In a world that prides itself on being hyper-connected and united in the face of calamities, immigrants and refugees continue to face calamities often ignored by the rest of the world. They leave their homes to pursue a better, safer, and more secure life, yet they have to face new challenges that leave them feeling isolated and overwhelmed. The difficulties faced by immigrants and refugees can feel endless, but understanding them is an essential step in removing these hurdles. There are some ways anyone can help them. Like giving tips for travelling alone safely, or with a baby. People who have left their country spend their money very carefully. So, any advice on cheap transportation while travelling will also be welcome.

7 Difficulties Faced by Immigrants and Refugees Worldwide

Here are the most common difficulties faced by immigrants and refugees throughout the world:

Facing a Language Barrier

Most migrants and refugees from underdeveloped countries settle in countries that don’t speak their native language. For instance, a Syrian refugee migrating to the US is highly unlikely to have a firm grasp of English, making settling in the US an uphill battle since English is the primary language spoken in the country.

Facing this language barrier is easily one of the most common challenges faced by immigrants and refugees worldwide. It makes daily communication, document filing, buying groceries, getting hired, etc., more challenging. Even though one can also learn a new language, immigrants face the added pressure of learning one as quickly as possible to ensure financial stability while caring for their dependents. That is why if someone is travelling, you can give them travelling organization tips so that they are able to sort things out as soon they land.

2. Raising Children in an Alien Environment

Raising your children is not an easy task as a refugee or immigrant. You have to face the fact that your kids might suffer from displacement, isolation, unresolved trauma, and emotional turmoil from having their lives uprooted and being forced to live in a different country with no support system. Providing your kids with a nurturing environment while you’re struggling to make ends meet is a mean feat and any advice for traveling with kids, especially toddlers would be much appreciated.
You might have to bear the consequences of the strain your situation will put on the parent-child dynamic. You will also need to ensure that they get familiar with the culture and norms of the new country they are residing in. Moreover, they will need quality education, which is another hurdle for immigrants and refugees since UNICEF highlights that refugee children are five times more likely to drop out of school than their counterparts.

3. Finding Reliable Employment Opportunities

Finding a suitable job is hands down one of the most agonizing difficulties faced by immigrants and refugees. They are often unable to find jobs, to begin with, and when they do find one, the employer often underpays and exploits them due to their lack of support and desperation to earn.

Even if you’re a skilled and educated refugee, you will struggle with finding a suitable job due to the language barrier, prejudice of employers, and a general lack of trust rooted in racism toward refugees and immigrants. Moreover, employers prefer working with people who have relevant experience in the industry within their country.
Additionally, uneducated refugees and immigrants are often stuck with labor-intensive jobs that demand a lot from them and are highly unregulated. They can also not voice their demands or express their skills due to the language barrier, leading the average employer to shut their doors on them.

4. Access to Services

Refugees from war-torn lands often have undiagnosed mental health problems, such as PTSB, anxiety, and depression. However, they cannot find the right professional help due to the language barrier or social taboos. Moreover, immigrants and refugees have a hard time finding health insurance due to not having a stable source of income. It leads them to neglect their well-being or face mounting hospital bills. This is why safety tips while travelling alone are crucial.

Additionally, if an immigrant or refugee gets stuck in a law-and-order case, they will find it doubly hard to communicate their side of the story successfully to the law officers, leading to deportation and life-threatening situations. They also have to face unjust stereotypes and prejudices in such circumstances.

5. Finding Housing

Safe housing is an expense that not everyone can bear, especially not most migrants and refugees stuck with low-paying jobs. It results in them fending for themselves and fighting against greedy landlords who raise rents illegally without notice and make you evacuate the premise. It leaves you with no choice since you don’t have access to attorneys to fight your case.

Migrants and refugees often end up living in unsafe, unsanitary conditions. Moreover, large families decide to stay under one roof due to the excessive housing costs. They have to compromise on their personal and live in stressful environments to make ends meet. Although to an outsider, living abroad may sound luxurious, but it always helps if you receive some guidelines on how to travel in a budget and thus find cheap housing.

6. Transportation Woes

Access to transportation allows you to access quality education, healthcare, and job opportunities as it broadens your horizons and prevents you from getting stuck in one limited space. However, most migrants and refugees face difficulty when commuting by public transport. The language barrier makes it difficult for them to figure out how to go from point A to B. Moreover, they have to face casual racism when traveling in public.

Furthermore, most refugees and migrants don’t get access to a driving license as it requires them to be well-versed in the spoken language and pass the initial written test. When they have a license and a car, they have to share it between multiple family members, making it difficult for everyone to commute.

7. Cultural & Social Isolation

One of the most overlooked difficulties faced by immigrants and refugees is the fact that their whole lives have been uprooted. The culture and people they were familiar with are no longer with them. They have to attune to a foreign land, people, language, and culture, which can be emotionally jarring and traumatizing, especially for children and adolescents.

Migrants and refugees struggle with meeting new people, finding common ground, and even communicating with them. They also have to regularly face unintentional cultural insensitivity and highly intentional racism and bullying.

They can also feel culturally isolated as their traditions, way of living, and appearances are different from the people in the host country. Migrants miss their social circles and the comfort that familiarity offers them. It can lead them to feel alienated and displaced.

The Bottom Line

There’s no denying that the lives of migrants and refugees are marred by extreme hardships that can come in the way of their aspirations and dreams and lead to bigger problems, such as deportation. However, International Traveling Tips (ITT) offers you a way to solve your woes. They can help by providing you tips for travelling and residing abroad. We have the resources and professionals needed to become your backbone when you need to face immigration authorities.