Well it depends on where you are going to keep your money. If you keep it in the US you will be suject to US tax regime. I am not sure about the rates, but you can get information in http://www.receita.fazenda.gov.br/Principal/Ingles/Versao2/default.htm The "Imposto de Renda", which is the Withholding Income Tax, is applicable to net profits at the rate of about 20%, as far as I know. Again if you have an account abroad, you can circumvent that somewhat. Anyway with a net USD 1,000 monthly income you will do a nice living in a small town, taxes included. Of course, it depends on what you interpret as a "nice living". I refer to Brazilian standards: an apartment or house, a car, food, leisure and some travel. Greco P.S.: Also, the Brazilian counterpart of SEC can be found at: http://www.cvm.gov.br/ingl/indexing.asp E não se esqueça de aprender um pouco de português brasileiro. (And don't forget to learn some Brazilian Portuguese).
Hehehe, I believe the correct description would be ethnocentric. How do I wear rose colored glasses, when looking at the U.S. or South America? The initial post in question was a response to somebody asking what Latin American countries are stable. It is quite appropriate in such context to examine a region from an American viewpoint when that is what is asked for. If Bungrider had been from South Africa, the response would have been different. I would suggest that if my posts was on of the most bigoted statements you have ever seen, it is not me that needs to get out more. If you want me to bash a foreign country I have lived in, I could.
One idea is to open an account in Jersey. Many banks there are setup to handle exactly what you are looking for. They cater to expats who want to keep their money secure and avoid taxes when appropriate. HSBC and Barclays are the two big ones. You don't need a lot open the account at either.
mkmps, just out of curiousity, on what basis do you plan to emmigrate to Brazil? It's not just a matter of deciding you want to live there and that's that, there are requirements you need to satisfy. My brother married a Brazilian and his wife has family in Brasilia (the capital). I'll try and find out a little more. Trajan, thanks for clearing up the perspective of your assessment. I wasn't attacking you (that Rev Trader response was a little over the top). Unfortunately any discussion of South America must take into account the political turmoil that is seemingly everpresent in the region.
Brazil is a great country. I'm an American, but lived there for 2 years in several different places (Sete Lagoas, Manaus, Belem). You will not find a friendlier people anywhere.
These are other useful links: The American embassy in Brazil: http://www.embaixada-americana.org.br and the Brazilian Central Bank website: http://www.bacen.gov.br/default.asp?idioma=I&pagina=N Also, the Mormons send a lot of missionaries to Brazil and it will be easy to find referees among them. They use to keep two of them in my town and I used to talk to them sometimes. Greco
I never took your post as an attack. It is a very appropriate question and you did correct me where I made an inappropriate assertion. In fact, my initial list could have been stated better, if even at all, since it was off topic. Visiting Venezuala is not going to make me a Chavez supporter. It is a simple fact of global markets that money flows are directed in and out of countries by people who probably never visited them. It is also a fact that most South American countries have poor reputations. How nice the people are have nothing to do with it. An emerging market debt trader isn't going to say to himself, "Brazil may have just elected a marxist but I am going to buy some of their debt because Carnaval was a blast." I would also add that you shouldn't have to worry about being able to take care of yourself. That's the point, unfortunately, in too many countries, you have to. Perhaps, you have become inured to the situation. Back to Brazil, what is the crime situation like there? Are Rio and Sao Paulo the only places where it is a problem? I point out stuff like this: http://www.zonalatina.com/Zldata194.htm This is important for mkmps to know before leaving even though it may not be a problem where he ends up. The purpose of this thread should be to help him make decisions and be informed. If the problem isn't real, please explain why the perception exists and how it isn't accurate. BTW, American cities seen in movies are trashy because they are run by people with an ideaology not dissimilar to the left wingers in S.A.
Trajan: Well, perhaps I have indeed become inured to the situation. For instance, if I walk in the center of São Paulo I will avoid exposing myself to the risk of being robbed, such as pretending I am the money guy and walking in the evening in lonely places, or in the suburbs. Yet I think I am supposed to be equally careful if I am wandering in New York in the Central Park. About the left wingers in S.A. and North America I think there is a difference: S.A. left wingers are motivated by something other than an ideology. They are motivated by hunger and poverty. Greco
I believe Trajan has very valid points and has outlined the reasons why an American in a foreign country would want to literally "watch his back"...Many of these South American countries have deteriorated economically in the past several years...That is just a simple fact...Crime existed in these places even during the "boom" years, how much worse do you think it has become or WILL become in the coming years as a growing majority of the population becomes unemployed and impoverished???... From a common sense standpoint, a person who would like to join the growing ranks of a "perpetual traveller", I believe it would help, in all seriousness, if that person resembled the majority of the population...If one were to have a physical resemblance to others, then that would more than likely reduce the risks of confrontation... Also, its important to distinguish between one who is merely "vacationing" in some of these countries, and more than likely staying in high scale accomodations, and yet an entirely other set of concerns for one who is trying to assimilate into the culture...That person will need to speak either Spanish or Portugese and, if not, this could also be a mark on that person... I sure as heck would not want to be a gringo with no fluency with the language, blonde, blue eyed roaming around the streets of Rio at 3AM...