Moving overseas, but doing the same job?

[Okapi]

I'm hoping someone will know about this, or be able to point me to where I can find out. I have been out of work for a while, and DH has a friend who is starting a business and wants me to come on as a founding member (sorry, can't remember if that's the exact language). It is a really awesome opportunity, in my field (which I'm actually starting miss after almost a year of not working, lol) and if it works out will be great for our family. I will be able to work from home or go into the office as I choose, and will also be able to choose how much work I can handle (won't be locked into full time).

The potentially tricky part is that DH is currently trying to get a job overseas, and I'm wondering if it would be possible for me to keep working if we move. I would (obviously) be completely telecommuting in that case, but are there rules about it since I would be living in a different country? I have no idea how that works. I know you can't just go to another country and get a job w/o all kinds of paperwork/visas/etc, but what about a job you already have, but just don't live in the same place anymore?

[Magistra]

It can be a bit tricky with the tax stuff and both you and the company would want to look into that. When I started graduate school in Canada, my partner telecommuted to her job in the US. Due to a tax treaty with Canada, we owed taxes to Canada first and then the US (which required figuring Canadian taxes, then US, and we would have owed the difference between Canadian and US if Canadian taxes were lower--which they weren't). Her company had to set up payroll taxes in Canada as well. She ended up with a work permit and Social Insurance Number via my student visa, but it was never entirely clear if she needed to have those or if it was just more convenient for keeping track of her payments. Her company still paid us in US dollars, direct deposited into an account we kept here.

If we were to do it again, I might look at maintaining some semblance of residence in the US (we could easily have used her parents' address and we did spend several months there every year), though I'm not sure how legal that would have been.

[prone_to_wander]

It depends on the immigration and business law in the country you want to move to. You have to pay taxes somewhere and because you're American, you'll have to continue to pay taxes on your world wide income to the states. I would be looking into your possible new country to find out what kind of visa you would be issued

[MamaMamaMama!]

Do keep in mind that as an expatriate you pay no income taxes to the US up to something like $80K. I telecommute with my US company while living overseas and on the US side the tax story is better than if I were living in America. The big question is the country you would be moving to, what are their tax laws and whether or not they have a tax treaty with the US. Your best bet is to talk with people in a similar position in the country where you are planning to move. You could also get ahold of the US embassy there and ask for recommendations on who to talk to.

[expatmommy]

In order to not pay taxes in the USA, you have to be out of the country for a set amount of time & cannot come back to the USA for extended visits. If you are working for a US based company you might also still be on the hook for taxes.

[SquishyKitty]

Originally Posted by MamaMamaMama!

Do keep in mind that as an expatriate you pay no income taxes to the US up to something like $80K. I telecommute with my US company while living overseas and on the US side the tax story is better than if I were living in America. The big question is the country you would be moving to, what are their tax laws and whether or not they have a tax treaty with the US. Your best bet is to talk with people in a similar position in the country where you are planning to move. You could also get ahold of the US embassy there and ask for recommendations on who to talk to.

This isn't always the case, you have to apply for tax exempt status in some countries to get this. If you do get it, it will bar you from buying property in that country, since you won't be paying taxes. You have to be very careful with this. We are currently going through this with DH, so filing taxes this year is going to be so much fun lol.

I would look into the country you're planning to move to, and potentially consult a lawyer about international laws and requirements for buisinesses. Fines are pretty steep when you make a mistake with taxes, so you'll definitely want to make sure you know exactly what you're getting in to. Every country has different requirements, and even some states within those countries have different requirements.

[Okapi]

Thanks, everyone. I wouldn't have guessed it would be so complicated, since it's not actually a job in another country. But I guess it kind would be. Anyway, DH's friend is working with a lawyer and is going to see what he says about it. If he doesn't know, I'm sure he will be able to point us towards someone who can. I guess if it's too complicated, it might not work out after all. But then, there's no guarantee DH is even going to get the job, so it may not matter. Everything is so up in the air right now. It's so frustrating!