Aditya

Lives in Boston, MAUpdated 2y

Why do people leave their luxurious life in the US and go back to India?

Based on my experience of 11 years in US, following are some reasons why Indians choose
to go back to India.

1. Taking care of aging parents- Most people in their late 30s or early 40s
realize that their parents need some help when one of the parents is either
chronically ill or when one of the parents passes away leaving another
parent lonely. Some people try inviting parents to US for 6 months in a year
but it doesn’t work out all the time when the surviving parent is not fit to
travel or there are visa issues for parents.
2. Nostalgia / convenience- Some people start missing India after few years -
they start missing Authentic Indian food, Friends, Relatives, Colorful Indian
weddings, Festivals being celebrated in grand style on their original dates
(as opposed to weekends in USA), domestic help (maid service/ laundry /
ironing), Chauffeur driven cars and other conveniences which are easily
available in India and make life so easy.
3. Uncertainty - At this point of time there are almost 500,000 Indians in green
card queue. Each year only about slightly less than 10,000 Indians can get
green card. Most people in EB2 and EB3 category will never see green card
in their lifetime. Their stay in US is temporary and can come to abrupt end
anytime their visa extension or stamping request gets denied. Visa denials
rates have increased about 300% in last one year and it has only added more
anxiety to the already anxious H1B dependent community.
4. Forced exit - There are some who get visa denials or lose their jobs and are
not able to get another job within the deadline and have no other option but
to leave US.
5. Greener pastures - There are some h1b folks who get tired of visa
uncertainty and look for better alternatives such as Canada, Australia. They
apply for PR in other countries and move to those countries once their PR is
approved.
6. Entrepreneur bug / Side business- Some people (DInk, Disk) who have
made substantial amount of money who want to start up some business and
get out of corporate world, they move to India to start up businesses in their
hometown cities. Their dollar savings can go far in India and the labour is
cheaper in India to support business and manage start up costs.
7. Family businesses - Some people who have strong family business
background (ambanis, piramals, premji etc) have moved back to India to
take care of their businesses. They know fully well that they can have best
 of both worlds by staying in India as they can afford all luxuries the money
can buy plus they can get all amenities mentioned in point 2.
8. Spouse unable to work in USA - There are some who have spouses with
professional degrees ( Engg, MBA, PHD) and they don’t have work permits
in US. These people feel stifled in US when they have to live in usa as a
homemaker. After certain point of time, they realize its not worth
sacrificing career for the sake of an average life in USA.
9. Incompatibility with US culture / lifestyle - last but not the least, there are
some who fail to adopt american lifestyle and finally decide to move back
to live the familiar life they have always lived.
10. Marriage - Some people move back to India to get married and they prefer
to stay in India due to their spouse’s job/profession in India. Some
professionals do not have jobs which are easily transferable such as doctors
with established clinics and lawyers with significant experience in India.
There are about 3 million Indians in US and there may be few other personal reasons for
moving back to India. I will edit this post if any other reason comes to mind later on.