Best Places In The World To Retire

Fishing is very popular in Yucatán. In the state of Quintana Roo (includes Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, and here in Akumal there is very good fishing. When you go up to Tulum, you’ll see fishermen standing on big rocks and fishing. All of the restaurants in Tulum only serve fresh seafood every day. Tulum is a really nice place for fishermen. You can also go fishing in the entire Riviera Maya area, from Cancun to Tulum.  

 

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Fishing is very popular in Yucatán. In the state of Quintana Roo (includes Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Tulum, and here in Akumal there is very good fishing. When you go up to Tulum, you’ll see fishermen standing on big rocks and fishing. All of the restaurants in Tulum only serve fresh seafood every day. Tulum is a really nice place for fishermen. You can also go fishing in the entire Riviera Maya area, from Cancun to Tulum.  

 

(Pureto Morelos fishing boats, Quintana Roo, Mexico, pictured.)

Yes, Portugal does have retirement programs or benefits. If you are a senior in Portugal, typically over 65 years old, you are already entitled to many benefits, such as the exemption on certain medical or hospital costs or a huge reduction on co-payments. You will also get a huge reduction on gas and on public transports. Generally, if you are a senior, you get many discounts and benefits. 

 

The most important program to mention, which is similar to...

Yes, Portugal does have retirement programs or benefits. If you are a senior in Portugal, typically over 65 years old, you are already entitled to many benefits, such as the exemption on certain medical or hospital costs or a huge reduction on co-payments. You will also get a huge reduction on gas and on public transports. Generally, if you are a senior, you get many discounts and benefits. 

 

The most important program to mention, which is similar to the Pensionado Program in Central America, is the Non-Habitual Residency. A Non-Habitual Resident is a status that is granted to new residents in Portugal. It doesn’t only apply to pensioners but it is particularly good for pensioners because it exempts most pensioners or new residents in Portugal from paying income tax on their pension for a period of 10 years. If you bring your international pension into Portugal and get it paid here, then you will be exempt from paying taxes on it here. Being a Non-Habitual Resident also allows you to be exempt from a number of other sources of income such as interest and sometimes dividends, but you would need to take advice from an attorney to do that.  The Non-Habitual Resident is one of the most popular programs today.

 

Generally, if you work for the public sector then you would always pay taxes on your pension but if you have a private pension and that pension gets paid to you on a regular basis, then you are able to be exempt from taxes on your pension using a mechanism such as QROPS (Qualified Recognized Overseas Pension Scheme), which is a method that the HMRC (or her majesty’s government) allows British citizens to use to formally take their pensions and get it paid abroad. So your pension would be paid abroad, in Portugal, and that will be tax free. You will pay no tax in the UK, and you will pay no tax in Portugal.

 

I would recommend that you take advice from a tax adviser because each situation is different. But the Non-Habitual Residency Program applies to any country relative to a double tax treaty that allows the citizen of the country of origin to be taxed in the country of residence. Portugal is one of the countries with the most double tax treaties, with about 160 of them.   In Europe, the double tax treaty applies to pretty much every country except the Netherlands because the Netherlands kept a double tax treaty and the Dutch government is authorized to tax its citizens living abroad.

 

The US qualifies for the Non-Habitual Residency Program but of course the US is a little more complex for the simple reason that Americans are taxed on their worldwide income. The Non-Habitual Residency Program applies to US citizens but it is not so straightforward to lose one’s tax residency in gain it in another country. There may be a slightly more complex situation in that sense in terms of dual nationality, residency, and so on.  US citizens need to take advice from a tax adviser if they want to apply for the Non-Habitual Residency Program.

 

(Festa de Sao Joao,  the feast of Saint John, Porto, Portugal, pictured.)

I am budgeting about US $300 a month for my food here in San Juan Del Sur, which includes eating out a couple of times a week. It is very affordable once you get familiar with the actual Nica economy versus the expat economy. You can pick up fresh produce at the open-air market very economically and affordably. If you eat the non-imported, locally-grown, and locally-sourced food, it’s going to be significantly less expensive, but if you want your particular brand of...

I am budgeting about US $300 a month for my food here in San Juan Del Sur, which includes eating out a couple of times a week. It is very affordable once you get familiar with the actual Nica economy versus the expat economy. You can pick up fresh produce at the open-air market very economically and affordably. If you eat the non-imported, locally-grown, and locally-sourced food, it’s going to be significantly less expensive, but if you want your particular brand of cheese, you are going to pay the same as you would in North America or more.

 

There is also Pali, which is a very First World style grocery store here in San Juan Del Sur. It is like a small North American grocery store and it is where you can get pretty much everything you need. It is slightly more expensive to shop there but a lot of expats do. A budget of $200 to $300 per month per person on food would be fine, plenty enough. For a couple, the budget for food per month could be around $400.

 

I am budgeting what I do and I have seen other budgets for couples that are about the same. I entertain a lot and I am a couple half the time, so I am using what I budget but I probably use about the same as a couple would.

 

You can get your fresh fish right down on the beach where they bring it in every day. You buy the whole fish. That is how you buy fish here in San Juan Del Sur. They filet it but they filet it as a whole. We paid $8 for a huge fish, which would be a lot less than what we pay for in Toronto, Canada where I come from.

 

There is a place in town for North American style cheeses and meats that is quite expensive and that is sort of what we as expats buy for special treats. There is also Pan de Vida, which is a lovely type of bread in Nicaragua. It is expensive, but one of the things that you will find about Nicaragua is that the bread is not great by North American standards. There is a North American brick oven for bread making called Pan de Vida and they have a whole selection of fresh breads and pastries that they make every single day. It is very very popular. A loaf of bread would cost you about $4 or $5. It is quite expensive, but it has really good quality breads and cinnamon buns.

 

Our overall food cost here in San Juan Del Sur is about half of what it is if we were in Toronto. And that is eating not like a native Nicaraguan, but not like you would in Toronto, either. It is about midway. I really like lots of the fruits and produce in Nicaragua. You have to be careful buying food at one time and storing it in the fridge because when the power goes out, so does your fridge. You don’t want to be wasting food. So you have to be careful in not loading up your fridge. If you buy more fresh food frequently, it brings your budget down. It is very convenient to buy food almost every day since San Juan Del Sur is such a small town. I buy food nearly every day here. 

Though there are no specifically American or Canadian radio stations in Panama, of course you can still get them online. 

 

Locally, there is a Canadian guy who does a weekly radio broadcast called The Great White North that keeps the Canadian expats up to date with news and information. He works with a British guy who owns the program.  They broadcast about three hours every morning, Monday to Friday on a program called “The Breakfast...

Though there are no specifically American or Canadian radio stations in Panama, of course you can still get them online. 

 

Locally, there is a Canadian guy who does a weekly radio broadcast called The Great White North that keeps the Canadian expats up to date with news and information. He works with a British guy who owns the program.  They broadcast about three hours every morning, Monday to Friday on a program called “The Breakfast Show with Gerry D.” They serve the market well and are successful.

 

 

The form must be filed if the combined highest balances in your foreign financial accounts at any time during the calendar year exceed $10,000 US or more.  Foreign financial accounts include banks, foreign stock brokers, foreign pension plans, foreign gold storage places, etc.

 

You must also report all income earned on these accounts on your Form 1040 and fill out the proper information on Schedule B stating that you are required to file an FBAR form.