5 ms·

Living in Berlin is absurdly cheaper than leaving in San Francisco. Think small appartments for 500 euros a month.

by gomox 8y ago

stretchwithme 8y ago
Good to know. But.... https://www.thelocal.de/20170411/germany-has-second-biggest-tax-burden-worldwide-report-shows https://www.thelocal.de/20170411/germany-has-second-biggest-...
- xyzzyz 8y ago
  For most California engineers, moving to Germany with the same salary would effectively reduce their taxes. California taxes for high earners are very high, even by European standards.
  - stretchwithme 8y ago
    That could be true. A lower rate on double the salary could still mean a higher tax bill. And in California, the state income tax is an additional burden. Of course, it's the final take home pay that matters.
    - deleted 8y ago
      [deleted]
  - balabaster 8y ago
    Unfortunately for most United States citizens, there's a double taxation system. Which means that even if you're living and working in another country, you're still required to report your income and pay taxes in the United States which means that even if the tax bill is lower in the country you live in, you've still gotta pay the difference in taxes to the U.S... unless you're willing to give up your U.S. citizenship in favour of your country of residence, which is a long and arduous process in a lot of cases. Moving to Germany wouldn't be enough. You'd have to emigrate to Germany, become a German citizen and give up your U.S. passport in order to escape the U.S. tax system.
    - stretchwithme 8y ago
      The sweetest deal, at least for capital gains, seems to be in Puerto Rico. They're exempt from US federal taxes and there's no tax on capital gains there. Peter Schiff talked about it on Joe Rogan's podcast recently.
    - xyzzyz 8y ago
      That's correct, but you'd still escape the state income tax, which is really what would make a difference. I specifically said "for California engineers", since for engineers in Washington or Texas, the move would be most likely be detrimental from the tax perspective.

Living in Berlin is absurdly cheaper than leaving in San Francisco. Think small appartments for 500 euros a month.

by gomox 8y ago

Living in Berlin is absurdly cheaper than leaving in San Francisco. Think small appartments for 500 euros a month.

Good to know. But.... https://www.thelocal.de/20170411/germany-has-second-biggest-tax-burden-worldwide-report-shows https://www.thelocal.de/20170411/germany-has-second-biggest-...

xyzzyz 8y ago
For most California engineers, moving to Germany with the same salary would effectively reduce their taxes. California taxes for high earners are very high, even by European standards.
- stretchwithme 8y ago
  That could be true. A lower rate on double the salary could still mean a higher tax bill. And in California, the state income tax is an additional burden. Of course, it's the final take home pay that matters.
  - deleted 8y ago
    [deleted]
- balabaster 8y ago
  Unfortunately for most United States citizens, there's a double taxation system. Which means that even if you're living and working in another country, you're still required to report your income and pay taxes in the United States which means that even if the tax bill is lower in the country you live in, you've still gotta pay the difference in taxes to the U.S... unless you're willing to give up your U.S. citizenship in favour of your country of residence, which is a long and arduous process in a lot of cases. Moving to Germany wouldn't be enough. You'd have to emigrate to Germany, become a German citizen and give up your U.S. passport in order to escape the U.S. tax system.
  - stretchwithme 8y ago
    The sweetest deal, at least for capital gains, seems to be in Puerto Rico. They're exempt from US federal taxes and there's no tax on capital gains there. Peter Schiff talked about it on Joe Rogan's podcast recently.
  - xyzzyz 8y ago
    That's correct, but you'd still escape the state income tax, which is really what would make a difference. I specifically said "for California engineers", since for engineers in Washington or Texas, the move would be most likely be detrimental from the tax perspective.