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Uruguay as a Retirement Destination

Posted on July 4, 2007
Filed Under Real Estate, Cost of Living, Immigration | 11 Comments

A reader asked me to compare retirement incentives offered by the Uruguayan government versus incentives offered by other countries such as Costa Rica, Panama, Belize, Nicaragua, Honduras etc. Since I don’t know much about those countries, I decided instead to write more generally about the advantages and disadvantages of Uruguay as destination for retirees. Even though the incentives offered by the Uruguayan government to foreign retirees aren’t many, there are several other factors that may be just as important when comparing countries. Read more

Can You Take the Heat?

Posted on July 1, 2007
Filed Under Real Estate, Cost of Living, Weather | 9 Comments

The subject of heating has already been covered very competently by several expat bloggers living in Montevideo; see here, here and here for example. So why do I feel the urge to write about this subject again? Because despite all the information available, I think many North Americans and Northern Europeans will still assume that because the Uruguayan winter is milder, there is nothing to worry about. And they may wrongly assume that all homes are heated and they will have the same comfort they are accustomed to back home. This would be a big mistake. Read more

Tax Implications of Life Abroad

Posted on June 16, 2007
Filed Under Cost of Living, Expat Tips, Taxes | 10 Comments

The US is one of the few countries that taxes its citizens based on their world income. This means that you need to file a tax return whether you live in the US or not. There is some debate as to whether this policy should be revised, however it is not likely to change soon. Countries wishing to attract foreign nationals, like Uruguay, usually only tax income earned in the country. Others like Brazil, tax on world income, but only if you are a resident for more than 6 months of the year. Read more

Asset Tax

Posted on May 24, 2007
Filed Under Real Estate, Cost of Living, Taxes | 6 Comments

Many people that are now considering moving to Uruguay may not realize that they will be subject to a tax based on the total value of their Uruguayan assets. Since this type of tax exists in relatively few countries, most future expats will likely forget to take it into consideration. Even so the value of the tax is negligible for people with few assets, its steeply progressive scale penalizes ostentatious wealth as well as the ownership of non-producing assets. This tax is known as the Impuesto al Patrimonio (IP). Read more

Water and Sewer

Posted on April 9, 2007
Filed Under Services, Cost of Living | 17 Comments

In Uruguay, the water service is handled by a State Company, Obras Sanitarias del Estado. OSE serves 98% of the Uruguayan population and supplies treated water to virtually every town and village. Because of this impressive coverage, Uruguay was the only country in South America not to suffer in the Cholera epidemic of 1991-2000. Read more

Cost of Living in Uruguay

Posted on March 27, 2007
Filed Under Economy, Cost of Living, Expat Tips | 22 Comments

Have you been hearing that life in Uruguay is inexpensive? Are you itching to sell your house and bolt for the Airport? Hold your horses. The truth is, life in Uruguay can be fairly inexpensive or can be nearly as expensive as in North America. It will depend on your life-style.

For example, a typical T-shirt purchased in Uruguay is cheaper than in the US, however the quality is usually much inferior. Although shirts of similar quality to the ones in the US can easily be found at boutiques, they are significantly more expensive. The same is true for many other day-to-day items. Also items considered basic in US homes may be specialty items in Uruguay, and priced as such. Read more

Easy Come Easy Go

Posted on March 18, 2007
Filed Under Economy, Cost of Living, Expat Tips | 4 Comments

When researching Uruguay most people immediately notice that the cost of living in Uruguay is significantly lower than that of the US. Interestingly, most people do not realize that this has not always been the case. For example, in 1998 the cost of living in Montevideo was only slightly lower than in the US and Punta del Este was actually more expensive than most places in North America. Read more

Uruguay Cost of Living Links

Posted on March 1, 2007
Filed Under Cost of Living, Expat Tips | Leave a Comment

Click here for the cost of living links of the UY Resources page.

Electricity

Posted on February 26, 2007
Filed Under Services, Cost of Living | Leave a Comment

You may not know about this, but Uruguay is a net importer of electricity. A large part of the country’s electricity comes from Argentina and a smaller part from Brazil. Perhaps because of this, electricity in Uruguay is not as cheap as it otherwise might be. Unlike the average American or European consumer whose expenditures with electricity are almost irrelevant when compared to the average wages; in Uruguay, a monthly electrical bill of 40-80 dollars may represent a significant percentage of the average family’s budget.

The electricity in Uruguay is provided by UTE, the state run power company. The way UTE bills its customers is complex and depends on many factors. Below is my attempt at deciphering the basic residential service plans. Read more