A foreign professor teaches children in Yinchuan, Ningxia autonomous region, Oct. 22. (File photo/Xinhua)

China has been ranked third in the world by expats in terms of destinations for career progression, financial wellbeing and quality of life, according to the seventh Expat Explorer survey commissioned by HSBC Expat on Wednesday.

Switzerland comes out in the top slot, followed by Singapore, China, Germany and Bahrain. Taiwan was ranked 8th and Hong Kong 10th.

In terms of economic conditions, Asia is home to the highest earning expats, who are almost three times more likely to earn over US$250,000 annually than their counterparts in Europe. Among countries in Asia, China is home to the highest earning expats in the world, with 23% of expats earning over US$300,000 every year.

The top three expat occupations in Asia-Pacific are banking, insurance financial services, education, telecoms, and IT internet. 48% of expats in Asia are aged 35 to 55. UK has the highest number of expats in Asia, followed by the US and New Zealand.

The Expat Explorer survey was conducted by YouGov, an international internet-based market research firm based in UK. It was conducted through April and May 2014, polled nearly 9,300 expatriates from over 100 countries. The survey focuses on the experiences of expats in their new country of residence, with expats from all over the world describing the opportunities and challenges they face living away from home.