#250 – The Expat Files: Navigating Latin America, Privacy, and Financial Freedom

Automatically transcribed from the original recording; names and wording may contain errors.

[00:00] South of the border down Mexico way That's where I fell in love when the stars above came up to play and now as I wonder My thoughts ever straight Hi everybody I'm Johnny Mueller and you're listening to the expat files Living in Latin America the show that tells you what it's really like to live work play and or retire in Latin America I tell it just like it is so let's get started Okay, before we get into the real meat of the program today No offense to vegetarians out there be sure you make it over to the expat wisdom.com website So you can see exactly what's going on for my next expat wisdom insider seminar Which is coming up in June in Central America and of course it will be nowhere near the usual saturated

[00:51] Gringo spots since I'd never recommend those places to live as a permanent expat though They can be awful nice for a short vacation But remember to that their first world expensive and that's all I'll say about that Except to say that if you've been listening to this show for any length of time You'll know which Latin destinations I'm talking about and you know from time to time people ask me Johnny Why don't you do a seminar down in South America? Well, you know, I could do one It's let's say in Colombia or Peru easily But I know for a fact a lot of people just wouldn't be able to make it if for example We were going to Cartagena, Colombia or Lima, Peru You're looking at at least an 8 to 10 hour flight and that's the best case and you're still gonna have at least one connection Almost no US airline flies direct except from Miami So if you live near Miami, you might get lucky

[01:38] But if you live anywhere else in the states, you're just not gonna get a direct flight now I've looked around at connecting flights coming out of Chicago O'Hare field That airport has the largest number and volume of flights However, I just checked and the shortest flight from Chicago to Lima Peru is still not direct Do you have to stop in Miami and that's a 10-hour flight if everything goes smoothly which brings us to the second problem It's gonna cost at least fifteen hundred bucks to make the flight. You can go cheaper There are flights for around 1250 then you're looking at least three layovers and 16 hours from O'Hare field to Lima's International Airport not to mention Lima Peru is not a city I'd recommend for expats. So we'd be leaving there right away We would not be sticking around to do any part of the seminar there So in that case, we'd be wasting a hotel night there because the next morning we'd be on our way for another two or three hour

[02:29] Jaunt, but you know when you're coming to Central America for example from Chicago O'Hare to the airport in Guatemala City or for that matter to Panama City or Managua Nicaragua or San Pedro Sula Honduras or basically any of the major cities in Central America Well, you know right this second I just looked up the airfare and the lowest price right now is about five hundred dollars for any one of those Central American cities and Generally looking at a flight time of six hours or less even with a layover in Miami So right off the bat, you're looking at a thousand dollars savings Just on airfare alone if we do the seminar in Central America as opposed to South America So once again, let me repeat the dates Remember, it's June 23rd. That's a Sunday through June 28th. That's a Friday. That's six complete days

[03:17] Oh, and by the way, I have some emails from people asking me if there's any discounts and you know I'm big on discounts myself In fact that always reminds me of what expat Eddie says to his girlfriend when she wants to go on a shopping spree He says honey I don't care what you buy as long as it's on sale and it's not a real designer label Which is why like Eddie says she can go out shopping with a hundred bucks and come back with at least Ten very nice items of clothing, but I digress as usual. Anyway, we were on the topic of seminar discounts So in regards to that if you come as a couple or two people sharing one hotel room you get a huge $600 discount and that's more than enough to cover one person's airfare and you might wonder how I can do that Well, that's because the cost of the seminar includes complete hotel accommodation for seven nights in eight days

[04:09] So by signing up as a couple and therefore booking that couple into a hotel room, that's a double I can just pass that $600 savings right on to you So do consider that if you plan on signing up for the seminar Anyway, just go to my expat wisdom.com website and click on the seminar link at the top of the page And now I'd like to mention just one more thing if you're thinking that this Central American seminar is not for you because hey You're thinking about moving to South America someday And if that's your ultimate plan, then you might be thinking why should I go to a seminar in Central America? And of course, you know, there's a lot of South American countries on my a-list Anyway, if for example your future plans involve a move to Bolivia or Peru or Colombia Let's say then who could blame you if you were thinking that there's no value in coming down to a seminar in Central America

[04:58] Well, you'd be wrong. And here's why for one thing the window is closing on you wannabes up there There's gonna come a time and very shortly to when you're just gonna have a one hell of a time getting your ass and your Assets out of the country For example, like I said in my last show most foreign banks aren't even accepting US citizens as clients anymore They just don't want to have anything to do with the paperwork and the US Bank and Treasury and tax department rules and regulations Like that fat cola that goes into effect in 2014 that I mentioned and believe me at my upcoming seminar. I'll be hitting those topics hard So I repeat these days in order to even open a bank account as a US citizen You have to have a lawyer help you and of course We all want a trusted lawyer and you know as well as I that can be one of the harder things in the world to find

[05:46] Even up in the first world, which is why I make sure that the people that come down to my seminar are from day one hooked up With professionals like that who I know trust and recommend myself people I've known for a great many years that I know for sure are not only loyal But they're honest and better yet they charge third world prices Or you can come on down here yourself and fumble around like so many other green expats have done and I've seen that happen Countless times you see when new expats like that come down and realize they need a lawyer for a lot of things for example Residency driver's license bank accounts trusts and SA corporations Contracts and translating documents hooking you up with the right car and health insurance plans And of course, you'll need a lawyer to help you with the various steps involved in starting a business

[06:34] Not to mention having a good lawyer Who's your friend to a guy you can just sit down with over coffee if you need some good advice Well, I can tell you this green expats who come down here not knowing much having no contacts Really like for example me when I first came down 20 some years ago not knowing a lick of Spanish either So the question is what do you do when you really don't know the difference between a good Latin lawyer or a bad one? Most fresh green gringo expats have had virtually zero contact with a Latin lawyer Now the fact is the first thing you're gonna do when you're down here is rent an apartment or maybe buy a car So you'll be looking at some kind of contract or title paperwork in Spanish naturally Which you'll never be able to decipher unless you're some kind of Spanish whiz and I've been down here

[07:20] 20-something years and I still can't plow my way through some of that legal stuff So don't get your hopes up with that two years of high school Spanish under your belt and get this I even personally know some expats who came down here as very green tourists slash Explorers never bothering to look for a lawyer They just hung around for some months and toured and partied and had a great old time Then a few months later when things started to gel and they decided to stay down here as expats permanently They had that great one-of-a-kind business idea that hit him like a flash Which is something that happens to most expats once they're down here a while and in order to get rolling They needed a lawyer and fast and because they didn't know much Spanish They went into the local expat bar and asked the bartender to recommend a lawyer

[08:08] You wouldn't believe how often I've heard that story now Can you imagine finding a lawyer for yourself like that up in the states going to the nearest bar and asking a bartender? Or you ask the first friendly guy you meet sucking down a drink you ask him something like hey pal Can you recommend a lawyer? I need one cuz I'm starting a new business. You give me a name and I'll buy you a drink How's that and you know by the way when I do phone Consultations with people that's one of the first questions. They ask me. How can I find a good honest lawyer? They always want to know who I would recommend So needless to say for all you guys and gals who attend my seminar after that you won't need to stress yourself anymore about looking for legal representation and Another thing if you're just sitting around up in Grand Rapids or Cleveland

[08:55] Biting your time and thinking someday you'll be an expat in Latin America, but not just yet You're just gonna work a little longer up there and wait for things to get a little bit worse And that's when you'll make your move and of course You're confident that you know most of the tricks because you've been listening to my show all these years Well, I hate to rock the boat But that perfect set of conditions just ain't gonna come if you think you're gonna wake up some morning turn on your computer and see On Yahoo News in bold letters something like this Attention attention all you expat wannabes. Today's the day. It's time to leave for Latin America It's now or never because immigration and homeland security are slamming the door shut at midnight

[09:40] Well, I can assure you you're never gonna hear that announcement Till the day after they slam that door shut then I don't have to tell you that it'll be too late And if you feel like so many expat wannabes feel you'll want to get the hell out but it seems like such a scary prospect, especially if you've never been down to Latin America before or Just did the five-day four-night plastic package deal in Costa Rica or Cancun Which is all right for a quick getaway, but it's nothing like really having your boots on the ground Like I said so many expat wannabes have the will they're just frozen in their tracks at the edge of the pool Unable to make that plunge into the deep end and let me point out That's all the more reason that you should come down to my Latin seminar

[10:26] Then you see no matter what stage you are in the process of actually leaving You will walk out of that seminar with a very high confidence level and comfort factor Not only that you'll have an instant network of friends and professionals You can count on for advice for whatever comes up for you in the future and that in itself is hard to put a price On and one thing you have to keep in mind the seminars not just about living investing and doing business in Guatemala The seminar just happens to be located there and you see I picked Guatemala because it's a very low cost off the tourist trail Example of what it's like for expats to live retire and or do business in most any Latin American country Anyway, you'll find that their legal systems the business and the banking regulations are pretty much the same throughout all Latin countries

[11:13] Anything and everything that goes on in Central America can be directly applied to what happens down in South America with just a few Minor differences along the way, but like in the first world hooking up with people you can trust is always the hardest thing to do Especially when it comes to law and business advice So just know that my seminars not about living working playing investing or doing business in just Guatemala All what you see and learn will be applicable throughout Latin America even in the places I do not recommend like Panama and Costa Rica for example They do have the same basic business and legal rules and norms Except the gringo tourist invasion there has poured a lot more money into the government coffers So there the government is much bigger more bloated and much more dead set on taxing the hell out of the rich gringos who have

[12:00] Invaded their country. So what I'm saying is one of the most valuable things that my seminar offers is the connections You'll make so if your long term goal is to live someplace Let's say in South America, we'll be able to hook you up with some trusted professionals there, too So you'll be hanging with me and my team the whole time along with 24 like-minded expats and expat wannabes Plus all those expert locals I've talked about Meaning you'll have plenty of like-minded experts and expats to discuss your own strategies about leaving living working and retiring Down here in Latin America wherever you decide and I guarantee you'll never meet a mix of people like that at one of those big and personal Costa Rica Panama or Mexico seminars where you're stuck in a room with over a hundred people and power pointed to death

[12:47] So the bottom line is this when the time comes for you to make your own move down here in whatever Latin country you decide You need boots on the ground quality boots on the ground And I'm sorry that doesn't include hanging with backpackers on chicken buses and having a photo op at every pyramid in Mayan Ruined along the way. What I mean by quality boots on the ground is taking this seminar if you can swing it and Though this might sound like a shameless promotion Dozens of people who've taken my seminar have told me it's given them at least a two-year head start on the next guy So think of this seminar as your expat boot camp or even your own expat recon party You know designed to scout out the territory before you decide which place or which country is best for you

[13:33] And if you don't have a week to spare or you're worried about the money Just look at it this way if you're still sitting up in Cleveland in a year or two There's a very good chance you won't be able to get yourself or your money out of the country anymore And whether you know it or not There's a horrendous exit tax on the horizon and then the feds will nationalize your 401k and all private pension plans, too Those are really the final frontiers of liquid funds in America And if you don't think the feds have already got big plans to steal that well, you don't get out of the house much Then do you? Speaking of private American retirement accounts and pension plans Did you know that right now they have about 20 trillion dollars invested? That's the big jackpot for the Treasury and since the US government is 16 and a half trillion dollars in debt

[14:20] What does that look like to you? Yep, insiders say that soon enough in the next year or two They're gonna roll all of those into what they call guaranteed retirement accounts And then folks that's the end of your retirement life as you know it And by the way, have you checked the price of cat food lately? Don't worry. They say it tastes just like tuna or is it chicken? I wouldn't know because I live in Latin America and if you live down here, you'll never have to find out So what can you do right now? You've got to get your money out of the country now and in a safe place and you've got to do it anonymously Legally and under the radar and there's not a lot of time left. Believe me. So how do you do it? Well, you'll learn all about that stuff when you come down to the seminar

[15:06] I mean most of you guys up there do have a nest egg some big some small But there's no point leaving the country if you can't bring it down with you, right? And speaking of anonymity and under the radar kind of stuff Of course, you must realize that there are a lot of subjects and topics that I just can't bring up on the radio stuff That's way too sensitive having to do with finances and taxes and banking and well Let's just say there's a lot of little secrets out there that only long-term expats and their advisors know about and take advantage of so You can be sure you'll be hearing some really eye-popping information that'll keep you glued to your seats And that's a promise. So again go to expat wisdom calm and check out the seminar link and by the way I do get emails from people asking me if this will be my last seminar or am I gonna continue to put them on?

[15:54] Well, one thing's for sure I can't do these things forever and two you can bet that when my paradise is on the verge of getting on the radar or Gringo iced I'll just move on to the next paradise. There are thousands of them down here Now speaking about under the radar and anonymity and all that kind of stuff Which should be the bywords for every expat and want to be out there Well, first of all, I've got to say get the hell up Facebook And if you're gonna use Yahoo or hotmail or Gmail don't say anything You wouldn't want your government to know about because they're looking at it So just be nice friendly and upbeat and try not to say one of those 4200 words or phrases that'll get you tagged and put on a government feces list Forever and ever and the way to fight back is just to become anonymous Meaning you've got to make sure you have a very small internet footprint

[16:43] In fact, your goal should be to have no internet footprint at all Oh, you can have a big old footprint with any fake identity that you might conjure up You know give those jerks at Facebook or the government Misinformation any time you can hell they screw around enough with your life. Am I right? That's why I tell everyone to forget using Google no more no more Google at all use instead Start page comm which actually plugs you in to the Google search engine, but eliminates your IP address So Google in effect doesn't know who's doing the search and you don't get any lists and you don't get junk mail or spam Or any kind of unwanted crap in your email box or banners or any other kind of advertising crap Popping up on the right side of the page which you always get with every other service like Google Yahoo or Gmail

[17:31] And I recommend in a few months when it's ready Everyone should switch over to the start page comm email service Which is supposed to be even tighter and more secure than hush mail and by the way I just read that hush mail is now giving up names to the US government, too So file that away in your long-term memory now if you read hush mails terms of service They state that they will give up the names under certain circumstances So look out for that but start page will never do that because their servers are not on US soil So if you want to flip the US government and those alphabet agencies the bird use start page not Google And let me tell you something else if you ever read Gmail or hotmail or Yahoo's sign up terms and conditions You'll find out that you have absolutely no rights and that they basically own every word and phrase you ever put up on their site

[18:21] And they can sell it or use it in any way they see fit and I know we don't actually read those agreements We just click the box so we don't get the service, right? And I'm sure agreements like that are written by narcoleptics So you immediately fall asleep and never get to the big brother parts that'll really piss you off Which is why it's always a very good idea when you sign up for one of those free services to lie your ass off That is give them as much bad information as you can So in effect you'll be screwing with them as much as they're screwing with you and to prove just how much they've got you by The balls when you sign up for a free service like Google hotmail or Facebook Let me just read you a little part of their service agreement No It says here when you upload or otherwise submit content to Google or our affiliates and those we work with you give Google and those

[19:08] We work with a worldwide license to use host store reproduce modify create derivative works Such as those resulting from translations adaptations or other changes we make and you give Google the right to communicate publish publicly perform Publicly display and distribute such content as we see fit and get this it says this licensing permission Continues even if you stop using our services for example for a business listing you have added to Google Maps Now what you might not know is that Skype is exactly the same. Why do you think it's free? They're collecting all kinds of data on you and all the people you talk to so you better be careful what you say there, too And if you read their terms and agreements, it's exactly the same thing as Google whatever data and word bytes and chunks

[19:57] You've given them they own it For example, let me read this little snippet for you here in their user terms and agreements page actually It's about ten pages It says if you agree to Skype's terms and conditions Skype may view detailed information about the activity on your user account Including the time date duration and destination number of calls the calls themselves and the Skype Messenger service and the details of any purchases and downloads and since they've got agreements with the US government It's obvious that big-brother departments like the NSA are listening to which is why I'm recommending you use an alternative voice-over internet protocol called Mumble M-U-M-B-L-E It's exactly like Skype and it has text messaging and all that except it's completely

[20:43] Encrypted so only you and the person or persons you're talking to if you're in a conference call are actually linked in no one else Can get any of your information at all? Nor can they decipher anything you've been talking about and this Mumble M-U-M-B-L-E Is so fast with the encryption that there's absolutely no delay and you never know that it's happening And of course, it's free. All you got to do is search Mumble on Google. I'm kidding. That's a joke I mean start page, of course And by the way always make start page your home page when you click on your browser don't make it Google You'd be nuts to use Google or Yahoo or hotmail for anything But maybe giving out Christmas cookie recipes not for anything personal or confidential at all Unless of course you wanted to stick it to Google like they screw around with you

[21:33] But we won't talk about that right here though. We might talk about it at the seminar. How about that? Anyway, so what you have to do is you download the Mumble program. No problem there It's free and of course anyone you wish to talk to has to download that program too Which is also not a problem. However, the nerdy thing about it Is that it'll ask you in a little pop-up window what server you want to use So you and whoever you're talking with will need to have the same server, which is not a problem You just click on the word server and it'll give you a whole list of servers to choose from in a lot of different countries Or you can plug in your own server if you prefer. So the only trick is that you're on the same server No problem And then each of you pick a name and connect and believe me the mumble screens are very basic No colors. No pretty landscapes. Nothing like that because this system was designed by gaming nerds

[22:22] So when you pick a server off the list, you'll see a lot of weird gaming type names So basically it's the nerds to the rescue again We get to piggyback off their anonymous site and they don't care and it's got encrypted text messaging too So you can use that it's on the bottom of the box now. I personally have had dozens of Consultations with people over Skype from now on I really suggest we use mumble since many times We're talking about your personal issues and how you're gonna move your ass and your assets bottom line Everyone out there using Skype right now should start using mumble. That's MUM BLE Something your mother told you you should never do as a child. I remember alright Johnny don't mumble now I'm not saying you should never use Skype

[23:08] I mean, for example, if your sister wants to tell you her secret recipe for orange angel food cake Well, I don't think that'll get you on any government lists Well, I take that back if she happened to say the ingredients were non GMO all organic and natural Well, all bets are off and you've been tagged. Let's see now. That's reason 726 why you really should move to Latin America while you still can And by the way, speaking about how the US is cracking down on the US based wire transfers And in fact with that fat guy law being passed They want to tax the crap out of any wire transfers originating in the US to the tune of 30% and starting on January 1st 2014 not only will foreign banks report back to the states US holders of foreign bank accounts

[23:57] They'll hold back 30% if the bank doesn't have proof that it's after-tax money Now just imagine how money flows back and forth between businesses and individuals Take for example, someone gives you cash or writes you a check for a car that you've got for sale Now I ask you how do you know if that guy paid his taxes on that money before he gave it to you? Well, if it's cash, you'll certainly never know and if it's a check probably not either how do you know that his money in that bank the check is drawn on was ever taxed before it made it into the Account and that's a circle that gets ever more complicated And that of course is why governments would just love to do away with cash altogether Which brings me to bitcoins? Which I'm sure a lot of you have heard about already and some of you are already doing business with and to give you a very

[24:44] Quick overview of bitcoins whether you believe that they're gonna be the future of anonymous movements of money or not It's actually happening already right before your eyes and whether you believe it's a bubble or not it seems like people who trash the concept are deeply entrenched in the traditional investment world of Stocks and bonds and options and government paper Hmm, and I don't have to tell you that more and more people are jumping on the bandwagon In fact, I know a guy who just applied to become a Bitcoin dealer a buyer and seller of the coins And even after he'd sent all his data in it took some weeks to get approved and you know Why because there were 30,000 other people who were ahead of him in line to become dealers now for the uninitiated Bitcoins are one of the very very few ways to move your money around the world to any account you want

[25:33] Completely anonymously now there are only a few other ways to do that One is by moving around actual green cash or by moving gold silver or other precious metals or commodities But since you've got to transport the latter gold silver and commodities through airports and border crossings You could get stopped and your goods confiscated at any time But bitcoins fly around the world anonymously completely free from any government regulation or taxation or service charges think of PayPal which Charges up to 6% and banks and their wire transfer fees, and I don't have to tell you about credit cards So what's happening on the Bitcoin scene lately? Well, let me tell you this turns out that some hundreds of millions of dollars in euros were converted to anonymous

[26:19] Bitcoins on that turbulent little island of Cyprus that you've heard about lately and as you probably heard there was mostly Russian money in those banks now. I ask you is there something about bitcoins that we don't know Well, I'll tell you one thing in times of crisis You got to watch what the big money guys do and that little Cypress crisis was whipped up so fast that it was practically Impossible for any of those high rollers to get their money out of those banks and their hands on tangible assets like gold or silver So what they do they went for the bitcoins Which I don't have to tell you a hell of a lot of expats and expat wannabes are Investing in right now and not just for a profit though Some say as they catch on the sky's the limit But basically expats and expat wannabes are getting into bitcoins simply to get their money the hell out of the first world banking

[27:07] System sure, they're a bit freaked out by the fluctuations in the Bitcoin market recently But expats and wannabes tell me there's nothing in this world like the feeling of being totally anonymous with your finances Like expat Eddie says bitcoins are like having a cow that'll only let you milk it And if one day you're lazy ass drunken Uncle Sam snuck in the barn to steal your milk. He'd get kicked in a teeth South You've been listening to the expat files living in Latin America Coming to you each week from somewhere south of the border and don't forget you can email me on anything at all about Latin America The expat files at gmail.com. See you next time