fototek1 Posted January 11, 2020 Posted January 11, 2020 My wife is a Filipino citizen with a US Green Card currently living with me in the US for the past 9 years. She is content to live in the US but does not like that we can not afford house help here. We do both have good jobs and money saved. She (We) also owns a business in the Philippines that is doing well. For a few years we have been talking about retiring (I am almost 50 she is almost 40) and spending time split between the 2 countries. She would spend 6-7 months in the Philippines and I would spend 5 months in the Philippines. She does not want to have to pay taxes in the US (as we currently do)on the business in the Philippines when we retire so she is considering giving up her Green card and applying for a US tourist visa. Things get very complicated from here as she would be giving up her right to Social Security in the US which would provide a nice chunk of money when I die before her. We did see that she could apply for citizenship after I die and be eligible to receive this. She does not want US citizenship because during the process she would have to give up the business in the Philippines. We are looking for a way around this as well which may be as simple as forming a corporation in the Philippines and/or the US and transferring the business to the corporation. What are your thoughts on this madness? I do not think I can live in the Philippines year round or else we would be all set to retire. It's expensive to keep a residence in the US and I am not sure if we will have enough business income from the Philippines to maintain residence in both countries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthdome Posted January 11, 2020 Posted January 11, 2020 7 hours ago, fototek1 said: What are your thoughts on this madness? I do not think I can live in the Philippines year round or else we would be all set to retire. It's expensive to keep a residence in the US and I am not sure if we will have enough business income from the Philippines to maintain residence in both countries. One option would be to own a condo which doesn't require any yard or other routine upkeep. Then while you are gone leave it minimally furnished and generate income from renting it out as an AirBnB. You would need someone to manage it for you. Of course whether this works for you depends on the location, location, location of the condo. Then you would have a furnished place to stay in the US for your visits back. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum Support Popular Post Mike J Posted January 11, 2020 Forum Support Popular Post Posted January 11, 2020 To want to move so you can have house help for six months a year seems like a poor reason for such major life and career choices. Just my opinion but I agree that it sounds like madness. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted January 11, 2020 Posted January 11, 2020 So you’re basically saying that you want to semi retire? Still work in the USA part of the year and the rest of the time in the Phils? Personally I wouldn’t give the green card or the rights that are associated with it. Getting tourist visa’s for Filipinos are problematic and, from what I understand, costly. If you want to limit your reportable income, I’d form a corporation and only take a nominal income from it. I’m no tax specialist, so you may also consider finding and consulting with a tax attorney / specialist in the USA who is familiar with foreign earned income. I presume you’re also already paying taxes to the BIR in the Philippines? As far as I know (from years ago when I was living in Germany) that tax is fully deductible in the USA for any excess over the foreign earned income threshold (not applicable to you as your not out of the USA long enough), but was for me at the time. And for the time when or if you (or your wife) fully retires in the Philippines: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/foreign-earned-income-exclusion 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevewool Posted January 11, 2020 Posted January 11, 2020 Does house help come with a room and food and just a minimum wage, if so I would be interested. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbmmbg Posted January 11, 2020 Posted January 11, 2020 (edited) Why not become an American citizen then just file to re-acquire her Filipino citizenship? Easy to do and it gives you the best of both worlds. Travel with a blue passport and owning things in the Philippines is legal. Edited January 11, 2020 by gbmmbg 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intrepid Posted January 12, 2020 Posted January 12, 2020 17 hours ago, fototek1 said: What are your thoughts on this madness? Hard decision but at least it's a good situation where you have income from both countries. I agree with others and would not want to give up the green card unless as last resort. Find a good CPA who knows the tax laws of both US and international. It will not be cheap but will be the best advise you can get to help make your decision. Good luck! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hk blues Posted January 12, 2020 Posted January 12, 2020 I wonder why having house help is so important that someone would be willing to give up so much and face so much hassle and probably stress? Unless there is some medical issue or the family home is massive I can't see it but... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary D Posted January 12, 2020 Posted January 12, 2020 54 minutes ago, hk blues said: I wonder why having house help is so important that someone would be willing to give up so much and face so much hassle and probably stress? Unless there is some medical issue or the family home is massive I can't see it but... It's all about status 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fototek1 Posted January 18, 2020 Author Posted January 18, 2020 On 1/12/2020 at 1:10 PM, hk blues said: I wonder why having house help is so important that someone would be willing to give up so much and face so much hassle and probably stress? Unless there is some medical issue or the family home is massive I can't see it but... My wife is from a wealthy family in Philippines and never had to do household tasks and enjoys life In the Philippines. Her family has been running her/our business in Philippines but had said she needs to come back and run next year. On the US side, I enjoy convenience of life here. I designed and built our home and have close family ties. Long story short is the life split between two countries is a compromise for financial, family and many other reasons. I really want her to take US citizenship but it's best to be fully informed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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