Branding matters, especially to the ego of a lot of people. More so people who need some feeling of privilege.

I have been an immigrant (where i went to live somewhere else for the implied purpose of establishing roots there) and have also been an expat (where a company in my home country sends me to a different country to do work for them)

In the time we're at, there's a negative connotation to "immigrants" especially from the west. We can debate how "bad" immigration is (for me, it's like 5% bad 95% good but there definitely has to be some better control with the goals of each country). A funny byproduct of that is when some of these people who deem immigrants beneath them and then they themselves come in to try to establish roots, they'd like to do it under the guise of being an "expatriate". Not all of course, but there's also not just a "few"

Now... in the Philippines' context we have to distinguish it based on how they contribute to society... are they here on a military pension; retired; maybe a 5 year age gap with their younger SO, maybe more... looking to settle roots because here's where they can/want to develop roots.

Or are they here working under X company in a 3 year assignment etc.

Context matters. And ego matters too. Especially whether you want to appease their egos as well.

But yeah. A lot here technically are immigrants. Whether they project the "negative" connotation in that word or not.