• About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Unsubscribe
No Result
View All Result
Live and Invest Overseas
FREE REPORT
BEST PLACES TO RETIRE
*No spam: We will NEVER give your email address to anyone else.
  • HOME
  • COUNTRIES
    • Top Destinations
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • France
      • Colombia
      • Dominican Republic
      • Thailand
      • Mexico
      • Spain
      • Argentina
    • Browse All Countries
    • Best For
      • Retire Overseas Index
      • Health Care
      • Cost of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Editor’s Picks For Retirement
      • Establishing Residency
      • Starting an Online Business
      • Single Women
      • Playing Golf
  • BUDGETS
    • Super Cheap ($)
      • Cuenca, Ecuador
      • Chiang Mai, Thailand
      • The Philippines
      • Las Tablas, Panama
      • Granada, Nicaragua
    • Cheap ($$)
      • Algarve, Portugal
      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Carcassone, France
      • Buenos Aires, Argentina
    • Affordable ($$$)
      • Abruzzo, Italy
      • Barcelona, Spain
      • Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic
      • Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
      • Costa de Oro, Uruguay
    • Luxury On A Budget ($$$$)
      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Paris, France
      • Panama City Beach Area
  • Real Estate
  • ARCHIVES
    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore Diversification
    • Our Latest On Coronavirus ⚠️
  • Making Money
    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing
  • CONFERENCES
  • BOOKSTORE
Live and Invest Overseas
  • HOME
  • COUNTRIES
    • Top Destinations
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • France
      • Colombia
      • Dominican Republic
      • Thailand
      • Mexico
      • Spain
      • Argentina
    • Browse All Countries
    • Best For
      • Retire Overseas Index
      • Health Care
      • Cost of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Editor’s Picks For Retirement
      • Establishing Residency
      • Starting an Online Business
      • Single Women
      • Playing Golf
  • BUDGETS
    • Super Cheap ($)
      • Cuenca, Ecuador
      • Chiang Mai, Thailand
      • The Philippines
      • Las Tablas, Panama
      • Granada, Nicaragua
    • Cheap ($$)
      • Algarve, Portugal
      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Carcassone, France
      • Buenos Aires, Argentina
    • Affordable ($$$)
      • Abruzzo, Italy
      • Barcelona, Spain
      • Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic
      • Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
      • Costa de Oro, Uruguay
    • Luxury On A Budget ($$$$)
      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Paris, France
      • Panama City Beach Area
  • Real Estate
  • ARCHIVES
    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore Diversification
    • Our Latest On Coronavirus ⚠️
  • Making Money
    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing
  • CONFERENCES
  • BOOKSTORE
No Result
View All Result
Live and Invest Overseas
No Result
View All Result

Shipping Your Car To Another Country

Live And Invest Overseas by Live And Invest Overseas
Apr 22, 2011
in Mailbag
0
shipping container
208
SHARES
3k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

“Kathleen, I have enjoyed and followed your writings since before the turn of the century. In a recent comment, you seemed to mention in passing that you recommend new expats do not take their cars with them. Could you elaborate on that? Seems a pretty radical idea to move to a foreign land with no transportation.

“Also, with respect to the income tax exemption of about US$92,000 per year for U.S. expats, does that refer only to wages earned abroad or to income from any source? Many of us will have dividend and capital gains income from both U.S. and international investments. Are those income sources exempted also, up to the US$92,000 limit?”

–Charles C., United States

Well, if you were to ship your car with you, it wouldn’t likely show up in your new country of residence at the same time as you, so you’d still be arriving on the scene car-less. Depending where you’re going, that’s probably not a big deal. Most places you’d likely settle would have taxis, buses, etc. And the best way to get to know a new place is to walk around it. In Paris, we never had a car and delighted in the chance to walk or to take the Metro anywhere we wanted to go. My daily commute to and from the office was a 20-minute walk across the river and through the Tuileries gardens.

Here in Panama City, we resisted the urge to buy a car our first year here, forcing ourselves to walk and take taxis everywhere we wanted to go. Once we felt like we had the lay of the land, we finally invested in a vehicle.

All that aside, the practical reasons why I don’t recommend you you’re your car to your new country of residence are these:

First, shipping a car across international borders can be expensive. You have the shipping costs. You have import duties (if you aren’t exempt as a result of the type of residency visa you’ve obtained). And you have the sales tax (typically not exempted even under residency visa benefit programs). Buying a new car most places around the world is more costly than buying one in the United States, because of duties and taxes; however, you still generally come out ahead compared with shipping a car from one country to another.

Second, your car from where you’re coming from may not make sense for where you’re going to. Years ago, friends from Canada shipped their van down to connect with them in Nicaragua. That country’s roadways chewed up that white van and spit it out in rusty pieces. After a few months, they gave up on the never-ending repairs and bought a pick-up truck locally.

Which leads to the third consideration when shipping a car from one country to another: Will you be able to find the parts and labor you’ll need to repair and maintain it? Our friends with the van in Nicaragua had to order parts they needed for repairs (before they finally decided to ditch the silly thing) from Miami and have them shipped to Managua. They’d have to wait weeks for the parts to show up…and then they’d have to pay import duties to get them into the country!

Regarding the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, it applies to earned income only, not to dividends, interest, capital gains, or anything else un-earned.

Continue Reading: Global Property Investing

Comments

Tags: 'Colombia''Global Property Investing''Real Estate In Medellin'Lief Simon
Share83Tweet52
Previous Post

How To Retire Overseas On A Budget

Next Post

Live And Invest In Sofia, Bulgaria

Live And Invest Overseas

Live And Invest Overseas

Live and Invest Overseas is the world's savviest source for top opportunities to live better, retire in style, invest for profit, do business, and own real estate overseas. Established in 2008, the Live and Invest Overseas' editors and correspondents have more experience researching and reporting on top opportunities for living well, investing for profit, doing business, and owning real estate around the world than anyone else you'll find.

Related Posts

Nazaré beach resort, Estremadura, Portugal
Mailbag

Retire To The Silver Coast Of Portugal

by Live And Invest Overseas
February 18, 2021
0

Portugal’s Silver Coast, or Costa da Prata in Portuguese, is best known for its ancient towns with cobblestone streets, breathtaking...

Read more
Man bookkeeper working with bills pay taxes online using laptop

How To Do A 1031 Like-Kind Exchange Of Foreign Real Estate

February 15, 2021
Aerial view of Fortress Vila Vella and Badia de Tossa bay at summer in Tossa de Mar on Costa Brava, Catalunya, Spain

Low-Humidity Retire Overseas Options

January 2, 2021
Assisted Living

Assisted Living In Panama

December 11, 2020
Boa constrictor imperator

Malaria, Dengue, Bugs, Spiders, And Snakes In Panama

December 9, 2020
Establishing Retirement Residency In Portugal - Lagos

Establishing Retirement Residency In Portugal

July 6, 2016
The Tax Advantages of Operating A Business Offshore can be plenty in a country like Panama.

How To Live Tax Free In Panama

June 1, 2016
Next Post
homes on the water's edge with lush green trees in bulgaria

Live And Invest In Sofia, Bulgaria

A world full of fun, adventure, and profit awaits! Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we'll send you a FREE report on the 10 Best Places To Retire In Style Overseas Today.

Start Your New Life Today, Overseas

how to retire overseas

LIOS Resources


  • New To LIOS
  • Ask An Expert
  • Media Center
  • Contact Us
  • FAQs

Quick Links


  • Best Places To Live
  • Best Places To Retire
  • Finding A Job Overseas
  • Real Estate

Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and get your FREE report: The 10 Best Places To Retire Overseas In 2021

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Unsubscribe

© 2008-2021 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Countries
  • Budgets
  • Archives
  • News
  • Events
  • Bookstore
  • Newsletters
  • About Us
  • Members Area
  • Contact Us

© 2008-2021 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.

WANT TO RETIRE OVERSEAS?

Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we’ll immediately send you a free report on the 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE in style overseas. Each day you’ll learn about the best opportunities for international living, retiring overseas, offshore diversification and asset protection, and investing in real estate around the world.

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.