What Is A Passport Bro And Why Is This Relationship Trend On The Rise?

While many dream of marrying a partner who does not share their origins or roots, this practice has a legit term ascribed to it in the modern dating landscape. A 'passport bro' refers to a Western man who heads to another country with the purpose of dating—and often marrying—a woman who is of that culture. The Official Passport Bros website describes the practice as “a specific mindset and lifestyle choice adopted by men who have decided to pursue relationships with foreign women from different cultural backgrounds, often in countries outside their own”.

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Why do men want to marry outside their culture?

These men are dissatisfied (with) the women they find in their own culture, or who are in their social circles, whether it's because they don't fit this traditional woman mould or they're too feminist.

Seattle-based relationship therapist Sally Chund told Men's Health about passport bros, “It’s either there's something they don't like about these women or something they're not getting out of women in their own home countries, where they go to other countries, generally where they have a lower cost of living. Passport bros travel to countries where women are poorer, have fewer options and they find women there who they believe to be more traditional. They will cook, and they will clean, and maybe they're more subservient.”

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Along with Thailand, the most popular destinations for many Western men to visit, per the Passport Bros website, are Croatia, Cambodia, Colombia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brazil, Germany, Mexico and Venezuela.

Is being a 'passport bro' controversial?

The passport bro dynamic can be “extremely exploitative” of women in other cultures, says Chung, mainly due to unequal power dynamics regarding finances and cultural influence. The financial inequity between a passport bro and his partner can seen as a way to exert control over the relationship. Inevitably, this puts women in a position where it’s in their best interest to do whatever is required to keep the passport bro happy because they think they owe it to him. This relationship can turn exploitative sooner than later.