What if countries competed for you?
The future of citizenship in a globalized world
Well, it only took a few months for Donald Trump to tank the US economy and turn our closest allies into our enemies.
In times like this, I like to remind people that we live in a world where you have geographic agency. You don’t have to accept the cards you were dealt.
I’ve just spent a week in Dubai visiting family and it got me thinking about this essay from
at .She describes a world in which countries compete for citizens:
Wherever you live, that country gets your tax dollars. Now it’s in their best interest to make life in that country good—because you could just as easily pick up and move somewhere better and then that country will get all your money, making it even better.
Countries could even go bankrupt if they aren’t treating citizens well and a mass exodus takes place. Suddenly countries are competing with one another for residents
As someone who’s super curious about migration and why people choose to live in certain places, Dubai is one of the most interesting places to study.
I’ve visited a few times and with each visit I’ve seen massive expansion with new infrastructure popping up all over the city. For example, we stayed on an artificial palm tree built in the middle of the sea.
The sheer concentration of luxury cars and fake lips never ceases to amaze me.
And the fact that they were able to build such a futuristic city in the middle of the desert in such a short amount of time is borderline surreal. Meanwhile the U.S. struggles to figure out public transit and how to install a high-speed rail system.
Dubai saw it’s highest recorded population increase last year and Google search data shows it’s the most popular city in the world for people to relocate to.
I spoke to as many “locals” as I could and almost no one is actually from Dubai. The UAE is mostly made up of expats who account for 88.5% of the total population1.
Derek Sivers wrote a great essay titled — “I hated Dubai until I learned about it”:
As soon as I arrived at the Dubai Airport, I felt like I was in the cantina in Star Wars.
People from all over the galaxy, wearing traditional clothes from Nigeria, Qatar, Ethiopia. Some women covered in full niqab. Some wearing almost nothing and covered in tattoos. Russians, Indians, and sunburnt Brits. Big bushy beards and hippie dreadlocks. Three-piece suits and shiny shoes. Flowing robes and sandals.
As an amateur anthropologist, it’s heaven. This is the modern international trading port, like the legends of the Silk Road. Intersections of culture. East-meets-west, etc. This is it, here and now. This is where everything converges.
I’m fascinated by all this because migration policy is critical to a countries future.
While the UAE is welcoming foreigners in, the United States is trying desperately to close its borders, enact travel bans, and keep immigrants out.
I’ll never get over the irony…
Trump says he wants immigrants gone, yet he has a history of hiring foreign workers and is married to an immigrant for fucks sake. I digress…
What makes Dubai unique?
After the pandemic, hundreds of countries launched digital nomad visas to attract foreigners and remote workers, but what the UAE did differently is put an emphasis on attracting wealth by combining their golden visa program with tax-free incentives.
People value mobility and they’re willing to pay for it. This is why we’ve seen a rise in Youtuber’s like The Nomad Capitalist who talk about how the ultimate privilege is having access to multiple passports and citizenships.
All this wealth migration, combined with heavy investment in infrastructure and entertainment, is completely reshaping the country:
Investment migration provides a debt-free source of funding for governments, enabling them to finance key priorities without burdening future generations.
It also brings a host of spillover benefits that can put a country on the map as a hub of innovation and opportunity.
These high-net-worth individuals are indirectly creating thousands of well-paying jobs via their spending power and it’s good for the economy as a whole.
And this is why so many people are flocking to Dubai — because they have a better chance at upward mobility.
The reason we were there was to visit my cousin who moved from Hungary with his wife and two kids. He moved because he knew he could secure a higher paying job and get his kids a better education.
My cousin tried for years to get a Green Card so that he could work legally in the United States and move his family there, but the process was so complex and the timeline was a joke so he opted for Dubai instead.
Yoni Appelbaum highlights the impacts of moving in this recent Atlantic essay, in which he discusses how geographic mobility has declined in the US:
Social-science research suggests that the single most important decision you can make about your children’s future is not what you name them, or how you educate them, or what extracurriculars you enroll them in—it’s where you raise them.
A few decades ago, the ultimate goal for foreigners was to make it into the United States so their kids could pursue the “American Dream”. Now there are plenty of other places around the world which offer a different version of that dream.
I’m sure for many, leaving your country was never part of the plan.
But if other places offer a safer environment and better quality of life at a more affordable rate, why would you not consider it?
Remember that we live in a connected and globalized world.
You have the ability to vote with your feet.
Until next time my friends,
<3 B
P.S. - If you enjoyed this post, please consider hitting the ❤️ button, it helps get the message out to more people.
(Special thanks to for reading early drafts of this essay and providing feedback)
https://www.globalmediainsight.com/blog/uae-population-statistics/#UAE_Population_2025_Emirati_vs_Expat
I think the part you’re leaving out is that this is a choice that only the privileged can make. Sure, these countries competing for your citizenship could pay for your move as an incentive, but if history shows anything, nobody wants poor people in their backyard. So these nations vying to win our citizenship and become the most lucrative places on earth, will soon decide they don’t want the financial strain of those who can’t contribute to their economy, either (trust me, Dubai is not giving free moving vouchers out in rural Alabama anytime soon).
It seems easy to run - if you have the means. But as my Canadian wife reminds me often (we live in the States), “if you want a nicer place to live, start with the one you’re living in. Meet your neighbors. Create a community. Shop local. There will be things that you don’t like wherever you go. Why start all over?”
You made the following misleading statement: “While the UAE is welcoming foreigners in, the United States is trying desperately to close its borders, enact travel bans, and keep immigrants out.” I’ve also been to Dubai and other parts of the UAE, and one must enter legally. The USA also invites people to come (listen to Trump’s recent speech) but, same as the UAE or any country, to come legally. The barriers you speak of are to keep out illegals. But then, I suspect you know all that.