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Ship or Carry?

Posted on July 11, 2007
Filed Under Transportation, Expat Tips, Immigration | 5 Comments

Sooner or later, anyone considering life abroad needs to tackle the question: do I ship my stuff of do I bring all-I-can-fit in my suitcases? In a previous article, I mentioned that my wife and I had recently been converted into the shipping group. However, when I reread the article today, it occurred to me that I should have discussed the pros and the cons of shipping as well. Read more

The Appliance Dilemma

Posted on July 7, 2007
Filed Under Transportation, Expat Tips, Immigration | 18 Comments

As most of you may already know, we are planning to move to Uruguay in the next couple of years. For some time now, the subject of whether to ship our household goods or have a large bonfire keeps coming up between my wife and me. My wife was more inclined to the bonfire approach (donation, really), while I have been more partial to the prune and ship approach.

After months of debate, we are now both firmly in the camp of bringing the stuff with us. And we have Urufish to thank for it. He helped settled the issue once and for all, by writing about the trans-hemisphere moving process and the costs associated with it. Read more

Usufruct and Inheritance

Posted on June 25, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Culture, Taxes | 13 Comments

In an earlier article, I discussed the inheritance problems that could arise if you own properties in Uruguay and you or your spouse were to die. I wrote that there were no good alternatives to the problem and that therefore it might represent a significant financial risk for some couples.

After talking to a few friends, Urufish stumbled on a way to mitigate the problem. I did some research on the subject and here’s what I discovered. Please keep in mind that I am not a lawyer and what follows should be used only as a starting point for further exploration. Read more

Tipping

Posted on June 22, 2007
Filed Under Food and Drink, Expat Tips, Culture | 8 Comments

If you are coming from the US where tipping has gotten completely out of hand, you will be glad to know that tipping inflation has not yet arrived in Uruguay.

When I arrived in the US in the early eighties, tipping was beginning its upward creep from 10%. In a few short years it grew to around 15% where it stayed for many years. Now 15% is the absolutely minimum allowable value, rounding up from there, often way up. People I know tip 20% on a regular basis and even more when in groups. 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

Traveling to Brazil

Posted on May 30, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Immigration | 12 Comments

If you move to Uruguay, sooner or later you will be tempted to travel to the big neighbors, Argentina and Brazil. If you come from Europe and North America, you’ll find going to Argentina easy and convenient. After all, Argentina is close and you won’t need a visa to enter as a tourist. Brazil however is quite another story. Depending on the country you come from, obtaining a tourist visa can be pricey and cumbersome.

If you have a passport from any country in South America, you don’t need a visa. For nationals from the Mercosur countries (plus a few other countries, like Chile) the national id (cédula de identidad) can be used instead of a passport. At the border entry point, you are issued a visa valid for a 90 day stay. Read more

You Can’t Take It With You

Posted on May 7, 2007
Filed Under Real Estate, Expat Tips, Taxes | 8 Comments

Yesterday I read a post from another blogger on inheritance laws in Uruguay and was motivated to research the subject a bit more to see how it might affect me. The information was a surprise to me, and I thought it would be a good idea to organize it so readers planning to move to Uruguay can take this into account. Read more

Uruguayan Spanish

Posted on May 5, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Vocabulary | 6 Comments

Uruguay is one of those countries where you’ll need to know Spanish to function and it will make your experience there much richer. Relatively few of the people you’ll interact with on a daily basis will know enough English to help you out. The good news is that if you learned Spanish in school you will be in fairly good shape, as Uruguayans will understand whatever flavor you happen to have learned, for the most part. Every Spanish speaking country has number of colloquialisms and local vocabulary that must be learned, but the number of new expressions is manageable. Read more

First Cédula

Posted on May 2, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Immigration | 2 Comments

In a previous post, I discussed the steps required to apply for permanent residency in Uruguay and in this post I’ll cover what it takes to apply for a Uruguayan Nation ID (cédula de identidad). The cédula will be needed for many things in Uruguay, such as placing your children in public school, opening checking accounts, getting a local driver’s license etc. Don’t worry, compared to the permanent residency process, getting your cédula will be child’s play. You will be able to apply for one right after your visa status change request has been accepted and you have a Certificado de Llegada or a document proving you are in Trámite. Please note that you can only apply for a Uruguayan ID after your Certificates of Good Conduct (police or FBI reports) have cleared. So if you request these certificates through the Uruguayan Interpol office instead of in your home country, you won’t be able to apply for a cédula for several months. Read more

Applying for Permanent Residency

Posted on April 29, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Immigration | 11 Comments

In a previous post, I discussed the steps that need to be taken before leaving for Uruguay in order to apply for permanent residency. In this installment I will cover what needs to be done after the arrival in Uruguay. In the next installment, I will discuss how to apply for a national ID (cédula).

After you arrive in Uruguay, keep in mind that you will be dealing with government officials that have an enthusiasm for bureaucracy and procedural matters. So take a deep breath and go along for the ride. Don’t try any shortcuts as it will probably only delay things. To the best of my knowledge, here’s what you need to do: Read more

Uruguayan Permanent Residency

Posted on April 28, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Immigration | 6 Comments

If you are considering residency in Uruguay and are frustrated by the lack of information available from the Uruguayan consulate, you are not alone. Most of the information on the web on this subject is vague, incomplete or contradictory. So it is not surprising that many Uruguayan expats recommend hiring an immigration consultant (gestor) to facilitate the process. This may be tempting because the process is rather complicated. But keep in mind that a gestor will cost you around 400 dollars per person and will NOT increase the likelihood of being accepted. Actually, it may delay the process because if you wait to assemble the required documents only AFTER the gestor tells you to, you’ll lose precious time, maybe several months. Either way, it is always a good idea to understand the process. And if you are like me, you will want to prepare the necessary papers and documents, well BEFORE heading to Uruguay. Read more

Uruguayan Citizenship

Posted on April 26, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Immigration | 24 Comments

The rules covering the rights to Uruguayan citizenship are spelled out in the country’s constitution. In order to make this information more accessible to people who don’t know Spanish well enough to read legalese, I am posting my informal translation of the relevant articles below. Keep in mind that I simplified the wording. But I kept the original meaning to the best of my ability. It is important to note that even though the Constitution is the law of the land, understandably, it does not spell out how it is carried out in practice. I will publish more details if and when I manage to get a hold of that information. Read more

Radio

Posted on April 24, 2007
Filed Under Expat Tips, Culture | 4 Comments

Learning a new language is tough. What nobody told me was that once I learned it I would need to keep using it in order to maintain fluency. I grew up speaking Portuguese as my only language until I was twenty-five. In spite of that, in less than five years living abroad my conversational abilities in my native language were already suffering. Granted, I was busy learning other languages and did not speak any Portuguese in my daily life. But still, I was quite annoyed to discover I had to struggle to find the mot juste in my own language. I had to face the fact that the “you only use ten percent of your brain” thing was a big, fat lie. Later in life, other languages, learned at great personal sacrifice, would also slowly shrink to “emergency-use-only” state after a period of disuse. I guess the lesson learned is: use it or lose it. Read more

Home Rental in Uruguay

Posted on April 20, 2007
Filed Under Real Estate, Expat Tips | 10 Comments

Unlike in North America, it is rare that a rental unit will belong to a corporation that owns a whole building. Almost always you’ll be renting from an individual owner. This means that the negotiation process will be more complex and emotional. After all, you may very well be renting somebody’s former home. And as many owners do not engage a property manager, you should not expect much support after you’ve rented. Of course, if there is a leak in the apartment, the owner or his inmobiliaria may (or may not) call someone to fix it right away and will pay for it, but if your light fixture broke or a bulb is missing you are on your own. Read more

Real Estate Vocabulary

Posted on April 19, 2007
Filed Under Real Estate, Expat Tips, Vocabulary | Leave a Comment

If you are looking for a home in Uruguay, keep in mind that a lot of the research or “shopping” can be done online. There are many real estate portals and real estate companies with very informative sites. The best of them however are in Spanish and are laden with Real Estate specific lingo. The purpose of this post is to provide a quick background, and a decoder ring for accessing this world. Read more

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