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August 12, 2008 at 12:00 am #191995dannyboyMember
Discount online brokers in Costa Rica
I am looking for some decent online brokers in Costa ‘Rica for online stock trading… Does anyone here have some online links or pricing information?
It would be appreciated if anyone coulod help me thank….
August 12, 2008 at 10:42 am #191996spriteMemberWhy can’t you use an American brokerage?
August 12, 2008 at 4:27 pm #191997grb1063MemberAmerican brokerages = IRS reporting.
August 12, 2008 at 5:45 pm #191998spriteMemberI really need to adjust my thinking. This had not even entered my mind and I make my living trading stocks here in the States. I guess I just assumed there were no Costa Rican brokers with reliable trading platforms available. I have more concerned with finding a good, reliable and fast internet connection.
On the other hand, is there not an income tax exclusion that might pertain if a US citizen living abroad meets the “physical presence” standards?August 12, 2008 at 6:47 pm #191999DavidCMurrayParticipantDoesn’t the “foreign earned income” exclusion apply only to income derived from actual work? I thought things like rents, dividends, capital gains, etc. were not included in what is excludable.
August 13, 2008 at 1:26 am #192000dannyboyMemberActually I am a Canadian, and Canadians do not have to pay tax to our goverment anymore as long as we are no longer resident of our home country… We are taxed on our country of residence and not on our nationality unlike americans which are the only country in the world who does that….
In Canada, we have to sever most of our ties with our home country. And this included online brokers and bank accounts. It would not make much sense for me to be a resident of Costa Rica yet still paying taxes to canada, seems to me to be a waste of money, I want to pay taxes if any to the country I am now a permement resident of, which would now Be Costa Rica.
If I open an account in America, I would be subject to a foreighn withholding tax of 30% if I am not mistaken, so I am looking then for a broker in my new resident country of Costa Rica for many resons including handyness etc.
Surely there must be brokers in Costa Rica, and if there is not, it might be a great buissness to open up then.
Thank to all that can reply.
Hope this makes sense to you all.
August 13, 2008 at 11:11 am #192001spriteMemberSevering ties with your home country, Canada, to avoid Canadian taxes while having residence in a foreign country means that you relinquish Canadian citizenship? There is some contradiction here or I am not reading this right…I understood that Canada does not tax its citizens while they have residence elsewhere so why sever ties with Canada? U.S. citizens can do the same thing for the same results, I believe.
The problem is to maintain citizenship with the country of birth while not paying taxes on earned income to that country if residing and earning that income overseas. I understand Americans are unique in being taxed no matter where they live. I am just unclear of what kind of income is taxed and at what rate. There are agreements between the U.S. and certain countries which further complicates the issue. Hell, it may be easier to just throw away the U.S. passport and get on with things.
August 13, 2008 at 11:40 am #192002*LotusMemberKeep in mind if you throw away the US passport and the IRS believes it’s to avoid paying taxes they can still go after you.
August 13, 2008 at 4:30 pm #192003spriteMemberI don’t think you mean exactly what you wrote. That does not sound legal or constitutional. As long as a U.S. citizen has no problems with his tax filings prior to renouncing citizenship, there would not be any legal instrument that could be used to prosecute him as foreign national for future tax evasion simply because he is no longer a tax paying U.S. national. Anyone and everyone who renounces citizenship and then continues his life working in a foreign land would be liable then.
August 13, 2008 at 6:18 pm #192004ImxploringParticipantNice idea Sprite…. but Uncle Sam see’s it differently! Check some of the articles over at “Escapeartist.Com”… you see that if our greedy uncle feels that your only reason for leaving was to avoid taxes (future included)… then he thinks he has the “right” to come after you! Remember… most of us have money put away in tax “deferred” accounts (IRA’s, 401k, 403b, And 457)… and he wants to be sure to get his share when you take it out! The idea of something being “legal” or “constitutional” has very little to do with the Uncle Sam treats his taxpayers these days! The government knows that those of us smart enough… or brave enough to think about leaving are most likely the same folks keeping the system afloat… so he has NO intention of letting us go without a fight! And I’m not talking about the millionares out there… I’m talking about you and I!
August 13, 2008 at 7:16 pm #192005spriteMemberWell then, let’s approach this in a practical manner then. What if I set up in CR with my little day trading business using a Costa Rican brokerage (if one exists)? Profits accrue into that CR brokerage account and Uncle Sam has no knowledge of this nor any way to find out if the account is under an S.A.
For that matter, how does the government investigate any stock trading which is done in this manner? Not that I would want to cheat my government out of a single penney, of course…;-}August 13, 2008 at 8:32 pm #192006DavidCMurrayParticipantSprite, I don’t mean to pick nits, but as you try to thrash through this matter, please consider that the terms “citizen”, “national” and “resident” mean very different things in international law. To use them interchangeably is to invite a misunderstanding. Sadly, this insight is based upon a late-1960s exposure to international law and today I can’t define the differences, but they do exist, and they’re important.
What’s more, the U.S. State Department will not simply allow you to renounce your citizenship. To cease being a U.S. citizen, you must legitimately become a citizen of someplace else and probably for legitimate reasons.
And even if you do succeed in ceasing to be a U.S. citizen, any income derived “in-country” from the United States, such as from business activity, tax-deferred savings, etc. remains taxable under the IRS Code. That has nothing to do with the recipient of the income.
And, finally, in this anticipated renunciation of your U.S. citizenship, do you plan also to renounce (say) your rights to a Social Security Old Age benefit?
August 13, 2008 at 10:16 pm #192007maravillaMemberAnd let’s not forget if you DO renounce your citizenship, you are still on the hook for income taxes for ten years after. The IRS is fully ensconced in Costa Rica. Don’t think for one minute they can’t find out who is and who is not a signatory to an SA. There is no anonymity anymore anywhere except a few exclusive places, and even then. . . didn’t they just bust a bunch of banks in Liechenstein which was the last bastion of banking secrecy? You can run, but you can’t hide, SA or not.
August 13, 2008 at 11:54 pm #192008ImxploringParticipantThe issue of collecting social security after dropping your US citizenship I believe is a non-issue…. because there are lots of folks that were NEVER US citizens collecting both in the US and in their home countries to which they’ve returned! Your past payments and benefit don’t cease because you choose to change your country. As to the IRS getting it’s fingers into CR… that’s true to some degree… but there’s plenty of ways to stay under the radar.
August 14, 2008 at 4:44 am #192009dannyboyMemberActually in Canada we do not have to give up our citizenship. All we have to do is to become a resident and have our home in another country. This means selling out home in Canada and closing bank accounts,etc. Then we are no longer liable to taxes to Canada as we are no longer a Canadian resident anymore. We get to keep our citizenship, as most countries unlike the USA, are taxed on there residency and not there citizenship.
all anyone else has to do is just become a resident somewere else and then they pay taxes to were they are a new resident if any if there are taxes there.This is why I would never want an american citizenship, or stay in the USA 4 MONTHS A YEAR OR MORE THREE YEARS IN A ROW. I would not want to sell my soul to the devil. American citizenship is maybe not what many think.
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