Some visas for foreign retirees have stringent criteria targeted at individuals with a relatively high net worth.

The Malaysia My Second Home visa, for example, is extended to foreign retirees and professionals who are at least 35 years old. Conditions include a monthly income of at least RM40,000 (S$12,000) and proof of liquid assets worth RM1.5 million.

Indonesia also has a Second Home Visa for foreign nationals who are able to deposit at least two billion rupiah (S$178,400) in an Indonesian bank which cannot be withdrawn while the visa is active.

The country also offers a retirement visa, which is a temporary permit available to retired foreigners or those at least 55 years old. Applicants must have, among other things, a pension worth at least US$18,000 (S$24,000) a year.

Other obstacles stand in the way of Singaporeans retiring overseas, notes Ms Joie Lim, director of financial services at Prudential Singapore.

Other than having to cope with being away from family members and being alone in a foreign country, it may not be easy for them to obtain permanent residency or citizenship, or even purchase a property.

Non-citizens are often not eligible for welfare benefits and medical subsidies provided by the government.

They have to be financially prepared to pay in full for health­care from their own pocket as medical needs pile up in the silver years, she adds.

But she acknowledges the current surging cost of living here has raised awareness of the impact of inflation and how it will affect one’s retirement needs. This may be why many Singaporeans are scouring far­ther afield for alternatives to retiring in the high­-cost city-state. 

Alongside that, many no longer subscribe to traditional notions about retiring at the government-­sanctioned age of 63. 

Ms Lim says: “In this relatively volatile and uncertain world that we live in, many clients are focused on planning for an early retirement. They want to be financially prepared in the event of forced early retirement due to illness or if they lose their jobs when they hit their 40s or 50s.”

Mr Seth Wee, a client adviser at Providend, a financial advisory firm, says the Covid-19 pandemic has been a catalyst in spurring a rethink of work and retirement, with work­-from­-home norms spawning a rise in digital nomads.

“Cost-of-living increases have also spurred people to think about living overseas,” he adds.

At 35, Mr Wee himself is part of a new group of digital nomads focused on financial planning for the future. He has lived for a few weeks each time in Vietnam, Bali and Taiwan in recent months, working remotely for his job at Providend, as well as managing his personal finance YouTube channel and website called Sethisfy.

With every move, he is scoping out new locales and exploring ways to achieve the best work-life balance in an era where the Fire (Financial Independence, Retire Early) movement, characterised by frugal living and extreme savings and investment in order to gain early financial freedom, has gained traction.

“I’m more interested in working overseas now, but am also thinking about Barista Fire,” he says, referring to a concept where one is able to retire before the conventional age of 60-something, while taking on a part-time job for supplemental income, say, as a cafe barista.

What he is clear about is that conventional retirement is not for him. “After all, I don’t have to retire to see the world,” he says.

Bali was a place of rehabilitation for hubby of Mrs Caroline Cheng