I noticed a lot of digital nomads have to take a pay cut or have money saved up. Is it even possible to be a US citizen and have a remote job with good pay? I say this because if I want to live in a foreign country for say 3-6 months and then return back the US I don’t want to be making only 30k a year.

  • Aol_awaymessage@alien.topBEnglish
    1·
    11 months ago

    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)

    • jb549353@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      11 months ago

      Using the GL inet routers? Any recommendations on what to use for the home server and the one you travel with?

    • asdfopu@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      11 months ago

      How do you deal with the tax fraud though. Willing to get fired is one thing, the tax fraud is the real kicker

      • Aol_awaymessage@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        11 months ago

        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

        • footnotefour@alien.topBEnglish
          1·
          11 months ago

          It sounds like your tax home is in the U.S., which would mean you don’t qualify to claim FEIE.

          • Aol_awaymessage@alien.topBEnglish
            1·
            11 months ago

            I’m outside of the USA for 365 days. I qualify. Physical presence test.

            I still pay taxes because I make over the limit.

      • E-POLICE@alien.topBEnglish
        1·
        11 months ago

        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.

        • asdfopu@alien.topBEnglish
          1·
          11 months ago

          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.

          • PF_throwaway26@alien.topBEnglish
            1·
            11 months ago

            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.

    • Zahmood@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      11 months ago

      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

    • ImBackBiatches@alien.topBEnglish
      1·
      11 months ago

      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.