From Brazil to Dubai, more Americans are working overseas than ever before…at least that is the belief, because finding hard figures about who is working across the pond is about as easy as finding a job these days in some sectors. According to the IRS, 350-thousand Americans have filed for foreign-earned income tax credits, but a quick search online shows that ex-pats likely number much higher.

On several web sites I have found numbers that claim a couple of million Americans are working abroad. These sites aim at connecting the international USA communities. I know from working in 18 countries for Fox and from a few college friends who now live overseas, that it has never been easier to accept a job outside the 50 states and those currently looking for work anywhere like advertising exec Stu Hardman say, “It’s harder and harder to find opportunities. For every opportunity that you nlook at, there’s 110 other guys looking at it as well, so expanding your search worldwide just gives you that many more opportunities to consider.”

So who is considering a move and where. Fox News Producer Laura Prabucki did some research and found that recruiters are reporting a significant increase in executives and professionals looking all over the globe and willing to move almost anywhere. Some agencies report normally about a few dozen looking international in the past, but now that number has increased into the hundreds. Stu for example just applied for a job in Fiji.

The hottest markets likely wont surprise you…for the most part. India, China, Hong Kong, Dubai, Singapore and believe it or not…..Brazil. The jobs opening in the locales tend to be for engineers, computer technicians, manufacturing positions, finance officers and various consultant positions. The labor economists we have spoken with say that even when the U.S. job market starts to rebound, these places will still maintain a strong draw for any and all American workers. A good friend of mine found that out in Hong Kong a decade ago. He is still there and another buddy has just made the leap into Asia also. They report high salaries and incentives and both are in the hard hit banking industry.

There are of course downsides to a move away from the home country. There is the obvious lifestyle change. My friends report missing some of the basic American enjoyments, like certain television shows and some other media freedoms. The internet of course helps, but adjusting to a new culture, languages, laws and traditions can also be a challenge. The biggest difficulty is the separation from family and friends, who can come to visit and even video chat these days, but still reside in a looooong flight away.