Ordinary people and stars alike are bidding farewell to America. Examples include George Clooney, Jim Jarmusch, and Ryan Gosling.
The United States reached an unfortunate milestone last year. More people left the country than immigrated. This hasn't happened since the Great Depression! Just in the Czech Republic, according to The Wall Street Journal, the number of American residents has more than doubled over the last ten years. Among the famous faces moving to Europe are actor George Clooney and director Jim Jarmusch.
In addition to Donald Trump's strict immigration policy, the United States is experiencing a significant change that has not been widely discussed yet. Record numbers of Americans are leaving their homeland. They are settling with their families in countries they consider more affordable and safer.
Voting with their feet
Since the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower, the United States has not collected comprehensive statistics on the number of citizens leaving the country. However, data on residence permits, foreign property purchases, education enrollments, and other statistics from more than 50 countries, according to the newspaper The Wall Street Journal, show that Americans are "voting with their feet" in unprecedented numbers. The article, whose central photograph, by the way, captures Charles Bridge and Prague Castle, claims that the million-strong diaspora there is studying, working remotely, and spending retirement abroad. For some citizens, the new American dream is allegedly to leave America.
Some refer to this wave of American emigrants as a "run from Donald" because their numbers have significantly increased during President Trump's second term, which began last January.
According to researcher Caitlin Joyce, who has been studying this trend for years, the growing number of Americans leaving their country undermines the belief in the USA as a land with the best quality of life.
“Americans are moving abroad and finding they like it more there, that they like the social-democratic policies,"
she was quoted by the Czech News Agency.
Familiar faces are also among those on the move
In 2025, the United States recorded a net negative migration, an estimated loss of approximately 150,000 people. According to calculations by the Brookings Institution think tank, the outflow is likely to increase further in 2026.
From the United States, 675,000 people were deported and another 2.2 million "self-deported." An analysis of 15 countries that provided complete or partial data for last year, conducted by The Wall Street Journal, showed that at least 180,000 Americans joined them.
For example, actor George Clooney, along with his wife Amal Clooney and their two children, obtained French citizenship at the end of last year. He settled in Provence, where he bought a house with a vineyard. He particularly appreciates being safe from intrusive journalists here.
A personality heading to France is also director Jim Jarmusch. He has also applied for citizenship there, arguing that besides the United States, he should have another place to escape to.
Another popular destination for many Americans is the United Kingdom. According to the nonprofit organization Association of Americans Resident Overseas, more than 325,000 Americans have settled in the UK. Famous musician and widow of Kurt Cobain from Nirvana, Courtney Love, moved to London as early as 2019 to apply for citizenship last year. According to Daily Mail, last year they were also joined by comedian Ellen DeGeneres, actor Ryan Gosling, his wife Eva Mendes, and fashion designer Tom Ford. Many celebrities are moving to well-known London neighborhoods like Notting Hill, Holland Park, Kensington, and Hampstead.
To Ireland, for example, the former television and film star Rosie O'Donnell relocated. On this occasion, she told Trump that she would return to the country when the United States is safe and all citizens have equal rights. For illustration: according to local real estate agents, one in fifteen residents of Dublin's Grand Canal Dock neighborhood was born in the United States.
Southern Europe is also enticing
The total number of Americans living in Portugal has increased by more than 500 percent since the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2024 alone, it increased by 36 percent, according to official local data. In Lisbon, for instance, Americans are buying so many apartments that the latest arrivals reportedly complain that they hear mostly English around them instead of Portuguese.
Another example: Nearly 400 Americans signed up for a conference call hosted by the relocation company Expatsi in January to learn how to move to Albania. The country offers a special visa that allows U.S. citizens to live and work there, while not paying foreign income tax for one year.
"In the past, Americans who left were very adventurous and highly skilled,"
said the founder of Expatsi, Jen Barnett, a fifty-four-year-old native of Alabama, who relocated to the Mexican state of Yucatán in 2024.
“Now they are ordinary people like me,"
she added. In 2024, the company organized three group exploratory trips for clients; this year it will be 57.
“Our goal is to relocate one million Americans,"
stated Barnett.
The described phenomenon of fleeing from the United States, according to some voices, is not just a matter of recent months. It reportedly started manifesting several years ago. There were multiple reasons. In particular, the onset of remote work, rising living costs, and a desire for a foreign lifestyle, which seems to be within reach, especially in Europe. The rumor that the old continent is "past its prime" thus significantly falters in light of the mentioned findings.
Sources: author's article, ČTK, The Wall Street Journal, Daily Mail
