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Here’s how to do it https://www.ssa.gov/deposit/foreign.htm
Agreed, Victoria! The U.S. government is way too invasive. But, with global economies in such a dismal state, I believe other governments will “Americanize” their taxation policies and write their own F.A.C.T.A. laws. Saber es poder. (Knowledge is power). Pandora’s box has been opened.
Scott, since they have never lived or worked in the U.S., why do they maintain this dual citizenship? As a dual citizen they owe their allegiance to both countries and must obey the laws of both.
His religious beliefs don’t allow him to attend a Saturday event. With that in mind, the question should be why did President Obama nominate him and the U.S. Senate confirm the nomination?
[quote=”sweikert925″]…and of course no one knew about that until just now when you let the secret out.
Yes, the tobacco companies lied. But their lies were exposed well before the 1965 Surgeon General report came out. The AMA published articles from doctors warning against the dangers of smoking as far back as the 1920s. And that was before the governments of the world took much notice of public health dangers. My own grandfather died of throat cancer in the late 1930s – and his doctor was quite explicit in linking that with his lifelong pipe smoking. Are you under the impression that no doctors connected the dots between their lung, throat and mouth cancer patients and the smoking habits of those patients before 1965?
The idea that harmful GMOs would go undetected for decades with all the research going on now is laughable – and that is partly due to the very experience we had with tobacco companies that you refer to. No one will completely trust corporations to tell the truth about the safety of their products again. We have entire organizations – both public and private – that are dedicated to nothing else but testing the safety of the products that are sold to us. That wasn’t nearly as true in the 1940s and 1950s.
Could harmful food manipulation go undetected for that long these days? It’s possible – but VERY unlikely.
Why does everyone on the anti-GMO bandwagon simply assume that something really bad will result from genetic modification?
Have none of you recently popped a pill into your mouth? Did you think Lipitor grows on bushes, Celebrex is harvested from the Celebrex tree and that Phillips Milk of Magnesia comes from a special breed of cow? Every molecule of medication that people consume comes from tinkering in labs by scientists. Why do you assume Monsanto is any more careless with the research they do than the research conducted by Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, AstraZeneca, and Bristol-Myers Squibb?
[/quote]Short and sweet: tobacco companies and their scientists lied in the name of PROFITS. Many of us are highly suspicious that Monsanto, its ilk and their scientists (even our government officials, who are rewarded by their lobbyists)are doing the same regarding GMOs. If we’re playing a game of “Who Do You Trust”, many of us would rather be on the side of caution … where you, it appears, is in the running to be the poster boy for GMOs. As it used to be said, “different strokes for different folks” … LOL.
[quote=”sweikert925″]
Far be it from me to ascribe saintliness to agribusiness executives, but you and others who express concerns about GMOs seem to think that those scientists who work for companies like Monsanto have a specific goal to harm us. They don’t. (At least I don’t think they do. Do you?)…[/quote]We don’t have to look back too far in time to have an answer to your question: In 1954, Philip Morris announced that if the company had any thought or knowledge that in any way they were selling a product harmful to consumers, that they would stop business immediately. Senior scientists and executives at tobacco companies, however, knew about the potential cancer risk of smoking as early as the 1940s, and most accepted the fact that smoking caused cancer by the late 1950s.
[quote=”sweikert925″][quote=”Imxploring”]And yet you protest when a group of folks that were treated to all the facts, evidence, and information that was all subject to cross examination in open court found Zimmerman not guilty. [/quote]
I expressed [b][size=200]no protest of any kind [/size][/b] on the outcome of the Zimmerman trial. None. Nada. Zero. Zip. Please show us all where you think I did.I have never and will never second guess any jury, including the one that came up with the Zimmerman trial verdict. I’ve been on a jury and know how hard it is to come up with a unanimous verdict. So let me restate: No one should ever dare to pass any kind of judgment – either agreement or disagreement – with any jury’s decision unless they have heard all of the testimony and seen all the evidence that the jury did.[/quote]
Lucky for Alfred Dreyfus you weren’t around in his day.
Geesh, Sweik! You yourself posted (above) the link to http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/05/us/trayvon-martin-shooting-fast-facts/ and asked Victoria who was the bad guy … and in doing so was expressing your opinion regarding the jury’s verdict. It’s really peculiar that you, of all people (King of Expressing His Opinions), is telling Victoria she has no right to express hers. Is it because hers differ from yours? As long as she, or anyone … even you … are not shouting fire in a movie theatre we each have the RIGHT to express our opinions regarding anything and everything we choose to express our opinions on and that includes jury verdicts!
[quote=”CHERYLJK”]Seriously reconsider dropping Medicare. I realize if you can’t afford both, you are in a pickle. But a friend of mine who has lived in CR for close to 40 years was vacationing in the States when he had a heart attack. He had surgery and was confined to the hospital for a long time. You can bet your bippy he was glad he had Medicare coverage. If you never, ever plan on returning to the States (not even for a visit), I can understand you wanting to drop coverage. I don’t know about enrolling for Obamacare when you are eligible for Medicare. I know for my husband and me coverage will be quite affordable once he leaves his job and we no longer have medical coverage. For 2 of the plans it will cost nothing, and for one other it will cost $29/month. It will be a while before we will be covered under caja, and although we will be living in CR by the end of this year, I will sign us up for Obamacare in the event we need it upon returning to the States.[/quote]
I agree, under the ideal situation he should cover himself with Part B and Part D Medicare coverage (and get the best bang for his buck by purchasing a Medicare Advantage Plan … soup to nuts for $104/mo) but, since he won’t be able to afford both Medicare Part B and Caja, he still has the peace of mind that in the event he became seriously ill while visiting the States, he still is covered (free of monthly premium) for Medicare Part A which does cover a large chunk of the costs of hospital care. http://www.medicare.gov/what-medicare-covers/part-a/what-part-a-covers.html
[quote=”Snodad101″][quote=”pixframe”]Question. When you return to Costa Rica do you intend to terminate your Medicare Part B and supplemental insurance?And, if so, in the event of some unforeseen event causing you to, once again, re-relocate to the USA, what kind of Medicare penalties are there related to re-entering the plan?
[/quote]I do intend to terminate the medicare simply because , in my situation, I will not be able to afford both. As far as a penalty, i am not sure although i did decline in in Feb when I was in CR, and it will be reinstated as of OCT.1 There is no penalty involved for this particular example. Overall, I am not sure.:?:[/quote]
I just checked with Medicare’s site. There is a penalty. “If you don’t sign up for Part B when you’re first eligible OR IF YOU DROP PART B AND THEN GET IT LATER, you may have to pay a late enrollment penalty for as long as you have Medicare. Your monthly premium for Part B may go up 10% for each full 12-month period that you could have had Part B, but didn’t sign up for it.” There are also penalties on Part D too.
http://www.medicare.gov/your-medicare-costs/part-b-costs/penalty/part-b-late-enrollment-penalty.html
[quote=”sweikert925″]You two are woefully ignorant of your own country’s history. The revolution was not about taxation, but about the lack of representation in parliament for American colonists. The [url=http://www.ushistory.org/us/9b.asp]taxes paid by American colonists was inn fact signficantly lower than that paid by British citizens in Britain[/url].[/quote]
Attempting to change the topic? Nice try, Steve, but it didn’t work. The issue that sparked this conversation was your incessant complaining about others complaining. The Boston Tea Party was brought up as an example of people “complaining”. We weren’t discussing taxation or representation. If you want to discuss that, please start a new thread.
[quote=”sweikert925″]The incident that became known as the Boston Tea party was a futile (and illegal) act. The tea that was destroyed was owned by private merchants so the victims of the crime weren’t even the British government. The loss of that tea didn’t change anything at all between the colonists and the king back in London. I wish I didn’t have to re-educate you on American history but someone has to when you get it wrong.
To put your understanding of the Boston Tea Party into modern perspective, it would be as if some yahoos dressed up in costumes came and stole those assets you had to pay that transaction fee on because they objected to the fee being imposed. You would approve of that? Seems rather odd to me.
Whenever I use an ATM that isn’t owned by my bank, I get charged a transaction fee too – something I hate and which seems unjust to me. But I don ‘t post whiney comments on message boards about it because – wait for it – it wouldn’t do a damn bit of good.
If your constant complaining actually changed anything then you might have a point – but it doesn’t, so you don’t.[/quote]
Having just read your post, I find myself sitting here in absolute amazement!
The Boston Tea Party was the first significant act of DEFIANCE by American colonists and is a DEFINING event in American history. The implication and impact of the Boston Tea Party were enormous ultimately leading to the start of the American Revolution.
“The Dye is cast: The People have passed the River and cut away the Bridge: last Night Three Cargoes of Tea, were emptied into the Harbour. This is the grandest, Event, which has ever yet happened Since, the Controversy, with Britain, opened!” ~ John Adams to James Warren, December 17, 1773
Haven’t you ever heard of the concept of cause and effect?
Positive changes don’t come from the goodness of our legislator’s hearts. They come slowly with the first event (the cause)being the years of people talking, grumbling, and “complaining” amongst themselves about the injustice (which is what ultimately leads to formalized groups that advocate for change through the political system and sometimes, such as with the Boston Tea Party, outside of the existing system and revolt).
[quote=”sweikert925″]
… just got tired of people who do nothing here but complain, complain, complain – and what’s worse, keep complaining about the same damn things over and over. (Sound familiar?)
[/quote]Maybe someone ought to follow his own words “Live and let live. And if you cant do that, at least stop complaining about it” … lol.
[quote=”Snodad101″][quote=”costaricafinca”]Snodad, just don’t depend/presume that your CAJA premium will be ‘$55 a month’ because if it is $1855, as you mention, unfortunately, it could be double…:cry: [/quote]
My girlfriend went to the local caja, gave them the info they needed to calculate, and they (the caja)came up with that figure. Even if it is double, it is still way cheaper than my Medicare premium of $104/month plus my supplemental. :)[/quote]
That same $104 Medicare premium can also buy you a Medicare Advantage Plan. With it there’s no need for a supplemental insurance plan or a prescription drug plan since the Medicare Advantage plan is all inclusive (although it usually involves co-pays and remaining within network).
Question. When you return to Costa Rica do you intend to terminate your Medicare Part B and supplemental insurance?And, if so, in the event of some unforeseen event causing you to, once again, re-relocate to the USA, what kind of Medicare penalties are there related to re-entering the plan?
[quote=”davidd”]Guess who wants expats’ Social Security numbers
By the A.M. Costa Rica staffThe U.S. State Department will seek Social Security numbers from Americans who renew a passport. This is a rule that went into effect last week.
American Citizens Abroad, an expat advocate group, said that while not discussed in the regulations, it seems clear that with this information the tax people, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, can check to see whether tax returns are being filed.
“These rules do not provide that a passport will not be issued or will somehow be invalidated or ‘frozen’ if forms/returns are not filed,” said the association. “This subject is, in a fashion, addressed in other proposed legislation that would, in effect, freeze or cancel a passport where the individual did not pay a sizable tax liability.”
Congress is considering a bill that would prevent individuals with tax liabilities from leaving the United States. Already forbidden to leave are those who are in arrears with large child support payments.
The new regulation also asked those seeking passports to provide a permanent address and a valid mailing address, either U.S. or foreign, said the association. The rules apply if the passport is sought in the United States or at State Department consular services overseas.
Some Latin American countries require proof that a citizen or resident is current with income taxes in order to leave the country.[/quote]
Yup! “Section 6039E of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 6039E) requires you to provide your Social Security Number (SSN), if you have one, when you apply for a U.S. passport or renewal of a U.S. passport. If you have not been issued a SSN, enter zeros in box #5 of the passport application form you are completing. Contact the Social Security Administration to request a Number. If you are residing abroad, you must also provide the name of the foreign country in which you are residing. The U.S. Department of State must provide your SSN and foreign residence information to the Department of Treasury. If you fail to provide the information, you are subject to a $500 penalty enforced by the IRS. All questions on this matter should be directed to the nearest IRS office.”
Here’s a copy of the new application http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/212239.pdf
