Countries offering retirement visas

[kcowan]

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Originally Posted by Meadbh Obviously it depends on the type of vacation you want. Taking the car ferry and renting a gite in the south of France is a very popular summer vacation activity for many Irish families. The catch is that all the French people are on vacation in August, so accommodation can get pricey! One of my friends liked it so much that they bought a timeshare near Cannes.

We are leaving Nice on Monday. Rented a 2 bedroom condo from Pebbles. Very nice high end half block from the Promenade. Immediately behind Palais de la Mediterranee. Our friends left today headed for a relocation cruise from Copenhagen. October is the shoulder season here and this year, people are swimming and sunbathing. Highs between 23 and 26. No clouds.

(See Faye Cardenas and Lisa Hartye on Facebook for a sample of photos.)

[Totoro]

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Originally Posted by Oma_here Singapore is very expensive! My oldest who lives there tells me that even after several decades in Singapore most foreigners chose to retire elsewhere. In his words "the ROI on retiring in Singapore sucks". He is in his late 30s and I am curious what he will do once he retires considering that his fiance is Singaporean

Insane real estate (>$15k per square meter), punitive for even minor infractions, surveillance state. What's not to like?

Also .. world class healthcare, safe, low taxes, cheap labor for low-skill jobs.

[davebarnes]

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Originally Posted by PartIrish Because I'm partial to the Irish culture and environment, rain and all. Also, my Spanish wouldn't get me very far, my French is worse, and Portuguese is nonexistent.

Let me recommend Memrise.com as a way to learn Português, Español and/or Française.
I spent 170 hours learning Português for a recent 3 week vacation and it was easy and fun.

[martyp]

I retired to Thailand in February (2017). It's winter here now and the climate in Bangkok is actually pretty nice. All summer the areas outside of Bangkok got a lot of rain and there was quite of bit of flooding. Yes. It is hot and humid for much of the year but I would say that the climate is similar to Florida, Georgia, Mississippi. I kinda like it after the cold and damp San Francisco winters.

I don't find the air pollution in Bangkok to be any different than Manhattan.

It can be cheaper to live here but, like everywhere else, location, location, location. I'm near central Bangkok on the BTS rail line and my condo is 55 sq meters for about $750/month. However, I moved from the San Francisco Bay area which is one of the most expensive place in the US to live.

[Hermit]

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Originally Posted by martyp I retired to Thailand in February (2017). It's winter here now and the climate in Bangkok is actually pretty nice. All summer the areas outside of Bangkok got a lot of rain and there was quite of bit of flooding. Yes. It is hot and humid for much of the year but I would say that the climate is similar to Florida, Georgia, Mississippi. I kinda like it after the cold and damp San Francisco winters. I don't find the air pollution in Bangkok to be any different than Manhattan. It can be cheaper to live here but, like everywhere else, location, location, location. I'm near central Bangkok on the BTS rail line and my condo is 55 sq meters for about $750/month. However, I moved from the San Francisco Bay area which is one of the most expensive place in the US to live.

I would love to hear more about your daily life, say in the "What did you do today?" thread as well as your impressions of living in Thailand. I spent two years in Thailand in the early 70's on Uncle Sam's dime. I would even consider getting on an airplane for a trip there. The traffic throughout Thailand was more like a free-for-all back then. Has that changed?

[martyp]

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Originally Posted by Hermit I would love to hear more about your daily life, say in the "What did you do today?" thread as well as your impressions of living in Thailand. I spent two years in Thailand in the early 70's on Uncle Sam's dime. I would even consider getting on an airplane for a trip there. The traffic throughout Thailand was more like a free-for-all back then. Has that changed?

From what I understand Bangkok is totally different than it was even 10 years ago. BKK is both a very modern international city and also very rural thai at the street level. The traffic is a little crazy. Rules of the road are just guidelines but you get used to it. I have a driver's license but I only use it outside the city. I came for a couple of years before deciding to stay. The food and the people are wonderful. My lasting impression is that I feel very "free" here. It has been nice to make a change in my life.

[explanade]

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Originally Posted by seraphim No experience here, but while perusing a TV show, the country Belize came up in conversation. As I recall, English is the official language and all that was needed was a $25k bank account. Needs researching if anyone's interested Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

Watching a House Hunters International episode of a couple buying a home in Belize, Amber Cayes island.

I don't know about living there full time but looks like there are condos with spectacular ocean views for around $400k.

I do wonder about being close to Guatemala and SE of the Yucatan Peninsula, as far as security.

Has to be a hassle to reach, if you're going back and forth from the US. Fly into some small airport probably and then get on some kind of ferry?

[Hermit]

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Originally Posted by martyp From what I understand Bangkok is totally different than it was even 10 years ago. BKK is both a very modern international city and also very rural thai at the street level. The traffic is a little crazy. Rules of the road are just guidelines but you get used to it. I have a driver's license but I only use it outside the city. I came for a couple of years before deciding to stay. The food and the people are wonderful. My lasting impression is that I feel very "free" here. It has been nice to make a change in my life.

From my long ago experience I absolutely agree about the food and the people.

[Surewhitey]

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Originally Posted by explanade Watching a House Hunters International episode of a couple buying a home in Belize, Amber Cayes island. I don't know about living there full time but looks like there are condos with spectacular ocean views for around $400k. I do wonder about being close to Guatemala and SE of the Yucatan Peninsula, as far as security. Has to be a hassle to reach, if you're going back and forth from the US. Fly into some small airport probably and then get on some kind of ferry?

Vacationing in the scary Yucatan now...lived and traveled here without incident 3 years. You can fly into Belize City and take a ferry from there or a puddle jumper flight on Belize Air. Nice planes,. 8 seater is what we did. Ambergris is much larger than Caulker. I could live there, personally.

Mahahual is just North of there in Mexico and we'll worth a trip, south of town (cruise ships make it a little busy some days. Good shallow, fly fishing in Xcalac too.

Back to Belize, tourist visa is a pain according to friends. Have to renew every month gets expensive.

[sergio]

This is somewhat of a Hail Mary, but anyone have any insight whatsoever on retiring in Hong Kong? I'm aware of the prices, but can't seem to find anything whatsoever on gaining permanent residency besides starting a business, marrying a local etc.

[JakeinChina]

For Hong Kong, you need to get employment, which isn't that difficult, and after 5 or 7 years you can gain a residency card, but I'm unfamiliar with the permanent residency process, although I know its not that difficult to receive as long as you have employment. The issue, as you may already know, is that its very expensive to live in Hong Kong. Nothing is less then 2500usd for a studio apartment which is around 50 square meters (500 square feet) in HK Island or the good parts of Kowloon. IMO Hong Kong would be the last place I'd want to retire. Its very fast pace, money and status are very important, and you will always be considered a foreigner and not a local.

[Dd852]

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Originally Posted by JakeinChina For Hong Kong, you need to get employment, which isn't that difficult, and after 5 or 7 years you can gain a residency card, but I'm unfamiliar with the permanent residency process, although I know its not that difficult to receive as long as you have employment. The issue, as you may already know, is that its very expensive to live in Hong Kong. Nothing is less then 2500usd for a studio apartment which is around 50 square meters (500 square feet) in HK Island or the good parts of Kowloon. IMO Hong Kong would be the last place I'd want to retire. Its very fast pace, money and status are very important, and you will always be considered a foreigner and not a local.

Jake is absolutely right. I’ve lived in hk on and off four separate times, and while I love the place I’d not want to consider it without significant money coming in! Visas are relatively straightforward if you have employment or if you are married to someone with either employment or a permanent ID card. If you have lived in hk with a legitimate residence visa for seven continuous years you can get a permanent ID. Without one you have no access to subsidized housing or health care. Private healthcare is pricey. Insurance prices are similar to us levels for top flight coverage. There are no restrictions on foreigners buying property — but the prices make New York or london seem cheap. No joke.

[JakeinChina]

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Originally Posted by Grammymissy We are US citizens who have retired to Portugal, and purchased a house recently. The retirement VISA that is applied for in the states gives you 4 months to settle in. Then residency permits are applied for here, being Non EU, a 1 year is issued, and then 2 Two years, followed by Five year permits after that. One can take a Portuguese Test, reading, writing and speaking, after 5 years, to apply for permanent residency . We will still have to file and pay US taxes, and as residents of Portugal we will have to file annually here with Portugal IRS. We are applying for the Non habitual resident tax status, which provides 10 years tax credit, so taxes here will be minimal, depending on dividends collected, since pension will be tax free . Also, Portugal does have a tax treaty with the U.S. Portugal does offer a Golden VISA also. English is the second language here, and the Portuguese are the nicest people we have ever met in our travels, they try hard to understand if they can. We do have to carry private health insurance, however it is a complete plan, health, vision and dental at a third of the cost of just a health plan in the states. We did spend a substantial amount of time researching this move. The weather here is amazing compared to Pennsylvania and New York, the food is so fresh and delicious! We wanted to improve the quality of our lives, and we have! Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

Hi Grammy,

If your an American, why would you purchase the Golden Visa for Portugal when you can just visit there and apply for a residency permit after your tourist visa expries? We looked into the Golden Visa for Portugal (and Spain) and although the 500K Euro's for real estate purchase we could meet (seems risky to invest that much in a property in Portugal however) there were many fees from the government as well as legal fees. It came out to over 50K Euro's when you added up all those fees.

Just curious why if someone had funds to retire early to Portugal, why not just go live there and show proof of funds to support yourself, and rent for a while and later buy a inexpensive home outside of the expensive Lisbon no?

[sergio]

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Originally Posted by JakeinChina For Hong Kong, you need to get employment, which isn't that difficult, and after 5 or 7 years you can gain a residency card, but I'm unfamiliar with the permanent residency process, although I know its not that difficult to receive as long as you have employment. The issue, as you may already know, is that its very expensive to live in Hong Kong. Nothing is less then 2500usd for a studio apartment which is around 50 square meters (500 square feet) in HK Island or the good parts of Kowloon. IMO Hong Kong would be the last place I'd want to retire. Its very fast pace, money and status are very important, and you will always be considered a foreigner and not a local.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm familiar with the general situation in HK, as I've spent a lot of time there, my wife is from Southern China and has several relatives living in HK etc. At some point we'd like to spend significant time in that area, and to me (and even my wife) HK is a lot more appealing than any of the major Southern mainland cities (Shenzhen, Guangzhou etc.)

[explanade]

The other thing with HK is that you're downstream from all the pollution from China.

[Rianne]

Costa Rica is my dream place to move. DH not on board.

[ItDontMeanAThing]

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Originally Posted by JakeinChina If your an American, why would you purchase the Golden Visa for Portugal when you can just visit there and apply for a residency permit after your tourist visa expries?

Citizens of non-EU countries must start the path to a residence permit by applying for a residence visa in their country of residence. BTW, American tourists don't need a visa for Schengen countries, but we can stay only 90 days out of any 180 day period.

The other advantage of the Golden Visa is you can stay out of Portugal for almost as long as you want: 51 weeks in the first year, 50 weeks in subsequent years. With a 2 yr temporary residence permit, you can stay outside of Portugal for 6 consecutive months or 8 total months.

[JakeinChina]

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Originally Posted by ItDontMeanAThing Citizens of non-EU countries must start the path to a residence permit by applying for a residence visa in their country of residence. BTW, American tourists don't need a visa for Schengen countries, but we can stay only 90 days out of any 180 day period. The other advantage of the Golden Visa is you can stay out of Portugal for almost as long as you want: 51 weeks in the first year, 50 weeks in subsequent years. With a 2 yr temporary residence permit, you can stay outside of Portugal for 6 consecutive months or 8 total months.

Yeah, that's true. With Portugal and the Golden visa you don't need to live there, which is not the case with Spain when it comes to permanent residency. Also, only 6 years and you can apply for a Portugal passport, whereas Spain is 10 years.

What do you think about the recent housing prices in Portugal? Its gone thru the roof in areas in and around Lisbon and its spread to Porto and the southern beach areas in Portugal. It feels like a bubble will burst in Lisbon at some point in the next couple of years. Also, they are going to crack down on Airbnb rules in Portugal to make only first floor apt's able to rent out. This will hurt the local real estate prices as everyone is now buying up homes in Lisbon or Cascais and fixing them up to rent out via Airbnb. Its really tough to get a long term rental on an apartment in Lisbon now.

[ItDontMeanAThing]

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Originally Posted by JakeinChina What do you think about the recent housing prices in Portugal? Its gone thru the roof in areas in and around Lisbon and its spread to Porto and the southern beach areas in Portugal. It feels like a bubble will burst in Lisbon at some point in the next couple of years. Also, they are going to crack down on Airbnb rules in Portugal to make only first floor apt's able to rent out. This will hurt the local real estate prices as everyone is now buying up homes in Lisbon or Cascais and fixing them up to rent out via Airbnb. Its really tough to get a long term rental on an apartment in Lisbon now.

About prices, I only know what I've read. Yikes.

Seems the government didn't consider the unintended side effects of giving tax incentives to high value added workers, and pensioners. And the money laundering side effects of the Golden Visa. Nor the Portuguese reaction of turning their units into Airbnbs. Good luck with the crack down. Took them a long time to begin to enforce AF units. Now you have to include the AF number in any advertisement. Not so for apartments supposed to be registered with Financas. Landlords don't do that because the tax man gets 10% of the rent, though I'm not sure if that's 10% of the first month or 10% of every month.

I'm for anything that makes it easier for the Portuguese to afford apartments, and easier for newcomers to find one.

[Tiger8693]

Sorry if already discussed anywhere, but has anyone (actually) moved outside to avoid high HI costs from say late 50’s to 65, then moved back to US once eligible for Medicare? Interested in results, locations and experience with it.