balla-house in thailand!

(x) i´m in!

It's the fact that they're in front of the mountains. Plus Victoria has much less rain than Vancouver. The only downside is living on an island.

Really, though, Canadian winters aren't much worse than living in Minnesota or Wisconsin.

It would be helpful if people would do some research on different countries and post the facts like I did on Costa Rica. Most of us are looking for a place to live for at least 3-5 years, if not more. Marrying a girl from Australia is not a realistic option for me. Nor is moving to a country where I will not really be living there legally and just hoping they don't get mad my visa has expired.

There is a huge thread on Buenos Aires in EDF, and from what I can tell it is a very realistic option. You have to leave the country every 6 months, but can turn right around and come back in, and you can do this indefinitely with no problem.

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/92...triate-935047/

That's a great thread. Unfortunately, I still don't see any great options outside of Central/South America. Right now Costa Rica and Buenos Aires are in a tie for me.

Costa Rica: cheaper and shorter flights to the US, nature, beaches, but no one great city to choose. Safe banking system where it is easy to establish residency
Buenos Aires: Great city, less hassle to live there for a long period of time. Not sure how easy or safe it would be to establish a bank account and get your money from poker site>bank>american bank.

Proof of residency required by stars is just any type of bill, correct?

In New Zealand I opened a bank account while I was still at a hostel. You can stay up to 6 months no visa from US, so that isn't a bad option for shorter term stays.

Anyone saying that living abroad 330/365 days a year exempts you from taxes on the first 90k is wrong. You still have to pay self-employment tax in order to get that exemption. It might save you a grand or two though.

You mean you have to pay 100% of SE tax, instead of 50%?

As a Canadian, occasional poker player (nevertheless one who has been playing since the early 90's), let me add some insights.

I assume you Americans do not wish to renounce your citizenship, but rather live and work (play poker) for a time in another country. You should research what would be required to maintain your US citizenship and benefits, and the requirements of same. For example, my aunt and uncle are what some marketers refer to as "snowbirds" - they have a residence in Florida that they live in during the winter. (My uncle runs his own business in Canada, but my aunt is retired.) To maintain their Canadian pensions, health care benefits, etc., they can only be out of the country for a certain number of consecutive days (something like 4-5 months). My uncle flies back often for business, but once during the winter my aunt flies back to Canada. *And never leaves the airport.* As long as her passport (and the computers at Customs, her airplane ticket receipts, etc.) show she entered the country, she is covered, and will not forfeit her Canadian "benefits".
There are also tax concerns that you should find out about. Will you have to file in the US even if you are only there one month of the year?

My recommendation would be to move here and rent a place, and get a phone in your name. Neither of these things require citizenship. Then get a bank account, or try to get one by applying online. I just tried with my bank, and it seems you can apply (no guarantee of success) even if you have only lived here briefly. (If you are <1 year at your current address in Canada, they ask for a prior address. The drop-down country/state menu was available for inputting a US answer.)
I would even call or e-mail the banks first, because you may be able to get an account as an American living in America. It is not unreasonable to assume that if one wishes to maintain a business presence in another country, one may wish to register their business and thus have a bank account in that country. I would call any bank's 800 number and find out.

Lastly, if you are playing online poker and declare this as income on your US return, does it matter where you live? In other words, even if you lived 6 months in "insert country here" and 6 months in the US, instead of trying to declare income in two countries, what would be the harm of declaring everything on your US return? In this line of work who's to say when your winning sessions occurred, and in what month the income was earned?
The "harm" would occur in the foreign country, however if you have not "established residence" in that country (as far as that country is concerned), then there is nothing to worry about. So, come to Canada for "X" months at a time, then go back home for a week/month visit, then back to Canada for "X" months, and so on. Canada will think you're visiting, and the US will not care (? - better find out). You only need foreign "residency" to get your money from PStars/FTP, which you can obtain with a bank account/apartment/phone bill as discussed.
It seems reasonable for the short term (1-2 years) if you really believe it is necessary to leave the US.
As for the weather, don't believe the stereotypes. Toronto/Montreal have similar weather as the large northeast cities (Boston, New York), and Vancouver is temperate. We don't have "hot" areas like SoCal/Arizona/etc. Other than that, no worries.

-Matt

Does Canada allow Americans to keep apartments full time even when they check out of the country when their tourist visa lapses?

Wouldn't bother with Australia. Australian men are complete douche clowns, the girls are alright but be prepared for drunk Aussie male douche clowns starting wars in bars and clubs every night simply because you're not a native.

Worth going there for a trip but definitely not worth living there.

Europe is a good bet and has everything. Don't bother with France, they're all dickheads and are governed by one of the biggest egos (yet smallest structures) in Europe. It's almost impossible to not hate the French when they have Sarkozy at the helm.

Netherlands would be fantastic. Great level of English in most places, cheap to live in, legal cannabis, hookers, good bars/clubs/raves etc. Hot girls, non-aggro nut guys, good vibe overall.

Stay well away from Eastern European countries that were once ruled by Russia. Russia came and took whatever was good in those countries. There's nothing worth moving for there.

Personally I'd go with Thailand though as everything is dirt cheap there and you can live a ****ing great life on little money.

no love for the Germans??

come over here guys. Berlin is awesome. If you need to help to set stuff up im right here.

omg the asses in brazil

Online poker is not even legal in Thailand so if a poker player is moving to another country trying to avoid legal problems I wouldn't really suggest Thailand.

Malta.

I'm from Norway and I've lived in Malta for a year now, best decision I've ever made. Igaming is huge here as probably half of the iGaming companies are based here on this small island. It might not be for everyone to live on a small island in the Mediterranean, but I love it.

are there girls in malta? doesnt sound like it if half the island is igaming

L o L, stereotype much?

I dunno much about the rest xcept I agree with the Holland review, but the eastern europe part is loltastic

You don't need a tourist visa to enter. Once here, renting an apartment has different requirements depending upon the landlord. I'm sure this is the same in the US. For example, if you're paying $1500 a month to rent a condo, I'm sure the landlord/rental company wants references, will do credit/employment checks, and you will have to fill out an application form. If you're renting from an individual, and renting a smaller/cheaper place, this might not be the case. They definitely won't ask for your birth certificate/passport, so there is no reason for them to know you aren't a citizen. The only issue might be writing them post-dated cheques, if you don't have a local bank account.

I don't think they will mind taking USD checks on a US account--though you might need to wait a few days for the check to clear.

Tourist visas are for 3 months, but you can take a $40 ferry to Uruguay for a daytrip.

There's a good mix of Maltese, Scandinavian, Finnish, British, German, Polish, Latvian and some French people here. The gender distribution is suprisingly good in iGaming.

Maltese girls are amazing imo, think Arabian princess without the veil and s***. They always do their very best to look good when they're outside. The Finnish girls are blowing my mind as well, but might be due to small sample size.

Search for "MALTA – Truly Mediterranean" on Facebook if you want some pics of the island.

BTW: English and Maltese are official languages, so everyone knows English.

Anybody here from Vancouver want to share good neighborhoods? I'd be going to flight school at Boundary Bay Airport.

edit: DUI years ago may be a problem entering canada

Yeah 'cause net emigration for years on end is a great sign of a great country, not to mention their citizen's being actively prevented from immigrating to a number of EU countries who supposedly signed up for the freedom of movement of labour when joining. Pah, no point in getting into an argument about it but I know a huge number of Eastern European's and not one of them speaks positively about their home country, only those still living there do.

Will be renting an apt in the sault st marie area...wont be there full time & would be more than happy to split it with someone or a few ppl. Drop me a pm if interested.
Seems like Canada will be easiest to relocate to right now, not just location wise.

uhhh... income taxes on 90k earned income are a lot more than "a grand or two"

Yea, you would score a lot higher but you would have to prove you have an income/job in Canada and it would still be a multi-year process, probably.