But the research, conducted over six months via 30 interviews with young professionals (23-35) from 25 different European countries, in fact found that expats living in the city "are not as well off as one might think" and "do not necessarily form a community with its own identity," despite their tendency not to mix with the local population.
High-skilled expats working for the EU institutions and related entities such as national and regional representations, NGOs, consultancies and other civil society organisations number around 100,000, which represents 10% of the city's population, according to Brussels-Europe Liaison Office figures.
Contact with Belgians 'minimal'
Brussels Studies' research finds that these expats are usually highly-educated, job-driven and are well-paid. They are very sociable and generally young, but only live in the city for short periods. Moreover, they gather in an international community, have minimal contact with Belgians and often cannot speak French or Dutch.
Expats differ from migrants in that "they […] go to Brussels not because they are motivated by basic needs, but rather by professional reasons or because they seek an experience abroad".
Migrants, in contrast, are perceived as "people who are obliged to leave their countries because of the tough life and work conditions in their homeland," the study explains.
Expat impact 'positive'
"Expats seem to represent a sort of ‘positive’ immigration (although sometimes annoying for the changes it entails in Brussels' urban environment), in contrast with 'negative' traditional immigration, which is sometimes the target of xenophobia, stereotyped as potentially violent, prone to crime and hardly or not at all integrated," the study states.
Moreover, "migrants and expats do not seem to get in touch as they have different biographies, different links to their country of origin, and obviously a totally different perception of Belgium and their future there".
Indeed, most expats interviewed for the study saw their residence in Brussels as "strictly temporary". This intention to stay for a limited period of between several months and four years means many "refuse to make the effort to learn French or Dutch". Instead, their common language is English.
As for the native Bruxellois, many see expats as "privileged" and are annoyed by the changes to the urban architecture and the increase in real-estate prices that their presence in the city entails, according to the study.
A 'globalised' city
"To be a little brutal, its citizens may like it or not, but Brussels is changing its face, and will continue doing so," the study's author, Emanuele Gatti, told EurActiv. "For economic and political reasons, Brussels has elected itself to the role of globalised city: it is no longer just the capital of Belgium."
Gatti predicts that the size of the expat community is likely to remain stable as "the major waves of expatriates have been absorbed by the city," but admits that a major event like Turkish EU entry "might imply a new big wave of immigration".
He spoke of the rise of "a new generation" of cosmopolitan, globalised, English-speaking Bruxellois who will "better integrate into a Brussels that will be more open [...] and less typically local".
The relationship between Brussels and its expat community is likely to fall under the spotlight next year as Belgium assumes the EU's six-month rotating presidency in the latter half of 2010.
