29/06/2026 by Today Extra, Channel 9.

A Post-COVID Surge in Mobility

Brett pointed to a combination of factors behind the growing number of Australians heading abroad. Remote and digital-first work, accelerated by COVID-19, has given people far greater freedom to base themselves wherever they choose. At the same time, many countries have become more welcoming to foreign talent. Consequently, they have lowered the barriers that once made relocating a far more complex undertaking.

“That’s not to say it’s not easy in terms of complexity,” Brett noted — there’s still plenty of homework to be done, and the nuances vary enormously depending on where you’re actually moving to.

Where Are Aussies Heading?

According to Brett, the UAE has long been a magnet for Australian expats, alongside Hong Kong and other parts of Asia. More recently, momentum has been building toward the United States. Mainly driven by booming tech-sector job growth in the Middle East. Additionally, the UK and Europe, often for hereditary or family reasons. While the exact mix shifts over time, Brett identified the Middle East, Asia, Europe and the US as the three standout regions currently drawing Australians overseas.

Cost of Living, Adventure, and Love

When asked what’s really driving the exodus, Brett broke it down into roughly three even buckets: cost of living and tax pressures back home (which he flagged as the single biggest factor over the past three years), the simple pull of adventure and a different lifestyle, and perhaps less expected, relationships. As Brett put it, a chance encounter on Bondi Beach with a backpacker can just as easily end with someone starting a new life in Zurich.

The Biggest Misconception: “We’re Not in Kansas Anymore”

Despite the appeal, Brett was candid about the gap between expectation and reality. Many people assume their new home will feel broadly similar to Australia. However, they only discover on arrival that the systems, regulations and tax treatment are completely different. That mismatch, what Brett likened to Dorothy realising she’s “not in Kansas anymore”, is one of the most common sources of friction for new expats.

What to Sort Out Before You Go

For anyone weighing up a major move abroad, Brett’s advice was clear. That is, do your homework on how the move will affect you personally and financially before you leave, not after. Superannuation, property and share portfolios all need to be reassessed in light of a new country’s rules. Also the process of transporting your financial life across borders is rarely a like-for-like exercise.

He also offered a timely warning for the AI era. While tools like ChatGPT and Google can be a useful starting point, expat financial planning is highly personal and jurisdiction-specific. Therefore, generic online research is no substitute for tailored advice. Brett observed that families in particular tend to focus their planning on practical lifestyle questions, such as schools, housing, neighbourhoods. However, the financial implications of the move are often left until it’s too late, creating avoidable friction once they’ve settled in.

The Takeaway

Brett’s message was simple: the opportunities of expat life are real, but so are the complexities. Getting professional, personalised guidance before you relocate, rather than relying on assumptions or generic online research, is what separates a smooth transition from a costly one.

This conversation reflects exactly the kind of practical, experience-based guidance Brett has distilled into The Expat’s Handbook. It is a comprehensive guide for Australians navigating life, money and planning overseas. From super and tax to property and cross-border investment, the handbook draws on Brett’s specialist expat advisory experience to help Australians move abroad with confidence. Not just enthusiasm.

Watch Brett’s full interview with Today Extra above, and get your copy of The Expat’s Handbook to start planning your move the right way.

Brett Evans is the Founding Director of Atlas Wealth Group, and author of The Expat’s Handbook.
>>Based in Dubai, he is the Managing Director for the EMEA region and brings over 20 years of experience in the finance and investment industry. View profile