this post was submitted on 29 Nov 2023
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Digital Nomads
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I’m a digital nomad making $240k for a US company.
They key is I just don’t tell them and I have to be willing to get caught and get fired. (I have a dedicated VPN at my moms house in the US and a travel router, plus a burner phone spoofing my location with an Authenticator app just in case- but I’ve only ever needed texts for 2FA)
Whats your job title? Can you give some background?
I went to dinner. Software engineer. 17 years experience
literally same bro🤣🤣🤣🤣
How do you use a burner to spoof your location? I am missing this piece
similar to this
What’s a travel router?
Using the GL inet routers? Any recommendations on what to use for the home server and the one you travel with?
Yes. Two GLs
I do the same thing. I just started a few months ago, do you mind if I DM you to ask a few questions?
What career do you have?
Curious do you tell your friends about your work remote? I understand keeping it mum with coworkers but other people
Of course.
I don’t have a LinkedIn and they don’t know who I work for.
What about timezones? You just keep staying in LATAM?
Yep. My max is +3 or -3 time zones from my US company’s. I don’t enjoy working late or early. I can’t work asynchronous
I bet he/she‘s ballin in South/Central America
I wonder how many jobs this guy has gone through as even in the most relaxed companies, those not having any problem with remote work after COVID, eventually making it back to the office becomes just too onerous. Granted my flight back from Asia might be longer than the next guy but even every few months I found I just didn't want to go. Skip a few, and then and soon you find youre not in the loop as much as you once were.
Idk I might have tried to make it work harder if I was a bit younger. And going conract leaves so much more flex in your personal schedule. In fact I conciser myself retired picking up work when I get bored.
I’m in Central America. 5 hour flight, multiple direct flights per day to choose from.
How do you deal with the tax fraud though. Willing to get fired is one thing, the tax fraud is the real kicker
I pay my US and after taxes after claiming the foreign earned income exclusion. I have a digital nomad visa that specifically excludes income. No tax fraud
It sounds like your tax home is in the U.S., which would mean you don’t qualify to claim FEIE.
I’m outside of the USA for 365 days. I qualify. Physical presence test.
I still pay taxes because I make over the limit.
How is it tax fraud? If you’re paying US federal/state taxes as if you’re in the US, I don’t think the IRS is going to come after you. In the country for which you’re staying in, sure they may not really like that you’re working on a tourist visa but for them to find out and pursue you for it I think is unlikely.
One part is definitely the host country. Some countries are stricter about it than others.
The other part is state laws usually. E.g your employer is in California where you used to live but you put your family address in Washington because you don’t have a physical address in CA anymore. CA can come after you for lying about your address to try to avoid taxation. Your visitor visas aren’t proof that you don’t live in California. You’ve just committed tax fraud.
The state thing is not a big deal if you move to another state and wrap up your relationship with the high tax state first. If you go abroad directly, then like you said it might be more difficult for you to prove that you moved to the low tax state.
I’m doing something similar and I have family in a zero income tax state which I lived in briefly before going abroad.
This is what I was considering on doing but still trying to figure out if those emergency plane rides back might ruin the value of this whole experience
How did you set up a dedicated VPN? I have a computer at home that I'd like to set up as a personal VPN.
There have been many guides on this. Check out the links in the side bar
Thank you for this!
Check out option 3 in the sub’s wiki
Thank you for this!