TikTokers are divided over ‘passport bros’ who say dating overseas is easier than in the US: ‘Wouldn’t you be better off getting a mail order bride?’

• Passport bros are digital nomads who are seeking to date foreign women overseas.
• Austin Abeyta is a remote worker who shares his passport-bro lifestyle with millions on TikTok.
• Abeyta said that dating was easier overseas than in the US because Americans were seen as exotic.

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Some 17 million Americans are now thought to be traveling the world while working remotely. The ever-increasing popularity of becoming a digital nomad has led to the rise of “passport bros” — men who travel the world seeking to date foreign women overseas.

The hashtag #passportbros has amassed almost 420 million views on TikTok, where men, mostly from the West, promote their lifestyle of partying in far-flung places while working remotely on their laptops — and, of course, showing off local women they meet along the way.

A TikTok posted by the self-described passport bro Austin Abeyta has divided users. In this video, he said: “Passport bros are right; dating overseas is easier for a variety of reasons.”

“A lot of young men in America are frustrated with the dating scene there. I am a firm believer in a free market that allows the best outcomes for everyone involved,” Abeyta told Insider in an email.

In the May 22 video, which had some 1.7 million views on Wednesday, Abeyta listed three reasons dating abroad was easier than in the US. Abeyta, who has more than 410,000 followers on TikTok, said the first reason was that local women saw passport bros as “exotic.”

“I know it sounds crazy, but you have an accent,” Abeyta, 31, said, adding that “the American accent is kind of trash” but still “gives everything you say a little bit of weight, a little bit of spice.”

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Abeyta, listed as a data analyst on his LinkedIn profile, said in the video that his second reason was “2nd hand excitement.”

“This is really important on dates. People love showing you their country and showing you things that they love,” Abeyta said, adding that showing enthusiasm kept “things light and fun.”

Abeyta’s final reason it’s easier to date abroad was thanks to the stereotype that Americans were rich.

“Kind of true, because our currency is, like, the global currency,” Abeyta said. “If you make $60,000 a year, you can live like you made $120,000 a year pretty comfortably,” he continued, referring to geographical arbitrage, where people from countries with strong economies and currencies move to countries with a lower cost of living.

“The things money can provide makes a huge difference in dating. Watch ‘The Tinder Swindler’ — it’ll explain it all,” Abeyta added, referring to Simon Leviev, dubbed the Tinder Swindler after he was accused of conning women he met on the dating app.

“I would have to make four times what I currently make in order to live in America the way I do while I travel,” Abeyta told Insider, declining to reveal how much he made.

Dozens of users said they supported Abeyta’s lifestyle, with one user, @vegazvic1, asking: “what cities would you recommend?”

Abeyta responded that his top five choices were Medellin, Colombia; Manila, Philippines; Mexico City; Bali, Indonesia; and Rio de Janeiro.

“Being a tall white dude with even a small amount of money relatively was the biggest cheat code in Peru dude,” a user called @meliadonpepe wrote.

“The finder swindler is life goals,” another user, @alwaysfreetofly, commented, misspelling “Tinder.”

But many people were unhappy with Abeyta’s video, with one user, @doc_rose86, criticizing him for being “just a money bag.”

“How is this different from a mail-order bride?” another user, Harry S, wrote.

“I think it’s weird to solely go to another country especially the poorer ones just to get at women bc ur Americans,” a user called @ymc_bryan commented.

Abeyta responded: “It’s not just to get a woman. You are also traveling the world learning about cultures and saving money while you do it.”

Correction: June 1, 2023 — An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of the man known as the Tinder Swindler. It is Simon Leviev. The story has also been updated to correct an earlier misspelling of the country Colombia.