Iraq, All Areas

Country Full Name: Republic of Iraq.

Country Location: Iraq is in the Middle East, bordering the Arabian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait.

Country Climate: Mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq.

Country Terrain: Mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey.

Country Major Languages: Arabic, Kurdish.

Country Major Religions: Islam.

Location Population: 30.4 Mil (2012 est.).

Country Economy: The economy of Iraq is dominated by the oil sector, which has traditionally provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. There have been attempts by the international community to improve and repair the infrastructure of Iraq in the aftermath of the 2003 invasion, when much was destroyed.

Country Currency: Iraqi Dinar (IQD).

Country Inflation: 6.4% (2012 est.).

The cost of living in Iraq is very low compared to other places. This is based on a comparison of locally collected prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services, converted to USD. Sources include local service providers in each location, international service providers, official governmental statistics and global agency data. The data is quality assured and manually checked by Xpatulator Analysts. The prices of similar related items have been grouped together into 13 basket groups and the cost of living index calculated for each basket in each location. The 13 basket groups are the result of extensive research of actual spending habits ensuring the cost of living indexes reflect a reality-based international expenditure pattern. The cost of living index for each basket for Iraq is only available using our online calculators.

The current overall cost of living rank (using all 13 baskets) for Iraq is 713 out of 780 international locations covering every country in the world (rank 1 is most expensive: rank 780 is least expensive). The current cost of living rank for each basket is as follows:

Alcohol & Tobacco costs are low compared to other places for items such as beer, spirits, wine and cigarettes. There are 576 places that are more expensive, and 203 places that are less expensive for alcohol and or tobacco.

Clothing costs are average compared to other places for items such as business, casual and children's clothing and footwear. There are 418 places that are more expensive, and 361 places that are less expensive for clothing.

Communication costs are average compared to other places for various communication costs such as home telephone rental, internet subscription, mobile tariff and data costs. There are 410 places that are more expensive, and 369 places that are less expensive for communication.

Education costs are low compared to other places for items such as creche / pre-school fees, primary school fees, high school fees and tertiary study fees. There are 578 places that are more expensive, and 201 places that are less expensive for education.

Furniture & Appliance costs are average compared to other places for items such as dining table and chairs, home entertainment, kitchen appliances, and sofa. There are 337 places that are more expensive, and 442 places that are less expensive for furniture and appliances.

Grocery costs are very low compared to other places for items such as consumables, cleaning products, dairy, fresh fruit & vegetables, general food products, snacks, soft drinks. There are 656 places that are more expensive, and 123 places that are less expensive for groceries.

Healthcare costs are very low compared to other places for doctor visit, hospital stay, non-prescription medicine, and medical insurance. There are 661 places that are more expensive, and 118 places that are less expensive for healthcare.

Household Accommodation costs are low compared to other places for items such as apartment purchase, mortgage rate, rental, and utilities. There are 538 places that are more expensive, and 241 places that are less expensive for household accommodation.

Miscellaneous costs are low compared to other places for items such as dry cleaning, linen, magazines, newspapers, office supplies, and postage stamps. There are 570 places that are more expensive, and 209 places that are less expensive for miscellaneous items.

Personal Care costs are average compared to other places for items such as cosmetics, hair care, and toiletries. There are 377 places that are more expensive, and 402 places that are less expensive for personal care.

Recreation and Culture costs are average compared to other places for items such as books, cinema, sport and theatre tickets. There are 431 places that are more expensive, and 348 places that are less expensive for recreation and culture.

Restaurants, Meals Out and Hotel costs are average compared to other places for items such as hotel daily room rates, meals and beverages in restaurants, and take away food and beverages. There are 429 places that are more expensive, and 350 places that are less expensive for restaurants, meals out and hotels.

Transport costs are very low compared to other places for items such as fuel (petrol/gasoline), public transport, vehicle purchase and maintenance. There are 723 places that are more expensive, and 56 places that are less expensive for transport.

Hardship
Hardship in the context of an expatriate and their family refers to the degree of hardship they are likely to experience and the relative impact on their lifestyle in a host location. The degree of hardship correlates to the degree of difference between the home and host location. Hardship pay is compensation for the hardship likely to be endured during an international assignment in order to encourage people to move, in particular to less desirable locations.

Hardship factors include-:
Economic Factors: Such as poverty levels and level of service provision
Political Factors: Such as freedom/tolerance towards different points of view / lifestyle
Religious Factors: Such as freedom/tolerance towards different religions
Public Service Factors: Such as provision of water, electricity, sanitation, work permits etc
Environment/Climate Factors: Such as extreme weather
Personal Safety Factors: Such as personal safety / level of crime
Health Factors: Such as prevalence of disease and health standards
Education Factors: Such as education standards, prevalence of international schools
Transportation Factors: Such as prevalence of public transport, fuel and road safety.

The ratings for hardship are classified into four main groups and can be described as follows:
1) Minimal Hardship (10% Hardship Premium)
2) Some Hardship (20% Hardship Premium)
3) High degree of Hardship (30% Hardship Premium)
4) Extreme Hardship (40% Hardship Premium).

Iraq is ranked as extreme hardship with a typical hardship premium of 40%.

Reference
The above information is updated quarterly using data collected over the previous 12 months. The international cost of living & hardship indexes are only available using our online expatriate calculators to enable users to create personalized cost of living comparison reports:

Salary Purchasing Power Parity Calculator
Cost of Living Index Calculator
Cost of Living Allowance Calculator

Published by Xpatulator.com on 1 April 2013.

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