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Spend some time planning your Remote Year budget, ensuring you have the proper credit and debit / ATM cards for your travels and downloading finance apps that will be helpful to you on the road. Remote Year is not an expert in these areas and does not intend for this to be misconstrued as financial advice.
INTERNATIONAL BANKING
These credit and debit card options below are generally relevant for Remotes from the United States. Please see the "Remote Favorites" section for tips for other nationalities.INTERNATIONAL BANKING
Credit Cards
Have a credit card you plan to use while on Remote Year? Check that it will not charge you a foreign transaction fee. These fees can add up quickly! If you're in the market for a new credit card, check out some of the resources below.
Debit / ATM Cards
If possible, get an ATM card with a bank or institution that will reimburse those pesky ATM fees when you withdraw cash. Again, these fees can add up, especially considering that some of the countries on RY itineraries are very cash-centric.
Bring a back up credit card and debit / ATM card. From petty theft to accidentally leaving your card in the ATM to forgetting to close your tab at a bar—we've heard (and experienced!) it all. Remember to keep your backup cards separate from your main wallet during your travels!
REMOTE FAVORITES
REMOTE FAVORITES
FINANCE APPS
FINANCE APPS
It's best practice to download the necessary apps to your phone before you leave your home country, as sometimes your bank or financial institution will not allow you to connect / sync your account for the first time while abroad. We've listed the top three finance-related apps below, and make sure you have the app for your personal bank and / or credit card.
Recommended for all Remotes—easy way to transfer money between friends or pay your Remote Year bill.
Recommended for Remotes with US bank accounts—easy way to transfer money between friends.
Recommended for all Remotes—lists exchanges rates so you know the value of local currency.
TAXES
While we would love to think we're a "jack-of-all-trades" here at Remote Year, we are most definitely not tax professionals. We are unable to give tax advice and nothing below should be construed as tax advice or legal advice rendered by Remote Year or anyone employed by or associate with Remote Year. You alone are responsible for maintaining tax compliance while you travel with us. Many of our participants have reached out to a trusted tax professional for advice, and we suggest that you do the same if you feel that your tax obligations are unclear. Please note these resources are geared mostly towards U.S. citizens / resident aliens.TAXES
Worldwide Taxation of U.S. Persons
- As a basic rule, U.S. citizens and resident aliens, even those living outside the United States, are subject to U.S. tax and reporting on their worldwide income. You must annually report all of your income to the IRS, just as you did prior to living abroad, whether the income is from U.S. sources or foreign sources, and whether or not the income is taxed or reported in the foreign country.
Foreign Earned Income Exclusion
- Some US tax residents participating in Remote Year programs have been able to take advantage of the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (the "FEIE"). Lot's of factors go into determining whether the FEIE may be applicable in your case. Expat Tax Professionals and Online Taxman (two groups of tax professionals that some Remote Year participants have worked with in the past), were kind enough to write summaries of the FEIE. Expat Tax Professionals also wrote an FEIE Assessment Checklist. Again, Remote Year is not a tax professional and none of these documents should be considered the rendering of tax advice by Remote Year or anyone employed by or associated with Remote Year.
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