1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,440 Speaker 1: Welcome to How to Money. I'm Joel and today we're 2 00:00:03,440 --> 00:00:26,920 Speaker 1: talking moving to Puerto Rico to acts taxes with Rachel Ferris. Yeah, 3 00:00:26,920 --> 00:00:29,360 Speaker 1: that's right. Some families have lived on the same plot 4 00:00:29,360 --> 00:00:32,600 Speaker 1: of land for generations. There's something intriguing about that to me. 5 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:35,680 Speaker 1: But the United States also has a history of moving 6 00:00:35,760 --> 00:00:39,720 Speaker 1: towards opportunity, the settling of the West, the gold Russian California, 7 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:43,400 Speaker 1: returning veterans moving at higher rates. In the aftermath of 8 00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:46,760 Speaker 1: World War Two, and recently just COVID we saw an 9 00:00:46,840 --> 00:00:50,080 Speaker 1: uptick in people reconsidering their living situation. Hey, do I 10 00:00:50,200 --> 00:00:52,879 Speaker 1: like kind of where I'm living in the accommodations that 11 00:00:52,880 --> 00:00:54,640 Speaker 1: I'm in. Do I want to be in the middle 12 00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:57,600 Speaker 1: of a big city. But what if the next great 13 00:00:57,600 --> 00:01:01,000 Speaker 1: place to move to is an island in the Caribbean Sea, 14 00:01:01,120 --> 00:01:04,479 Speaker 1: not just because it's beautiful, but because it offers certain 15 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:08,640 Speaker 1: tax perks that are unavailable anywhere else. It's not for everyone, 16 00:01:08,800 --> 00:01:10,920 Speaker 1: but I'm also kind of fascinated by the prospect. So 17 00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:14,280 Speaker 1: I've invited Rachel Ferris on the show. She's a CPA. 18 00:01:14,360 --> 00:01:18,040 Speaker 1: She's a tax strategist who helps individuals and business owners 19 00:01:18,360 --> 00:01:21,240 Speaker 1: think through the details of uprooting from the mainland to 20 00:01:21,280 --> 00:01:25,640 Speaker 1: settle in Puerto Rico, largely because of the massive tax 21 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:28,880 Speaker 1: savings that can be had. So, Rachel, I'm excited to 22 00:01:29,080 --> 00:01:30,920 Speaker 1: discuss this with you today. Thank you for joining me. 23 00:01:31,040 --> 00:01:33,160 Speaker 2: Awesome, thank you for having me. I'm super excited. 24 00:01:33,600 --> 00:01:35,560 Speaker 1: So first question I ask everybody who comes on the 25 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:37,640 Speaker 1: show is what do you like to sport? John, what's 26 00:01:37,640 --> 00:01:40,640 Speaker 1: your craft beer equivalent? Matt and I will buy expensive 27 00:01:40,640 --> 00:01:43,160 Speaker 1: beers and some people think it's ridiculous to spend twenty 28 00:01:43,160 --> 00:01:45,240 Speaker 1: five bucks on like a bottle of beer, But I'm like, no, 29 00:01:45,440 --> 00:01:47,400 Speaker 1: it's worth it. What's have for you? 30 00:01:47,800 --> 00:01:49,720 Speaker 2: I'm going to hop on the alcohol train here and 31 00:01:49,720 --> 00:01:53,600 Speaker 2: I'm gonna say nice cocktails. I love going to a 32 00:01:53,680 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 2: fancy bar in a new city and trying four to 33 00:01:56,560 --> 00:01:59,279 Speaker 2: five cocktails on that list and sharing it with whoever 34 00:01:59,280 --> 00:02:01,760 Speaker 2: i'm with that to night. It might be ridiculous to 35 00:02:01,800 --> 00:02:04,720 Speaker 2: spend twenty to thirty dollars on a cocktail, but for 36 00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:06,480 Speaker 2: something for me, I think it's worth it. 37 00:02:06,640 --> 00:02:10,120 Speaker 1: Okay, thirty bucks on one cocktail. Ex Tell me what 38 00:02:10,680 --> 00:02:12,400 Speaker 1: are these bars where they get that expensive? Because I 39 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:13,720 Speaker 1: know they've gone up in price. It used to be 40 00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:15,880 Speaker 1: like ten or twelve bucks was reasonable, And now I 41 00:02:15,919 --> 00:02:18,440 Speaker 1: swear at a good cocktail bar, you're dropping fifteen to 42 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:20,280 Speaker 1: twenty on a great one. Yeah, well, I mean thirty. 43 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:22,160 Speaker 2: I know it gets expensive. I was just in New 44 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:24,320 Speaker 2: York the other weekend and I went out to this 45 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:26,760 Speaker 2: bar called Double Chicken Please, and I think most of 46 00:02:26,760 --> 00:02:29,360 Speaker 2: the cocktails were at least in the mid twenties, and 47 00:02:29,440 --> 00:02:32,000 Speaker 2: after tip beer spending upwards of thirty dollars on every 48 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:34,960 Speaker 2: single drink, So it's expensive but delicious. They had a 49 00:02:35,040 --> 00:02:38,520 Speaker 2: key lime pie cocktail that tasted exactly like a key 50 00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:42,080 Speaker 2: Lion pie. They had a Japanese cold soba noodle one 51 00:02:42,120 --> 00:02:45,840 Speaker 2: that tasted exactly like the Japanese called soaba noodles. It 52 00:02:45,880 --> 00:02:48,480 Speaker 2: was a very interesting take, and I was it was 53 00:02:48,520 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 2: worth it for me in every aspect of it. 54 00:02:50,639 --> 00:02:52,840 Speaker 1: That sounds, I mean similar to kind of what's happened 55 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:55,799 Speaker 1: in the craft beer scene, where you've got like all 56 00:02:55,840 --> 00:02:58,600 Speaker 1: these really interesting takes on beer where they're not even 57 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:01,239 Speaker 1: trying to taste like beer anymore, right, pickle flavored beers 58 00:03:01,240 --> 00:03:03,960 Speaker 1: and stuff like that. I guess cocktails are going in 59 00:03:04,000 --> 00:03:06,960 Speaker 1: that same direction, which is fascinating. Let's talk about Puerto Rico, 60 00:03:07,320 --> 00:03:10,560 Speaker 1: and I want to start out the outset to say 61 00:03:11,040 --> 00:03:14,000 Speaker 1: that this peaked my curiosity, even though I don't think 62 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:16,079 Speaker 1: I'm planning on moving to Puerto Rico anytime soon, and 63 00:03:16,120 --> 00:03:18,240 Speaker 1: I think there's probably a large chunk of listeners who 64 00:03:18,280 --> 00:03:21,959 Speaker 1: it doesn't make sense for, But still I think it's 65 00:03:22,000 --> 00:03:26,120 Speaker 1: just fascinating discussion and worth covering. And I've been hearing 66 00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:30,080 Speaker 1: more buzz about Puerto Rico as a tax haven. What 67 00:03:30,440 --> 00:03:33,359 Speaker 1: is with the growing the burgeoning interest in Puerto Rico 68 00:03:33,400 --> 00:03:35,280 Speaker 1: as a place to live and as a place to 69 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:38,720 Speaker 1: potentially avoid taxes that the people might otherwise pay. 70 00:03:38,960 --> 00:03:41,280 Speaker 2: Yeah, one hundred percent. Well, I think the growing recent 71 00:03:41,920 --> 00:03:44,640 Speaker 2: interest recently has really been surrounded by the fact that 72 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:46,800 Speaker 2: there's a lot of market volatility and there's a lot 73 00:03:46,800 --> 00:03:49,440 Speaker 2: of political instability, and so when you have things in 74 00:03:49,480 --> 00:03:52,400 Speaker 2: government happening like these tariffs, or you're not sure what 75 00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:54,240 Speaker 2: your profile is actually going to look like a couple 76 00:03:54,280 --> 00:03:56,240 Speaker 2: months down the road. A lot of people are now 77 00:03:56,280 --> 00:03:59,880 Speaker 2: considering tax planning as an aspect of financial planning. So 78 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:02,680 Speaker 2: these benefits have been around since twenty twelve. With the 79 00:04:02,720 --> 00:04:06,320 Speaker 2: original X twenty and AC twenty two, they really started 80 00:04:06,360 --> 00:04:09,920 Speaker 2: again in around twenty nineteen where they revamped that law 81 00:04:10,040 --> 00:04:12,280 Speaker 2: and it created AC sixty, and so Act sixty is 82 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:14,400 Speaker 2: what we currently have, where we have a zero percent 83 00:04:14,440 --> 00:04:17,520 Speaker 2: tax on capital gains, interest, and dividends and then a 84 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:19,920 Speaker 2: four percent corporate income tax. There's a lot of other 85 00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:22,599 Speaker 2: incentives that come along with it. But in the past 86 00:04:22,680 --> 00:04:24,840 Speaker 2: few years, we've been seeing more people getting upset with 87 00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:28,159 Speaker 2: the rising tax rates and just discontent about living in 88 00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:30,000 Speaker 2: the US and not knowing what things are going to 89 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:32,200 Speaker 2: look like for them a year from now, and so 90 00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:34,800 Speaker 2: they like signing contract with the government and being able 91 00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:36,240 Speaker 2: to be like, hey, that's what it's going to be 92 00:04:36,279 --> 00:04:37,200 Speaker 2: for the next ten years. 93 00:04:37,360 --> 00:04:40,160 Speaker 1: You said rising tax rates. But interestingly enough, like tax 94 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:42,880 Speaker 1: cuts and Job Act and then the one big beautiful 95 00:04:42,880 --> 00:04:46,160 Speaker 1: bill kind of cements lower tax rates for a decent 96 00:04:46,320 --> 00:04:49,640 Speaker 1: chunk of people. So when you say rising tax rates, 97 00:04:49,640 --> 00:04:50,719 Speaker 1: so what are you referring to? 98 00:04:51,160 --> 00:04:53,000 Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm referring to a lot of things with tariffs 99 00:04:53,040 --> 00:04:54,920 Speaker 2: as well. A lot of people that do move down 100 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:58,279 Speaker 2: for the business side of things are manufacturers, and they're 101 00:04:58,320 --> 00:05:01,240 Speaker 2: worried about retaliation tariffs on the back end of things. 102 00:05:01,480 --> 00:05:03,800 Speaker 2: A lot of people, especially in high tax states, like 103 00:05:04,000 --> 00:05:07,000 Speaker 2: New York and California. It's not necessarily just federal. They're 104 00:05:07,040 --> 00:05:09,760 Speaker 2: worried when they see the debts growing in their actual state. 105 00:05:09,839 --> 00:05:13,240 Speaker 2: Right so you're looking at California that essentially their only 106 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:16,080 Speaker 2: solution is to take out more money from the taxpayer's 107 00:05:16,120 --> 00:05:17,839 Speaker 2: hands to really be able to pay off that debt. 108 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:20,119 Speaker 2: They're looking at the future and not just right now, 109 00:05:20,320 --> 00:05:22,919 Speaker 2: but five, ten, fifteen years from now. What is that 110 00:05:23,000 --> 00:05:25,440 Speaker 2: going to look like? And how can I basically secure 111 00:05:25,520 --> 00:05:28,839 Speaker 2: my own kind of tax Yes, haven right now to 112 00:05:28,880 --> 00:05:30,880 Speaker 2: make sure that we're doing things correctly in the long run. 113 00:05:31,080 --> 00:05:32,840 Speaker 1: And we're talking about those high tax states. We're talking 114 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:36,080 Speaker 1: about double digit state tax rates for the highest earners 115 00:05:36,120 --> 00:05:38,520 Speaker 1: in some of those super high tax states. So in 116 00:05:38,520 --> 00:05:42,880 Speaker 1: addition to potentially the owing at the highest end of 117 00:05:42,880 --> 00:05:46,200 Speaker 1: the federal federal tax bracket, that could be a substantial 118 00:05:46,200 --> 00:05:47,800 Speaker 1: tax buil that a lot of those people are looking 119 00:05:47,839 --> 00:05:48,240 Speaker 1: to avoid. 120 00:05:48,440 --> 00:05:50,720 Speaker 2: Yeah, a hundred percent. I mean in California, if you 121 00:05:50,839 --> 00:05:52,720 Speaker 2: are in the highest tax rate, you're probably paying over 122 00:05:52,800 --> 00:05:55,520 Speaker 2: fifty percent of your income every single year in taxes. 123 00:05:55,600 --> 00:05:58,039 Speaker 2: And so when you can really talk about, hey, I 124 00:05:58,080 --> 00:06:00,440 Speaker 2: can cut that down to four percent across a board 125 00:06:00,440 --> 00:06:03,200 Speaker 2: for my business. It's almost non negotiable for people that 126 00:06:03,240 --> 00:06:05,240 Speaker 2: really want to get that competitive edge for a few 127 00:06:05,279 --> 00:06:08,200 Speaker 2: years or just gain financial freedom by moving down for 128 00:06:08,240 --> 00:06:10,600 Speaker 2: around three years and then moving back to the US 129 00:06:10,640 --> 00:06:13,200 Speaker 2: after that. It's really a strategy that I'm seeing people 130 00:06:13,240 --> 00:06:16,200 Speaker 2: take advantage of in the midterm. Not necessarily that they're 131 00:06:16,200 --> 00:06:18,039 Speaker 2: planning to stay there for the rest of their lives, 132 00:06:18,120 --> 00:06:19,760 Speaker 2: but they're using it for a few years. 133 00:06:19,960 --> 00:06:21,440 Speaker 1: I do want to talk about that in just a bit. 134 00:06:21,480 --> 00:06:24,360 Speaker 1: I kind of the potentially part time nature of it. Oh, 135 00:06:24,400 --> 00:06:26,000 Speaker 1: do it for a season and then maybe you could 136 00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:27,920 Speaker 1: save on taxes, then you can get back to your 137 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:30,880 Speaker 1: normal life in the US. I'm curious, so too, does 138 00:06:30,880 --> 00:06:32,919 Speaker 1: that mean you're not really getting calls from people in 139 00:06:32,960 --> 00:06:36,200 Speaker 1: states like Tennessee where there's not a state income tax 140 00:06:36,360 --> 00:06:38,640 Speaker 1: or are there still folks in those lower tax states 141 00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:39,600 Speaker 1: where it can make sense. 142 00:06:39,839 --> 00:06:41,840 Speaker 2: Oh, there's still folks in those lower tax states where 143 00:06:41,839 --> 00:06:43,800 Speaker 2: it makes sense. I mean, okay, I think again, it 144 00:06:43,839 --> 00:06:46,360 Speaker 2: depends on the actual income range that you're actually in 145 00:06:46,440 --> 00:06:49,159 Speaker 2: and what those savings actually matter to you, what you're 146 00:06:49,200 --> 00:06:51,560 Speaker 2: trying to actually save for, right, But I get most 147 00:06:51,600 --> 00:06:54,479 Speaker 2: people from actually zero percent tax states as well, or 148 00:06:54,480 --> 00:06:58,000 Speaker 2: really low income tax states. It's also a benefit because 149 00:06:58,040 --> 00:07:00,799 Speaker 2: you have the benefit of zero percent tax on capital gains, 150 00:07:00,800 --> 00:07:02,919 Speaker 2: interest and dividends. So even if you don't run a 151 00:07:02,920 --> 00:07:04,880 Speaker 2: business where you want to take advantage of that four 152 00:07:04,920 --> 00:07:07,960 Speaker 2: percent corporate income tax rate, there are plenty of benefits 153 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:09,960 Speaker 2: that kind of trickle down to you. And again, if 154 00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:11,880 Speaker 2: you're in a high tax bracket, you're still needing to 155 00:07:11,880 --> 00:07:14,320 Speaker 2: pay federal taxes even if your state doesn't tax you. 156 00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:16,240 Speaker 2: And so because of that, a lot of people see 157 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:17,320 Speaker 2: the benefit of moving. 158 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:20,360 Speaker 1: Down because capital gains tax rates are favorable compared to 159 00:07:20,760 --> 00:07:24,720 Speaker 1: many of the income tax brackets. But fifteen percent it's 160 00:07:24,760 --> 00:07:28,760 Speaker 1: not as good as zero percent, right, So I get that, 161 00:07:28,960 --> 00:07:31,160 Speaker 1: and I want to dive into some of those details 162 00:07:31,160 --> 00:07:32,960 Speaker 1: in just a little bit too. But I'm curious as well, 163 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:35,600 Speaker 1: like you worked for one of the big four accounting firms. 164 00:07:36,000 --> 00:07:38,800 Speaker 1: What got you into this niche because it is it's 165 00:07:38,880 --> 00:07:40,560 Speaker 1: very specific, like I'm going to help people move to 166 00:07:40,560 --> 00:07:43,240 Speaker 1: Puerto Rico to say on taxes, not just you know, 167 00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:46,320 Speaker 1: help people with their tax returns, or like what pushed 168 00:07:46,320 --> 00:07:47,640 Speaker 1: you in this direction specifically? 169 00:07:48,000 --> 00:07:50,560 Speaker 2: Yeah, I actually love getting this question. So I had 170 00:07:50,640 --> 00:07:53,440 Speaker 2: a very close family friend that relocated down to Puerto Rico. 171 00:07:53,560 --> 00:07:55,400 Speaker 2: They gave me a call a few years back and 172 00:07:55,400 --> 00:07:58,320 Speaker 2: we're like, hey, I've never heard of this. Is this legit? 173 00:07:58,600 --> 00:08:00,640 Speaker 2: Have you ever heard of it? And it had never 174 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:03,320 Speaker 2: even crossed my mind before that there are these options 175 00:08:03,320 --> 00:08:05,040 Speaker 2: out there. I was like, yeah, I can give it 176 00:08:05,080 --> 00:08:07,720 Speaker 2: a crack. I'll kind of review some documents, see if 177 00:08:07,720 --> 00:08:09,720 Speaker 2: this is legit. See how I'm able to help you out. 178 00:08:09,840 --> 00:08:11,200 Speaker 2: Just do it pro bono. 179 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:14,640 Speaker 1: Tax evation or it sounds like a scam on the surface, 180 00:08:14,680 --> 00:08:15,960 Speaker 1: right You're like, oh, I'm going to move to Puerto 181 00:08:16,040 --> 00:08:17,120 Speaker 1: Rico and never pay tax again. 182 00:08:17,200 --> 00:08:19,560 Speaker 2: Oh yeah, And I think that's a big misconception about it, 183 00:08:19,560 --> 00:08:22,200 Speaker 2: is that people don't understand why it really is allowed. 184 00:08:22,560 --> 00:08:24,120 Speaker 2: So I can kind of go into that right after this. 185 00:08:24,240 --> 00:08:26,680 Speaker 2: But essentially they moved down and they were like, wow, 186 00:08:26,800 --> 00:08:30,080 Speaker 2: you facilitated that process so cleanly for us. The stress 187 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:32,720 Speaker 2: of moving, because there was so little information out there, 188 00:08:33,040 --> 00:08:35,160 Speaker 2: was really hard to get and so they started referring 189 00:08:35,200 --> 00:08:37,120 Speaker 2: me off to their friends. Start a word of mouth. 190 00:08:37,320 --> 00:08:40,800 Speaker 2: I developed a lot of personal relationships with lawyers, CPA's 191 00:08:40,880 --> 00:08:43,760 Speaker 2: left managers on the island and also in the mainland US, 192 00:08:43,800 --> 00:08:46,120 Speaker 2: and my practice has kind of just grown from there. 193 00:08:46,160 --> 00:08:47,400 Speaker 2: It was very happenstance. 194 00:08:47,760 --> 00:08:51,000 Speaker 1: So what makes Puerto Rico special then, Like, yeah, why 195 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:54,760 Speaker 1: is it kind of this exception to the rule that 196 00:08:55,640 --> 00:08:58,800 Speaker 1: the taxman is going to get his cut? Why are 197 00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:01,760 Speaker 1: their unique taxtules for me Americans moving to Puerto Rico 198 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:02,400 Speaker 1: in the first place. 199 00:09:02,520 --> 00:09:04,280 Speaker 2: Yeah. So, if you've ever heard of the phrase no 200 00:09:04,400 --> 00:09:08,360 Speaker 2: taxation without representation, this is a perfect example of that. Right, So, 201 00:09:08,480 --> 00:09:10,880 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico is a US territory, and so they are 202 00:09:10,920 --> 00:09:13,240 Speaker 2: technically part of the US. You can keep your US 203 00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:16,760 Speaker 2: citizenship and you have a US passport. Still, the difference 204 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:19,760 Speaker 2: is is that they don't have voting representation in Congress 205 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:22,920 Speaker 2: or Senate or anywhere in Washington, DC, and so the 206 00:09:23,040 --> 00:09:26,920 Speaker 2: US federal government is not able to institute taxes on 207 00:09:27,120 --> 00:09:29,679 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico as its own. So they're able to develop 208 00:09:29,720 --> 00:09:32,240 Speaker 2: their own tax system and so because of that, they 209 00:09:32,280 --> 00:09:35,040 Speaker 2: don't have to comply with federal tax rules, and so 210 00:09:35,320 --> 00:09:39,079 Speaker 2: they've developed this unique concentive code basically to incentivize people 211 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:42,160 Speaker 2: to move down to help promote the Puerto Rican economy 212 00:09:42,160 --> 00:09:44,720 Speaker 2: and uplift it. As a lot of you probably know 213 00:09:45,040 --> 00:09:47,240 Speaker 2: there has been a lot of issues with you know, 214 00:09:47,320 --> 00:09:50,199 Speaker 2: economic development in Puerto Rico. You had Hurricane Maria hitting 215 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:52,720 Speaker 2: in twenty twelve. You have all these things that have 216 00:09:52,800 --> 00:09:55,680 Speaker 2: happened that have really not allowed Puerto Rico to grow 217 00:09:55,720 --> 00:09:58,360 Speaker 2: in that same area. And when they brought in these 218 00:09:58,480 --> 00:10:02,520 Speaker 2: tax twenty and twenty twenty two and Acts sixty, basically 219 00:10:02,679 --> 00:10:05,880 Speaker 2: it helped uplift everything. They brought more entrepreneurship, more capital 220 00:10:05,920 --> 00:10:08,199 Speaker 2: of the island, brought more jobs to the island, and 221 00:10:08,240 --> 00:10:10,520 Speaker 2: it's really helping them uplift it from the ground up. 222 00:10:10,600 --> 00:10:13,440 Speaker 2: So it's been a huge transformation that the island has seen, 223 00:10:13,480 --> 00:10:16,120 Speaker 2: and a lot of people are very very pro Acts 224 00:10:16,160 --> 00:10:18,679 Speaker 2: sixty people coming down because of the fact that it's 225 00:10:18,720 --> 00:10:21,800 Speaker 2: opened up so many new opportunities for people actually located 226 00:10:21,840 --> 00:10:22,439 Speaker 2: on the island. 227 00:10:22,640 --> 00:10:26,040 Speaker 1: Because the people who are moving down have money and 228 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:29,320 Speaker 1: they are incentivized to invest in the island. So it's 229 00:10:29,360 --> 00:10:31,640 Speaker 1: not just like, hey, let me pay no tax, but 230 00:10:31,679 --> 00:10:34,199 Speaker 1: there's also this sort of thing that goes alongside of 231 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:37,679 Speaker 1: it to incentivize economic opportunity for the locals, right one 232 00:10:37,720 --> 00:10:38,240 Speaker 1: hundred percent. 233 00:10:38,280 --> 00:10:39,880 Speaker 2: I mean, you have to buy a property within your 234 00:10:39,880 --> 00:10:41,840 Speaker 2: first two years of moving down so that's helping with 235 00:10:41,840 --> 00:10:44,640 Speaker 2: the real estate development, right, it's helping with you know, 236 00:10:44,640 --> 00:10:46,240 Speaker 2: you got to your haircut, you have to go to 237 00:10:46,320 --> 00:10:48,400 Speaker 2: the dentist, you have to do all these things that 238 00:10:48,440 --> 00:10:50,680 Speaker 2: are helping build up that economy. If you are a 239 00:10:50,679 --> 00:10:53,319 Speaker 2: business that makes over three million dollars, you need to 240 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:55,559 Speaker 2: hire one Puerto Rican and so it needs to be 241 00:10:55,640 --> 00:10:58,400 Speaker 2: a skilled worker and not just someone that cleans your house, right, 242 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:00,960 Speaker 2: it needs to be someone that is actively involved with 243 00:11:01,040 --> 00:11:04,080 Speaker 2: day to day business operations. So you're really helping train 244 00:11:04,200 --> 00:11:06,560 Speaker 2: people and give them skilled work. So if you do 245 00:11:06,679 --> 00:11:09,600 Speaker 2: decide to leave the island after five years, you've actually 246 00:11:09,640 --> 00:11:12,800 Speaker 2: really contributed and now they can start their own business maybe, 247 00:11:13,040 --> 00:11:15,640 Speaker 2: or now that they've brought in enough money from their 248 00:11:15,720 --> 00:11:18,640 Speaker 2: dental practice, they can reach out, find new clients, do 249 00:11:18,760 --> 00:11:22,320 Speaker 2: extra marketing. It's really been quite a flourishing thing. And 250 00:11:22,559 --> 00:11:25,360 Speaker 2: they also have extra incentives if you invest in Puerto 251 00:11:25,440 --> 00:11:28,320 Speaker 2: Rican businesses. So let's say you keep your normal investment 252 00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:31,480 Speaker 2: profile that has I don't know, Tesla Coca Cola, whatever 253 00:11:31,520 --> 00:11:34,480 Speaker 2: it might be, if you invest in Puerto Rican businesses 254 00:11:34,520 --> 00:11:38,480 Speaker 2: in Puerto Rican local kind of companies or hedge funds 255 00:11:38,559 --> 00:11:41,400 Speaker 2: or private equity funds, you actually get additional benefits, so 256 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:44,680 Speaker 2: it's encouraging you to invest in local things on the 257 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:45,480 Speaker 2: island as well. 258 00:11:46,840 --> 00:11:49,800 Speaker 1: Okay, what's the differentwe in Puerto Rico and other low 259 00:11:49,840 --> 00:11:52,079 Speaker 1: cost or low tax destinations that other people might have 260 00:11:52,160 --> 00:11:55,719 Speaker 1: heard of, Like there's all the perpetual joke about the 261 00:11:55,760 --> 00:11:58,800 Speaker 1: bank account. The Cayman Islands or Singapore has been talked 262 00:11:58,800 --> 00:12:03,360 Speaker 1: about as a tax haven for Americans, So like what, Yeah, 263 00:12:03,400 --> 00:12:05,240 Speaker 1: what's the difference? What makes Puerto Rico superior? 264 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:08,959 Speaker 2: Yeah, so in most other places, United States citizens are 265 00:12:09,040 --> 00:12:11,640 Speaker 2: actually taxed on their worldwide income. And so if you're 266 00:12:11,640 --> 00:12:14,160 Speaker 2: going to the Cayman Islands, Singapore, Dubai, a lot of 267 00:12:14,200 --> 00:12:16,120 Speaker 2: the big tax savin names that I kind of hear 268 00:12:16,160 --> 00:12:19,520 Speaker 2: out there, you actually are supposed to be paying US 269 00:12:19,600 --> 00:12:21,880 Speaker 2: taxes on a good portion of that. And if you're 270 00:12:21,880 --> 00:12:24,439 Speaker 2: circumventing it to pay as little as possible, there's a 271 00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:27,600 Speaker 2: chance that you're not doing it fully legally, or you 272 00:12:27,640 --> 00:12:30,280 Speaker 2: have to renounce your citizenship. In Puerto Rico, since it's 273 00:12:30,280 --> 00:12:33,440 Speaker 2: a US territory, you can keep your US citizenship, so 274 00:12:33,480 --> 00:12:35,640 Speaker 2: you are a US citizen this entire time. You are 275 00:12:35,679 --> 00:12:39,280 Speaker 2: doing things the utmost legally that you possibly can. You 276 00:12:39,320 --> 00:12:44,440 Speaker 2: are not creating different holding companies and circumventing money here, here, here, 277 00:12:44,440 --> 00:12:48,440 Speaker 2: and here right. You are having a legitimate business that 278 00:12:48,559 --> 00:12:51,560 Speaker 2: is registered with the government. Everything is as transparent as possible. 279 00:12:51,760 --> 00:12:54,160 Speaker 2: There are added financial statements. You need to file an 280 00:12:54,160 --> 00:12:57,880 Speaker 2: annual report every single year. It is clear, transparent and legal, 281 00:12:58,040 --> 00:13:00,120 Speaker 2: and you can keep your US citizenship, which is the 282 00:13:00,160 --> 00:13:02,880 Speaker 2: biggest appeal that I see for people. Now. I hear 283 00:13:02,920 --> 00:13:05,839 Speaker 2: a lot of talk about other US territories. Really they 284 00:13:05,880 --> 00:13:08,200 Speaker 2: just don't have the same built up infrastructure that Puerto 285 00:13:08,280 --> 00:13:10,760 Speaker 2: Rico does in terms of living on the island, but 286 00:13:10,800 --> 00:13:14,840 Speaker 2: also in terms of the best tax program. Other places, 287 00:13:14,880 --> 00:13:18,000 Speaker 2: you know, US Virgin Islands or Guam or whatever, you 288 00:13:18,040 --> 00:13:20,720 Speaker 2: can move there and also you know, not kind of 289 00:13:20,720 --> 00:13:23,480 Speaker 2: avoid US federal taxes. The issue is that they just 290 00:13:23,520 --> 00:13:26,000 Speaker 2: don't have the same program that Puerto Rico does to 291 00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:28,400 Speaker 2: really motivate people to move down to the island. 292 00:13:28,520 --> 00:13:31,400 Speaker 1: Okay, cost of living too, So let's say it costs 293 00:13:31,440 --> 00:13:33,080 Speaker 1: more to live in Puerto Rico, maybe it wouldn't be 294 00:13:33,520 --> 00:13:36,480 Speaker 1: worth it for the tax savings you might enjoy. And 295 00:13:36,480 --> 00:13:39,160 Speaker 1: I've seen kind of split opinions on this some people say, yeah, 296 00:13:39,160 --> 00:13:41,640 Speaker 1: it's cheaper to live in Puerto Rico, But then others 297 00:13:41,679 --> 00:13:43,160 Speaker 1: have said, well, but if you live in one of 298 00:13:43,200 --> 00:13:45,520 Speaker 1: the fancier neighborhoods where it feels like you have to 299 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:49,280 Speaker 1: move to enjoy life like you might have back in 300 00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:52,840 Speaker 1: the States, then it's actually pretty expensive. So yeah, what 301 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:56,200 Speaker 1: about those wealthier neighborhoods and what is the cost of 302 00:13:56,240 --> 00:13:58,160 Speaker 1: living like comparatively, Yeah. 303 00:13:58,000 --> 00:14:01,000 Speaker 2: The wealthier neighborhoods are definitely expensive. When you're talking about 304 00:14:01,120 --> 00:14:04,400 Speaker 2: big kind of gated resorts like Dorata result or Pamas 305 00:14:04,440 --> 00:14:07,680 Speaker 2: del Mar. There's any one coming up for Moncayo and Fajardo, 306 00:14:08,320 --> 00:14:11,240 Speaker 2: those can definitely get in the multimillion dollar range. And 307 00:14:11,360 --> 00:14:13,600 Speaker 2: the reality of that is is that there are very 308 00:14:13,600 --> 00:14:17,000 Speaker 2: few properties within those complexes. You get access to all 309 00:14:17,000 --> 00:14:20,840 Speaker 2: the resort amenity security twenty four to seven. You're surrounded 310 00:14:20,840 --> 00:14:23,640 Speaker 2: by all expats essentially, and a lot of people do 311 00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:25,960 Speaker 2: decide to take that route. But I also see people 312 00:14:26,040 --> 00:14:29,520 Speaker 2: that actually love living in Old San Juan, San Juan Condado, 313 00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:32,920 Speaker 2: a lot of areas where actual Puerto Ricans live, and 314 00:14:32,960 --> 00:14:35,600 Speaker 2: that cost of living is much less than the US, 315 00:14:35,640 --> 00:14:38,480 Speaker 2: and it's not necessarily at a lower standard. It just 316 00:14:38,520 --> 00:14:41,160 Speaker 2: means that you're not living in this resort community that 317 00:14:41,200 --> 00:14:44,720 Speaker 2: has seven different pools in a water park, in private beaches. 318 00:14:45,120 --> 00:14:46,960 Speaker 2: You probably need to go down to the public beach, 319 00:14:47,000 --> 00:14:49,280 Speaker 2: but you are in a nice apartment building, or you 320 00:14:49,320 --> 00:14:51,560 Speaker 2: have a nice home that is probably as nice, if 321 00:14:51,600 --> 00:14:53,560 Speaker 2: not nicer, than the house you may have in the 322 00:14:53,680 --> 00:14:57,680 Speaker 2: US for the same price. So it really really really depends. Honestly, 323 00:14:58,480 --> 00:15:01,080 Speaker 2: I personally spend a lot of mo time in the resorts, 324 00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:03,280 Speaker 2: and I really love it. But I actually spend a 325 00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:06,040 Speaker 2: lot of my free time with friends socially in Condado 326 00:15:06,120 --> 00:15:07,960 Speaker 2: and San Juan, and I feel like that's kind of 327 00:15:07,960 --> 00:15:09,920 Speaker 2: the exciting area where all the good food is and 328 00:15:09,960 --> 00:15:11,880 Speaker 2: you're not just trapped in kind of like an all 329 00:15:11,880 --> 00:15:13,520 Speaker 2: inclusive resort. What it seems like. 330 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:15,160 Speaker 1: Yeah, I think I'd get tired of that really quickly. 331 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:16,560 Speaker 1: I did an all inclusive one time, and I was like, 332 00:15:16,600 --> 00:15:18,320 Speaker 1: get me out of here. It's it's really fun for 333 00:15:18,400 --> 00:15:20,000 Speaker 1: like two days, and then it gets like some of 334 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:23,080 Speaker 1: those neighborhoods sound like a little ostentatious and not my jam. 335 00:15:23,200 --> 00:15:24,720 Speaker 1: So it's good to know that there are other kind 336 00:15:24,760 --> 00:15:27,520 Speaker 1: of places that you can move that don't cost quite 337 00:15:27,520 --> 00:15:29,600 Speaker 1: that much, and that could be a little more vibrant 338 00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:32,600 Speaker 1: and interesting. I'm curious too when people are asking you 339 00:15:32,640 --> 00:15:36,720 Speaker 1: about this potential move down to Puerto Rico, and are 340 00:15:36,720 --> 00:15:38,600 Speaker 1: they at all suggesting, well, what if I move to 341 00:15:38,760 --> 00:15:41,400 Speaker 1: just a really low cost of living country that more 342 00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:46,000 Speaker 1: Americans are choosing anyway, is that like a better option? So, like, 343 00:15:46,040 --> 00:15:49,680 Speaker 1: I visited Thailand and it was shocking how cheap it 344 00:15:49,800 --> 00:15:51,960 Speaker 1: was to live in Thailand. So even if I'm paying 345 00:15:52,000 --> 00:15:55,840 Speaker 1: tax on my income, boy, Thailand might be a better 346 00:15:56,000 --> 00:15:58,520 Speaker 1: option for me just as a geo arbitrage play, because 347 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:02,720 Speaker 1: it's so much less expensive from a cost of living perspective. 348 00:16:02,760 --> 00:16:06,480 Speaker 1: So what's your take on some of those really cheap 349 00:16:06,480 --> 00:16:09,040 Speaker 1: places you can land in other parts of the world 350 00:16:09,120 --> 00:16:11,240 Speaker 1: versus kind of going all in on Puerto Rico. 351 00:16:11,600 --> 00:16:14,120 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I think it's everyone's situation to their 352 00:16:14,200 --> 00:16:16,800 Speaker 2: own right. If you're a Thailand, you are halfway across 353 00:16:16,840 --> 00:16:19,040 Speaker 2: the world. If you're in Puerto Rico, you are just 354 00:16:19,360 --> 00:16:21,960 Speaker 2: usually one flight away, unless you're coming from the West coast. 355 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:24,400 Speaker 2: They have a lot of direct flights down from kind 356 00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:26,200 Speaker 2: of the central part of the US and the East 357 00:16:26,200 --> 00:16:28,960 Speaker 2: coast much closer especially if you have family or friends 358 00:16:29,000 --> 00:16:31,520 Speaker 2: that you want to stay in contact with. In terms 359 00:16:31,520 --> 00:16:34,120 Speaker 2: of cost of living, yeah, it is definitely a lot 360 00:16:34,160 --> 00:16:36,040 Speaker 2: cheaper in Thailand than it is on the island of 361 00:16:36,080 --> 00:16:38,720 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico. The reality is, though, is that you're dealing 362 00:16:38,720 --> 00:16:40,400 Speaker 2: with a different set of issues. I mean, I went 363 00:16:40,440 --> 00:16:42,400 Speaker 2: to Thailand and I know you can't drink the water there. 364 00:16:42,400 --> 00:16:44,200 Speaker 2: You have to worry about food safety a bit more 365 00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:46,760 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico is the United States. Still, you do not 366 00:16:46,880 --> 00:16:48,640 Speaker 2: need to worry if you drink the tap water. You 367 00:16:48,680 --> 00:16:50,120 Speaker 2: do not need to worry if you're eating at a 368 00:16:50,160 --> 00:16:52,440 Speaker 2: restaurant that you're going to get food poisoning. So it's 369 00:16:52,520 --> 00:16:54,440 Speaker 2: much more similar to the style of life that we 370 00:16:54,480 --> 00:16:57,400 Speaker 2: are used to living in the US. They have huge 371 00:16:57,520 --> 00:16:59,720 Speaker 2: malls that have all the stores that you're looking for. 372 00:17:00,040 --> 00:17:02,360 Speaker 2: You know, you're not necessarily going to a country that 373 00:17:02,480 --> 00:17:05,320 Speaker 2: is still developing. I would say. The other big part 374 00:17:05,359 --> 00:17:07,359 Speaker 2: of that too is once again the taxes. You do 375 00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:09,760 Speaker 2: need to still pay tax on your worldwide income while 376 00:17:09,760 --> 00:17:12,720 Speaker 2: you're in Thailand. There are certain credits obviously that you 377 00:17:12,760 --> 00:17:15,000 Speaker 2: can credit against that, but the end of the day, 378 00:17:15,000 --> 00:17:17,320 Speaker 2: you're still having to deal with the complications of cross 379 00:17:17,320 --> 00:17:20,720 Speaker 2: border tax rules, whereas here in Puerto Rico, you have 380 00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:24,280 Speaker 2: the IRS that understands Puerto Rico situation a little bit more. 381 00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:27,840 Speaker 2: You have practitioners in Puerto Rico that are extremely familiar 382 00:17:27,880 --> 00:17:30,520 Speaker 2: with US rules, and so it's a much simpler process 383 00:17:30,560 --> 00:17:31,679 Speaker 2: to remain in compliance. 384 00:17:32,280 --> 00:17:34,480 Speaker 1: Talk to me about the tax benefits then drilled down 385 00:17:34,600 --> 00:17:36,879 Speaker 1: just a little bit, because you mentioned it right at 386 00:17:36,880 --> 00:17:41,080 Speaker 1: the very top, and how significant are the benefits and 387 00:17:41,520 --> 00:17:45,920 Speaker 1: how difficult are they to qualify for because there's definitely 388 00:17:45,960 --> 00:17:48,320 Speaker 1: some specifics that people need to be aware of. It's 389 00:17:48,320 --> 00:17:50,920 Speaker 1: not like you can have, you know, five million dollars 390 00:17:51,040 --> 00:17:54,359 Speaker 1: in your taxbile brokerage account, move down tomorrow, sell it all, 391 00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:57,800 Speaker 1: not pay capital gains tax, and move back the very 392 00:17:57,840 --> 00:17:59,760 Speaker 1: next day and just be like sweet, that was awesome. 393 00:18:00,040 --> 00:18:02,399 Speaker 2: Yeah, definitely. So I'll talk a little bit about what 394 00:18:02,440 --> 00:18:04,239 Speaker 2: the actual benefits are first and then we can kind 395 00:18:04,240 --> 00:18:08,160 Speaker 2: of go into eligibility and compliance. So the benefits across 396 00:18:08,200 --> 00:18:10,520 Speaker 2: the board, there's actually a lot with under Act sixty, 397 00:18:10,560 --> 00:18:14,160 Speaker 2: but the most too popular decrees are the Individual Investor Decree, 398 00:18:14,200 --> 00:18:17,080 Speaker 2: which offers the zero percent tax on short and long 399 00:18:17,160 --> 00:18:19,960 Speaker 2: term capital gains, interest and dividends, that are sourced to 400 00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:22,960 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico. And then there's the Export Services Decree, which 401 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:26,280 Speaker 2: is that four percent corporate income tax rate. So really 402 00:18:26,320 --> 00:18:29,240 Speaker 2: to qualify for both of these, it's just an application. 403 00:18:29,400 --> 00:18:31,720 Speaker 2: For the most part, you do need to meet three 404 00:18:31,760 --> 00:18:34,600 Speaker 2: main tests, which are the presence tests, the tax home test, 405 00:18:34,680 --> 00:18:37,640 Speaker 2: and the closer connection test. The presence test is kind 406 00:18:37,640 --> 00:18:39,439 Speaker 2: of the one hundred and eighty three days. There are 407 00:18:39,480 --> 00:18:41,480 Speaker 2: actually five ways to meet it, but I would say 408 00:18:41,480 --> 00:18:43,359 Speaker 2: the most common way to meet it is spending one 409 00:18:43,440 --> 00:18:45,879 Speaker 2: hundred and eighty three days in Puerto Rico. The tax 410 00:18:45,920 --> 00:18:48,600 Speaker 2: home test is, hey, where's your business actually located? So 411 00:18:49,000 --> 00:18:51,880 Speaker 2: you know, if I own a company in New York 412 00:18:51,960 --> 00:18:54,159 Speaker 2: and I am flying back and forth for business in 413 00:18:54,200 --> 00:18:56,080 Speaker 2: New York and I never create a business down in 414 00:18:56,119 --> 00:18:58,640 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico, you're not going to meet the tax home test. 415 00:18:58,960 --> 00:19:01,280 Speaker 2: And then the closer connection test is the most subjective 416 00:19:01,280 --> 00:19:03,560 Speaker 2: of the three, and this is really what I got 417 00:19:03,600 --> 00:19:06,400 Speaker 2: all the heart test, it's where does your heart actually lie? 418 00:19:06,480 --> 00:19:09,280 Speaker 2: Did you actually make an effort to move to Puerto Rico. 419 00:19:09,440 --> 00:19:11,440 Speaker 2: So a lot of the times it looks like moving 420 00:19:11,560 --> 00:19:15,840 Speaker 2: church and religious organizations, moving social organizations down to Puerto Rico. 421 00:19:16,280 --> 00:19:18,880 Speaker 2: If you have a wife and you are moving down 422 00:19:18,880 --> 00:19:20,600 Speaker 2: to Puerto Rico, your wife and your kids should come 423 00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:23,800 Speaker 2: with you. They should not remain in California. You should 424 00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:25,720 Speaker 2: move down to Puerto Rico and not be staying in 425 00:19:25,760 --> 00:19:28,040 Speaker 2: an airbnb or a hotel. You need to be staying 426 00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:30,359 Speaker 2: in a house that you're leasing or buying. There are 427 00:19:30,359 --> 00:19:31,879 Speaker 2: a lot of things that kind of come into this, 428 00:19:32,160 --> 00:19:33,919 Speaker 2: but the whole idea behind it is that you were 429 00:19:33,920 --> 00:19:36,240 Speaker 2: intentional with your move. You have actually moved to Puerto 430 00:19:36,359 --> 00:19:39,199 Speaker 2: Rico and left your previous day of residence, and so 431 00:19:39,600 --> 00:19:41,919 Speaker 2: those are kind of the best ways to comply with 432 00:19:42,000 --> 00:19:43,560 Speaker 2: bona fide residency rules. 433 00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:46,199 Speaker 1: That makes sense because if Puerto Rico is going to 434 00:19:46,200 --> 00:19:48,400 Speaker 1: dish out those tax benefits, they want to make sure 435 00:19:48,400 --> 00:19:50,680 Speaker 1: that there's some buying right that you're going to stick 436 00:19:50,720 --> 00:19:52,760 Speaker 1: around for a little while, that you are actually going 437 00:19:52,800 --> 00:19:55,160 Speaker 1: to actively invest in, that you're not just there as 438 00:19:55,400 --> 00:20:00,679 Speaker 1: a tax dodge. Talk about how long people typically stay for. 439 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:05,119 Speaker 1: Are people moving permanently because you've mentioned to your rule 440 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:08,679 Speaker 1: that buying a house becomes a requirement, or are people 441 00:20:08,720 --> 00:20:11,120 Speaker 1: saying this is just a kind of a seasonal thing 442 00:20:11,119 --> 00:20:13,639 Speaker 1: for me, I'm going to stay here for a few years. 443 00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:15,280 Speaker 1: I'm going to kind of take advantage of some of 444 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:17,760 Speaker 1: those tax breaks, and then I'm going to head back 445 00:20:17,800 --> 00:20:18,560 Speaker 1: to the mainland. 446 00:20:18,720 --> 00:20:21,200 Speaker 2: I see a huge mix of both. I have clients 447 00:20:21,240 --> 00:20:23,399 Speaker 2: that want to stay for the rest of their lives 448 00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:25,639 Speaker 2: or want to stay for at least ten to fifteen years. 449 00:20:25,960 --> 00:20:28,080 Speaker 2: I also have clients that are like, hey, I don't 450 00:20:28,080 --> 00:20:30,160 Speaker 2: see this being longer than like a three to five 451 00:20:30,240 --> 00:20:32,840 Speaker 2: year thing, And I think both are okay. I will say, 452 00:20:32,960 --> 00:20:35,320 Speaker 2: while there isn't a specific rule about the number of 453 00:20:35,359 --> 00:20:37,040 Speaker 2: days or number of years you need to stay in 454 00:20:37,080 --> 00:20:40,160 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico, a lot of residency rules on the IRS 455 00:20:40,240 --> 00:20:42,760 Speaker 2: and Puerto Rico side of things revolve around a three 456 00:20:42,840 --> 00:20:44,960 Speaker 2: year rule. And so what I advise most of my 457 00:20:45,000 --> 00:20:47,879 Speaker 2: clients is that you stay for a minimum of three years. 458 00:20:47,960 --> 00:20:51,000 Speaker 2: And that is basically for purposes of an audit. It 459 00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:53,520 Speaker 2: looks like you actually moved. It makes it look like 460 00:20:53,600 --> 00:20:56,080 Speaker 2: you made an intentional effort to go down there to 461 00:20:56,119 --> 00:20:59,040 Speaker 2: spend time there. And I think even a bigger point 462 00:20:59,119 --> 00:21:01,280 Speaker 2: is not necessarily the of year as you spend down there, 463 00:21:01,440 --> 00:21:03,720 Speaker 2: but it's what you did with your life in the US, right. 464 00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:06,320 Speaker 2: So a lot of people love to keep their house 465 00:21:06,359 --> 00:21:09,240 Speaker 2: available for you. So you know, I'm from San Diego. Originally, 466 00:21:09,240 --> 00:21:11,320 Speaker 2: I actually had a client that is from San Diego. 467 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:13,320 Speaker 2: They wanted to keep their house in San Diego so 468 00:21:13,320 --> 00:21:15,160 Speaker 2: they could go back and visit. I was like, Hey, 469 00:21:15,520 --> 00:21:17,160 Speaker 2: you don't need to sell your home, but you should 470 00:21:17,200 --> 00:21:19,360 Speaker 2: rent it out long term at arms link to someone 471 00:21:19,400 --> 00:21:21,399 Speaker 2: you don't know. When you come back to the US, 472 00:21:21,440 --> 00:21:23,240 Speaker 2: you should have to bring a suitcase. You should not 473 00:21:23,320 --> 00:21:26,199 Speaker 2: have a house that has the exact same fixings that 474 00:21:26,359 --> 00:21:28,200 Speaker 2: you would have in Puerto Rico. You need to make 475 00:21:28,240 --> 00:21:31,320 Speaker 2: it look like you've moved, especially in high tax states 476 00:21:31,320 --> 00:21:33,359 Speaker 2: where they really want to come after you. You have 477 00:21:33,440 --> 00:21:35,720 Speaker 2: to make it look like you've left that state permanently 478 00:21:36,040 --> 00:21:38,119 Speaker 2: and that you've established a life in Puerto Rico. And 479 00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:40,000 Speaker 2: that's where I see most people getting caught up. 480 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:43,600 Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, what about additional expenses. So you're talking about 481 00:21:43,640 --> 00:21:46,760 Speaker 1: like plane tickets then right, traveling back and forth, but 482 00:21:47,119 --> 00:21:50,480 Speaker 1: you're also talking about if you have kids. I've just 483 00:21:50,480 --> 00:21:52,640 Speaker 1: seen some of the people who move down there and 484 00:21:52,840 --> 00:21:55,119 Speaker 1: the buckets and buckets and buckets of stuff they have 485 00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:57,440 Speaker 1: to transport, Like the travel day can be a nightmare. 486 00:21:57,560 --> 00:22:00,400 Speaker 1: But also, once you get down there, private school for 487 00:22:00,480 --> 00:22:02,199 Speaker 1: some most people they feel like that's a necessity. So 488 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:05,439 Speaker 1: the cost of family of the family bears can be 489 00:22:05,480 --> 00:22:07,160 Speaker 1: significant with a big move like that. 490 00:22:07,680 --> 00:22:10,000 Speaker 2: Yeah, no, definitely, and a lot of people do decide 491 00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:12,280 Speaker 2: to home school. There are a few private schools on 492 00:22:12,320 --> 00:22:14,199 Speaker 2: the island. I believe a couple of them actually have 493 00:22:14,520 --> 00:22:18,080 Speaker 2: connections with the Miami Private School District as well, so 494 00:22:18,240 --> 00:22:20,960 Speaker 2: there is kind of some type of continuity with education 495 00:22:21,080 --> 00:22:24,479 Speaker 2: with the United States. That being said, obviously is different 496 00:22:24,520 --> 00:22:26,760 Speaker 2: than if you were going to public school in California. 497 00:22:26,880 --> 00:22:28,920 Speaker 2: You're not going to be doing common core like they 498 00:22:28,920 --> 00:22:30,760 Speaker 2: do in California. It's going to be a new type 499 00:22:30,800 --> 00:22:33,520 Speaker 2: of education. I've heard a lot of people actually happy 500 00:22:33,680 --> 00:22:35,959 Speaker 2: with that level of it, especially at a private school. 501 00:22:36,200 --> 00:22:37,600 Speaker 2: But those that don't want to send their kids to 502 00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:40,719 Speaker 2: private school, I usually don't see people going to public school. 503 00:22:40,800 --> 00:22:43,480 Speaker 2: I oftentimes see that being a home school route or 504 00:22:43,520 --> 00:22:46,800 Speaker 2: some type of online school for their kids. I completely 505 00:22:46,840 --> 00:22:49,680 Speaker 2: understand it's really hard to uph your life with your children, 506 00:22:49,720 --> 00:22:51,840 Speaker 2: and I think when people always ask me, well, what 507 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:54,400 Speaker 2: dollar amount do you need to move down, I think 508 00:22:54,400 --> 00:22:57,119 Speaker 2: it really depends if you're thirty something years old, and 509 00:22:57,119 --> 00:22:59,760 Speaker 2: you're big in crypto and you have investments, you might 510 00:22:59,800 --> 00:23:01,440 Speaker 2: be I want to move down at a different price 511 00:23:01,520 --> 00:23:04,600 Speaker 2: point than someone that has a family with kids, and 512 00:23:04,680 --> 00:23:07,200 Speaker 2: their kids are now in middle school. It's really hard 513 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:09,240 Speaker 2: to pull them out. If your kids one or two 514 00:23:09,320 --> 00:23:11,280 Speaker 2: years old, they're not going to notice a huge difference 515 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:13,560 Speaker 2: for a few years. But if they already have friends 516 00:23:13,560 --> 00:23:17,359 Speaker 2: in school, I personally wouldn't uproot my kid's life for 517 00:23:17,800 --> 00:23:19,679 Speaker 2: a certain amount of money unless this was going to 518 00:23:19,680 --> 00:23:22,639 Speaker 2: set them up for the rest of eternity. So I 519 00:23:22,680 --> 00:23:24,639 Speaker 2: get a lot of different opinions on that, a lot. 520 00:23:24,480 --> 00:23:29,160 Speaker 1: Of personal factors to consider, as well as tax implications. 521 00:23:29,160 --> 00:23:31,119 Speaker 1: So in speak, wish I want to dig in a 522 00:23:31,119 --> 00:23:32,800 Speaker 1: little bit more to the tax stuff. And then also 523 00:23:33,200 --> 00:23:34,919 Speaker 1: just kind of well, who does this make sense for? 524 00:23:35,040 --> 00:23:40,160 Speaker 1: Because you're right, like the stereotypical crypto bro who has 525 00:23:40,520 --> 00:23:44,040 Speaker 1: built up a significant amount of money in his or 526 00:23:44,040 --> 00:23:47,280 Speaker 1: her portfolio, Well, then it might make more sense for 527 00:23:47,320 --> 00:23:49,760 Speaker 1: them to avoid taxation and bite the bullet and move 528 00:23:49,840 --> 00:23:53,280 Speaker 1: down to Puerto Rico. But then for others, like a teacher, 529 00:23:53,440 --> 00:23:54,919 Speaker 1: like or something like that, maybe it doesn't make as 530 00:23:55,000 --> 00:23:57,040 Speaker 1: much sense. So we'll get some questions on that front 531 00:23:57,160 --> 00:24:07,120 Speaker 1: with Rachel. Right after this I we're back still talking 532 00:24:07,119 --> 00:24:10,920 Speaker 1: with Rachel Ferris talking about Puerto Rico. Is it the 533 00:24:11,119 --> 00:24:15,960 Speaker 1: island of your dreams? The perpetual Caribbean vacation where taxes 534 00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:20,240 Speaker 1: don't exist? The way sometimes richly you describe it sounds 535 00:24:20,320 --> 00:24:24,119 Speaker 1: a little heavenly. It's like this little slice of sand 536 00:24:24,280 --> 00:24:28,199 Speaker 1: and sun in, you know, down in the Caribbean, and 537 00:24:28,640 --> 00:24:31,640 Speaker 1: you don't have to pay taxes like it sounds too 538 00:24:31,640 --> 00:24:34,720 Speaker 1: good to be true. We were talking about that earlier, 539 00:24:34,760 --> 00:24:37,640 Speaker 1: But I guess can you talk more maybe about the 540 00:24:37,720 --> 00:24:41,399 Speaker 1: individual investors. I think some people are have a business 541 00:24:41,400 --> 00:24:42,800 Speaker 1: and they're like, oh, this would be a great way 542 00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:46,120 Speaker 1: for me to move down and avoid paying taxes on 543 00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:48,720 Speaker 1: my business income. But I'm guessing a lot of the 544 00:24:48,760 --> 00:24:51,080 Speaker 1: people who are listening would call or be more interested 545 00:24:51,080 --> 00:24:54,960 Speaker 1: in the individual investor side of things. So how does 546 00:24:55,000 --> 00:24:57,520 Speaker 1: that work? And how does that work too? For w 547 00:24:57,840 --> 00:25:01,160 Speaker 1: two employees. Let's say you could work from anyway. What's 548 00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:03,600 Speaker 1: the tax status look like if you live in Puerto 549 00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:05,760 Speaker 1: Rico but you work for a company back in the States. 550 00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:08,399 Speaker 2: Yeah, So let me touch on the individual investore first. 551 00:25:08,720 --> 00:25:11,200 Speaker 2: So essentially I'll give you a great example. Let's say 552 00:25:11,200 --> 00:25:14,120 Speaker 2: you've held Apple stock for ten years and you move 553 00:25:14,160 --> 00:25:16,520 Speaker 2: to Puerto Rico and you sell it a year after 554 00:25:16,640 --> 00:25:19,280 Speaker 2: you move, Well, you're going to mark down the value 555 00:25:19,320 --> 00:25:22,040 Speaker 2: of that Apple Stock anything that is publicly traded on 556 00:25:22,080 --> 00:25:24,040 Speaker 2: the day that you've moved down to Puerto Rico. The 557 00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:26,680 Speaker 2: ten years of appreciation before you move to Puerto Rico 558 00:25:26,920 --> 00:25:29,639 Speaker 2: will be taxed at US rates and your state tax rates. 559 00:25:29,920 --> 00:25:31,760 Speaker 2: The one year after you moved to Puerto Rico will 560 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:34,120 Speaker 2: be taxed at Puerto Rico rates. And so if you're 561 00:25:34,119 --> 00:25:36,520 Speaker 2: expecting to move down, hey, I have all this money 562 00:25:36,560 --> 00:25:39,000 Speaker 2: in crypto, or I have this huge investment portfolio I 563 00:25:39,080 --> 00:25:41,600 Speaker 2: want to do a huge exit. Reality is you'll need 564 00:25:41,640 --> 00:25:43,720 Speaker 2: to spend more time in Puerto Rico and expect that 565 00:25:43,800 --> 00:25:45,760 Speaker 2: stock to go up a bit to make the move 566 00:25:45,800 --> 00:25:48,200 Speaker 2: worth it. You won't be able to capture those gains 567 00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:51,399 Speaker 2: that happened before you actually moved down to Puerto Rico. 568 00:25:51,480 --> 00:25:53,920 Speaker 1: But all the trading you do once you move down 569 00:25:53,920 --> 00:25:58,240 Speaker 1: to Puerto Rico. Let's say then you're talking about capital 570 00:25:58,240 --> 00:26:00,720 Speaker 1: gains tax free. But if you have portfolio and you 571 00:26:00,760 --> 00:26:03,720 Speaker 1: sell it when you're down there, sorry, you're still subject 572 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:07,120 Speaker 1: to paying the United States Uncle Sam, it's fair share. 573 00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:09,160 Speaker 2: Yes, you have to pay their fair share again if 574 00:26:09,160 --> 00:26:12,080 Speaker 2: you hold that Apple stock for another ten years. Once again, 575 00:26:12,119 --> 00:26:14,000 Speaker 2: the ten years after you move that is going to 576 00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:16,560 Speaker 2: be Puerto Rico tax. The ten years beforehand is going 577 00:26:16,560 --> 00:26:19,159 Speaker 2: to be US tax. What I see a lot of 578 00:26:19,160 --> 00:26:22,560 Speaker 2: the times with kind of situations like this is that people, 579 00:26:22,720 --> 00:26:24,840 Speaker 2: when they expect their stock to go up there expect 580 00:26:24,840 --> 00:26:26,440 Speaker 2: an investment to kind of do well in the next 581 00:26:26,480 --> 00:26:28,400 Speaker 2: few years, they want to get down to Puerto Rico 582 00:26:28,440 --> 00:26:31,960 Speaker 2: sooner to be able to capture that actual gain. I 583 00:26:31,960 --> 00:26:33,760 Speaker 2: think the big thing to note is that when you're 584 00:26:33,800 --> 00:26:36,240 Speaker 2: actually trading, so let's say you're spending that one hundred 585 00:26:36,240 --> 00:26:38,199 Speaker 2: and eighty three days in Puerto Rico, you need to 586 00:26:38,200 --> 00:26:41,520 Speaker 2: commence trades while you are physically located in Puerto Rico yourself. 587 00:26:41,680 --> 00:26:43,800 Speaker 2: So just because you're a resident for that year doesn't 588 00:26:43,800 --> 00:26:45,560 Speaker 2: mean I could be on vacation in New York and 589 00:26:45,600 --> 00:26:48,119 Speaker 2: the decide I'm going to stell my Apple stock. You 590 00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:50,399 Speaker 2: need to sell it while you're physically located in Puerto 591 00:26:50,480 --> 00:26:53,359 Speaker 2: Rico to ensure that everything is actually captured as a 592 00:26:53,400 --> 00:26:55,600 Speaker 2: Puerto Rican gain. I don't want New York to have 593 00:26:55,640 --> 00:26:57,679 Speaker 2: any type of claim because you clicked a button on 594 00:26:57,720 --> 00:27:00,520 Speaker 2: your computer. You should be commencing every timee bit trade 595 00:27:00,520 --> 00:27:02,440 Speaker 2: while you are physically located in Puerto Rico. 596 00:27:03,119 --> 00:27:07,640 Speaker 1: Okay, so what about then income working from AFAR or Yeah, 597 00:27:07,680 --> 00:27:10,520 Speaker 1: so if I can work from anywhere and I can 598 00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:13,639 Speaker 1: move down to Puerto Rico, how does that impact just 599 00:27:13,720 --> 00:27:15,120 Speaker 1: a paycheck I get from an employer. 600 00:27:15,600 --> 00:27:18,960 Speaker 2: Yeah, so for a regular W two employee, generally this 601 00:27:19,040 --> 00:27:21,800 Speaker 2: doesn't work. But I found a lot of different ways 602 00:27:21,840 --> 00:27:24,320 Speaker 2: that W two employees have been able to make this work. 603 00:27:24,520 --> 00:27:27,440 Speaker 2: And so one of those options is having your employee 604 00:27:27,800 --> 00:27:29,879 Speaker 2: actually allow you to work out of Puerto Rico and 605 00:27:29,960 --> 00:27:31,960 Speaker 2: have a Puerto Rico entity. So if they're willing to 606 00:27:32,000 --> 00:27:34,080 Speaker 2: say all the work you're doing is entirely out of 607 00:27:34,119 --> 00:27:38,520 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico, you can actually qualify for these benefits. A 608 00:27:38,560 --> 00:27:41,479 Speaker 2: second option I see is becoming a contractor. So I 609 00:27:41,520 --> 00:27:45,160 Speaker 2: actually have probably about twenty percent of my clients they 610 00:27:45,320 --> 00:27:48,080 Speaker 2: worked with big employers back in the US and reached 611 00:27:48,080 --> 00:27:49,720 Speaker 2: out to them to say, hey, I'm thinking of moving 612 00:27:49,760 --> 00:27:52,359 Speaker 2: to Puerto Rico. They weren't open to creating an entity 613 00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:54,359 Speaker 2: in Puerto Rico. Well, what they said is, hey, you 614 00:27:54,400 --> 00:27:57,440 Speaker 2: can be a contractor create your own single member LLC, 615 00:27:57,840 --> 00:28:01,080 Speaker 2: and we will pay you that salary basically as a contractor, 616 00:28:01,320 --> 00:28:03,119 Speaker 2: and then you can take advantage of that four percent 617 00:28:03,160 --> 00:28:05,760 Speaker 2: corporate income tax. And it's a lot more common than 618 00:28:05,800 --> 00:28:08,560 Speaker 2: you think for employers to be okay with this. Actually, 619 00:28:08,880 --> 00:28:11,080 Speaker 2: I would say most people that reach out to me 620 00:28:11,119 --> 00:28:14,119 Speaker 2: about it have around a seventy percent success rate on 621 00:28:14,280 --> 00:28:17,880 Speaker 2: employers being okay with one version or another. The third 622 00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:20,479 Speaker 2: option is a difficult to hire or a difficult recruit 623 00:28:20,520 --> 00:28:23,040 Speaker 2: to employ a decree. So if you are someone in 624 00:28:23,080 --> 00:28:25,800 Speaker 2: a skilled position and you want to move down to 625 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:28,840 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico, your company can actually open up a position 626 00:28:28,920 --> 00:28:32,280 Speaker 2: in Puerto Rico and say, hey, we can't really recruit 627 00:28:32,320 --> 00:28:34,080 Speaker 2: for this type of position in Puerto Rico. They don't 628 00:28:34,119 --> 00:28:36,479 Speaker 2: have the skilled labor for it. We want to recruit 629 00:28:36,520 --> 00:28:38,840 Speaker 2: someone from the US to move down, and then you 630 00:28:38,880 --> 00:28:41,960 Speaker 2: can get hired. Under that decree. The first one hundred 631 00:28:42,000 --> 00:28:44,280 Speaker 2: thousand dollars of the salary that you get for that 632 00:28:44,360 --> 00:28:46,840 Speaker 2: year will be taxed at normal Puerto Rican rates. You 633 00:28:46,880 --> 00:28:49,240 Speaker 2: will not have to pay federal tax on that. Everything 634 00:28:49,240 --> 00:28:52,720 Speaker 2: after the one hundred thousand dollars is zero percent tax. 635 00:28:52,840 --> 00:28:55,480 Speaker 2: So it is a really great benefit for people that 636 00:28:55,600 --> 00:28:58,520 Speaker 2: are in highly skilled positions. I often think this works 637 00:28:58,520 --> 00:29:02,280 Speaker 2: for software engineers or people that have something very tangible. 638 00:29:02,800 --> 00:29:05,360 Speaker 2: This isn't great if let's say you are a plumber 639 00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:07,560 Speaker 2: and you want to move down to Puerto Rico. The 640 00:29:07,640 --> 00:29:11,200 Speaker 2: idea behind export services is that you're exporting service is 641 00:29:11,240 --> 00:29:14,200 Speaker 2: off the island, So you're not providing services to people 642 00:29:14,240 --> 00:29:16,920 Speaker 2: located on the island of Puerto Rico. You're providing it 643 00:29:16,920 --> 00:29:19,600 Speaker 2: to people in the US. You're providing it to people internationally. 644 00:29:19,920 --> 00:29:21,920 Speaker 2: And so if you need to be physically like a 645 00:29:22,000 --> 00:29:24,080 Speaker 2: dentist with your hands in someone's mouth, this isn't going 646 00:29:24,120 --> 00:29:26,360 Speaker 2: to work for you. But if you're a lawyer, a 647 00:29:26,360 --> 00:29:28,720 Speaker 2: software engineer, any of the things where you can work 648 00:29:28,720 --> 00:29:31,680 Speaker 2: with people other places, virtually it works very well. 649 00:29:31,840 --> 00:29:36,000 Speaker 1: As we've seen recently in the state's tax law. Subject 650 00:29:36,080 --> 00:29:41,479 Speaker 1: to change, to debate, to political party influence, so and 651 00:29:41,560 --> 00:29:44,800 Speaker 1: so you can't really necessarily rely on even even hosting 652 00:29:44,920 --> 00:29:48,160 Speaker 1: the show we're talking about, well, future tax rates could change, 653 00:29:48,200 --> 00:29:50,160 Speaker 1: and so what do you do in the event, Like 654 00:29:50,280 --> 00:29:51,920 Speaker 1: there's a lot of there's a lot of stuff that's 655 00:29:52,080 --> 00:29:56,200 Speaker 1: not completely knowable. So what's your take on the durability 656 00:29:56,360 --> 00:29:59,600 Speaker 1: of these laws? And you know whether or not people 657 00:29:59,680 --> 00:30:03,240 Speaker 1: should to uproot their lives to try to take advantage 658 00:30:03,240 --> 00:30:05,640 Speaker 1: of a tax break that could sunset at some point. 659 00:30:05,720 --> 00:30:08,600 Speaker 2: Yeah, that's a great question. And when you actually get 660 00:30:08,600 --> 00:30:10,880 Speaker 2: the decree, you sign a contract with the government for 661 00:30:11,000 --> 00:30:13,360 Speaker 2: ten to fifteen years, depending on your type of decree. 662 00:30:13,640 --> 00:30:17,040 Speaker 2: So you have that guaranteed rate for ten to fifteen years. 663 00:30:17,320 --> 00:30:19,480 Speaker 2: Versus in the United States, you don't sign a contract 664 00:30:19,520 --> 00:30:21,520 Speaker 2: with the government every single year telling you what your 665 00:30:21,560 --> 00:30:23,360 Speaker 2: tax rate is going to be next year, five years 666 00:30:23,400 --> 00:30:25,920 Speaker 2: from now, ten years from now. This is a guaranteed 667 00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:26,360 Speaker 2: set rate. 668 00:30:26,400 --> 00:30:28,760 Speaker 1: In fact, we'll be debating the new tax rates again 669 00:30:28,840 --> 00:30:31,080 Speaker 1: in twenty twenty nine because of. 670 00:30:31,280 --> 00:30:35,320 Speaker 2: Sunsets, exactly. And so here you have a guaranteed contract 671 00:30:35,320 --> 00:30:37,720 Speaker 2: with the government. And the great thing about this contract 672 00:30:38,000 --> 00:30:40,040 Speaker 2: is if they end up offering a better incentive, you 673 00:30:40,080 --> 00:30:42,280 Speaker 2: can switch to the better incentive. Now, if they make 674 00:30:42,320 --> 00:30:45,600 Speaker 2: it worse, it's not necessarily grandfathered in where you have 675 00:30:45,680 --> 00:30:48,040 Speaker 2: to go back to the worst program. You get to 676 00:30:48,080 --> 00:30:50,200 Speaker 2: keep the best benefit that they offer. And so if 677 00:30:50,200 --> 00:30:52,360 Speaker 2: they start offering a program where Hey, that four percent 678 00:30:52,400 --> 00:30:54,959 Speaker 2: corporate income tax rate is chopped down to two percent. 679 00:30:55,240 --> 00:30:57,640 Speaker 2: You can upgrade your decree to the two percent. Now. 680 00:30:57,640 --> 00:30:59,680 Speaker 2: If they tell you, hey, next year, we're switching that 681 00:30:59,720 --> 00:31:02,760 Speaker 2: to a ten percent corporate tax rate, you're stuck with 682 00:31:02,800 --> 00:31:05,680 Speaker 2: that four percent, luckily for the next ten to fifteen years, 683 00:31:05,680 --> 00:31:08,120 Speaker 2: depending on your decree. And so it's a really great 684 00:31:08,120 --> 00:31:11,520 Speaker 2: way to tax plan because there isn't necessarily volatility with it. 685 00:31:11,520 --> 00:31:13,880 Speaker 2: It is set in the stone. A big concern I 686 00:31:13,880 --> 00:31:16,520 Speaker 2: do see, though, is that this program for Acts sixty 687 00:31:16,960 --> 00:31:20,640 Speaker 2: isn't necessarily extended indefinitely right now. It is until twenty 688 00:31:20,720 --> 00:31:24,640 Speaker 2: fifty five, I believe, so for most people in their 689 00:31:24,640 --> 00:31:28,360 Speaker 2: lifespan right now, very reasonable. Before this, it was supposed 690 00:31:28,360 --> 00:31:31,680 Speaker 2: to sunset in twenty thirty five, I believe, But they 691 00:31:31,760 --> 00:31:35,000 Speaker 2: had so much success from this they've extended another twenty years. 692 00:31:35,080 --> 00:31:36,800 Speaker 2: So I don't think this is a conversation we need 693 00:31:36,840 --> 00:31:39,200 Speaker 2: to really worry about at this point in time. If 694 00:31:39,240 --> 00:31:42,440 Speaker 2: we get closer to twenty forty, twenty fifty five somewhere 695 00:31:42,480 --> 00:31:44,840 Speaker 2: around there and they still haven't renewed it again, that's 696 00:31:44,840 --> 00:31:46,840 Speaker 2: another thing we can bring up. But for most people 697 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:48,360 Speaker 2: that's not going to be an issue. 698 00:31:48,400 --> 00:31:52,440 Speaker 1: We've got some fire officionados in our audience who they 699 00:31:52,520 --> 00:31:56,160 Speaker 1: love the idea of front loading the pain, investing large 700 00:31:56,200 --> 00:31:59,440 Speaker 1: percentages of their salary so that they don't have to work. 701 00:31:59,480 --> 00:32:01,520 Speaker 1: They at least the work optional life, right, So once 702 00:32:01,560 --> 00:32:04,520 Speaker 1: they reach their mid forties or maybe even earlier for 703 00:32:04,600 --> 00:32:07,680 Speaker 1: some people who are really getting after it, they can 704 00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:09,560 Speaker 1: just like completely decide whether or not they want to 705 00:32:09,600 --> 00:32:12,800 Speaker 1: continue working for money. And how do you think that 706 00:32:12,880 --> 00:32:17,000 Speaker 1: the fire crowd and Puerto Rico tax benefits overlap? 707 00:32:17,160 --> 00:32:19,080 Speaker 2: Oh, they're gonna love this. And actually a lot of 708 00:32:19,080 --> 00:32:21,800 Speaker 2: people come down with that exact same mentality. They want 709 00:32:21,840 --> 00:32:24,760 Speaker 2: to achieve financial freedom at an earlier age. And what 710 00:32:24,880 --> 00:32:28,000 Speaker 2: better way to do it. By securing those tax gains 711 00:32:28,040 --> 00:32:30,400 Speaker 2: back to yourself. You're not having to pay the government. 712 00:32:30,680 --> 00:32:34,320 Speaker 2: You're able to either get financial freedom, retire earlier, or 713 00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:37,440 Speaker 2: get a competitive edge on your business. I see most people, 714 00:32:37,600 --> 00:32:40,760 Speaker 2: especially younger people, going down to Puerto Rico and being like, 715 00:32:40,840 --> 00:32:42,680 Speaker 2: I'm going to stay there for five years. This is 716 00:32:42,720 --> 00:32:44,600 Speaker 2: how much money I'm saving when I go back to 717 00:32:44,680 --> 00:32:47,120 Speaker 2: the US. If I want to explore a new business venture, great, 718 00:32:47,400 --> 00:32:49,720 Speaker 2: If not, I am just going to coast the rest 719 00:32:49,720 --> 00:32:51,080 Speaker 2: of my life and I will ever have to worry 720 00:32:51,120 --> 00:32:54,000 Speaker 2: about a dollar, especially when you're thinking about big tech 721 00:32:54,040 --> 00:32:56,680 Speaker 2: people in San Francisco or big finance guys that are 722 00:32:56,760 --> 00:32:59,120 Speaker 2: day traders in New York. Right, this is a perfect 723 00:32:59,160 --> 00:33:01,600 Speaker 2: way to capture that within a few years of your 724 00:33:01,640 --> 00:33:04,920 Speaker 2: life and quote unquote sacrifice to really be able to 725 00:33:04,960 --> 00:33:07,360 Speaker 2: optimize your financial future. Now, I don't think is as 726 00:33:07,440 --> 00:33:09,760 Speaker 2: much as a sacrifice as fire is, where it's like, hey, 727 00:33:09,800 --> 00:33:12,400 Speaker 2: you're going to cut your costs and you're just investing everything. 728 00:33:12,440 --> 00:33:14,560 Speaker 2: You're gonna live kind of measly so you can live 729 00:33:14,600 --> 00:33:17,400 Speaker 2: bigger later on. The quality of life in portorioes great. 730 00:33:17,440 --> 00:33:19,280 Speaker 2: You are probably going to live a higher quality of 731 00:33:19,280 --> 00:33:21,880 Speaker 2: life than you did in the US. You are living 732 00:33:21,880 --> 00:33:24,440 Speaker 2: in a beautiful island that has great weather most of 733 00:33:24,480 --> 00:33:26,800 Speaker 2: the year. Like I think for most people, they don't 734 00:33:26,800 --> 00:33:29,720 Speaker 2: see it as a sacrifice necessarily. It's almost an upgrade. 735 00:33:29,760 --> 00:33:32,200 Speaker 1: I feel like when Portorigo gets discussed, the crypto thing 736 00:33:32,240 --> 00:33:35,800 Speaker 1: gets thrown in there. Frequently. There's a decent population of 737 00:33:36,200 --> 00:33:40,040 Speaker 1: crypto enthusiasts and investors. Can the tax savings, Like you know, 738 00:33:39,680 --> 00:33:42,600 Speaker 1: we're fine with people owning a small amount of cryptocurrency, 739 00:33:42,600 --> 00:33:45,960 Speaker 1: bitcoin in particular, but typically we talk about index funds like, hey, 740 00:33:46,080 --> 00:33:48,160 Speaker 1: index funds are the tried and true, boring path to 741 00:33:48,160 --> 00:33:52,760 Speaker 1: building wealth. So that's a great way that people that 742 00:33:52,800 --> 00:33:54,880 Speaker 1: we talk about investing in a way a lot of 743 00:33:54,920 --> 00:33:59,080 Speaker 1: our audience goes about investing. So are the savings or 744 00:33:59,120 --> 00:34:02,720 Speaker 1: the tax saving the same for people who investing cryptocurrency 745 00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:06,120 Speaker 1: and index funds or well, yeah, how would you chop 746 00:34:06,160 --> 00:34:06,479 Speaker 1: that up? 747 00:34:06,640 --> 00:34:10,120 Speaker 2: Same thing. They are all basically like available for trades, 748 00:34:10,160 --> 00:34:15,600 Speaker 2: stocks or securities. Essentially, crypto especially works well, stocks work well, 749 00:34:15,640 --> 00:34:18,320 Speaker 2: index funds work well. It gets a little more complicated 750 00:34:18,400 --> 00:34:20,640 Speaker 2: when you're talking about something that is off the market. 751 00:34:20,760 --> 00:34:23,799 Speaker 2: So if I'm investing in my friend's company, that's a 752 00:34:23,800 --> 00:34:26,719 Speaker 2: little bit hard to value, and so that generally comes 753 00:34:26,760 --> 00:34:29,040 Speaker 2: with a valuation study. But for anything where you can 754 00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:31,799 Speaker 2: get an active dollar amount on it, totally fine. The 755 00:34:31,840 --> 00:34:33,640 Speaker 2: only thing I will say to be a little concerned 756 00:34:33,680 --> 00:34:35,760 Speaker 2: about is if you were going the hedge fund route, 757 00:34:35,760 --> 00:34:37,799 Speaker 2: and I think that's a lot less popular unless you 758 00:34:37,840 --> 00:34:40,080 Speaker 2: are quite high net worth. But the idea of hedge 759 00:34:40,120 --> 00:34:43,000 Speaker 2: fund manager is they are actually initiating the trades for you, 760 00:34:43,880 --> 00:34:46,400 Speaker 2: and so because of that, that tends to be sourced 761 00:34:46,400 --> 00:34:48,439 Speaker 2: to where they are located and not sourced to where 762 00:34:48,480 --> 00:34:51,280 Speaker 2: you are located. But I've never had clients have issues 763 00:34:51,320 --> 00:34:53,279 Speaker 2: with index funds, and a lot of people end up 764 00:34:53,320 --> 00:34:55,560 Speaker 2: using the extra money to explore new types of investments. 765 00:34:55,600 --> 00:34:56,959 Speaker 2: So I have a lot of people that are doing 766 00:34:57,320 --> 00:35:00,279 Speaker 2: box spreads now right. So they liked index fund they 767 00:35:00,320 --> 00:35:02,799 Speaker 2: like the security, the low risk, right, and they found 768 00:35:02,800 --> 00:35:05,200 Speaker 2: that box spreads were a really great option to also 769 00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:07,960 Speaker 2: get a very low risk investment with sometimes a higher 770 00:35:07,960 --> 00:35:10,600 Speaker 2: return and get that source back to Puerto Rico. There 771 00:35:10,600 --> 00:35:13,120 Speaker 2: are some really great financial advisors in Puerto Rico as 772 00:35:13,120 --> 00:35:15,760 Speaker 2: well that can assist you with that. There are people 773 00:35:15,760 --> 00:35:19,440 Speaker 2: that literally only specialize in helping getting all your investments 774 00:35:19,440 --> 00:35:22,360 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico sourced. And so those are great conversations that 775 00:35:22,400 --> 00:35:24,319 Speaker 2: you can kind of have with one of those people 776 00:35:24,360 --> 00:35:25,520 Speaker 2: if you do decide to move down. 777 00:35:25,680 --> 00:35:28,279 Speaker 1: So when the rubber meets the road, when you're talking 778 00:35:28,320 --> 00:35:30,319 Speaker 1: to people, what sort of thresholds do they need to 779 00:35:30,360 --> 00:35:33,200 Speaker 1: meet to make it makes sense to even consider this. 780 00:35:33,320 --> 00:35:36,080 Speaker 1: So obviously there's a lot of personal factors to talk about, 781 00:35:36,160 --> 00:35:39,919 Speaker 1: kids and schools and community all that stuff. Like, there's 782 00:35:39,920 --> 00:35:41,640 Speaker 1: a lot of reasons I'm not moving to Puerto Rico, 783 00:35:41,680 --> 00:35:44,839 Speaker 1: even after talking to you. But I could see it 784 00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:47,879 Speaker 1: for certain people in other phases of their lives and 785 00:35:48,280 --> 00:35:52,080 Speaker 1: who have other goals and you know, other tax situations 786 00:35:52,080 --> 00:35:54,560 Speaker 1: that they're dealing with, saying oh, yeah, I think this, 787 00:35:54,920 --> 00:35:57,360 Speaker 1: I should at least consider this. What sort of questions 788 00:35:57,400 --> 00:36:00,520 Speaker 1: would you ask them to help them to side whether 789 00:36:00,600 --> 00:36:03,520 Speaker 1: or not this made sense? And like, is there a 790 00:36:03,520 --> 00:36:06,680 Speaker 1: way even maybe to look backwards at how much tax 791 00:36:06,719 --> 00:36:10,160 Speaker 1: you've paid in recent years and say, oh, I think 792 00:36:10,280 --> 00:36:12,960 Speaker 1: I think you you make sense for you or actually 793 00:36:13,360 --> 00:36:15,520 Speaker 1: you're not really in the ballpark, you're not paying enough 794 00:36:15,760 --> 00:36:17,439 Speaker 1: tax where this sort of movement makes sense. 795 00:36:17,680 --> 00:36:19,400 Speaker 2: Yeah. So I don't love to give a dollar amount 796 00:36:19,440 --> 00:36:22,319 Speaker 2: for people, because ten thousand dollars means something different to 797 00:36:22,360 --> 00:36:24,239 Speaker 2: me than it might mean to you. Right, And so 798 00:36:24,400 --> 00:36:27,240 Speaker 2: I have people that move down making maybe two hundred 799 00:36:27,280 --> 00:36:29,560 Speaker 2: thousand dollars a year and they're like, Wow, these tax 800 00:36:29,600 --> 00:36:31,400 Speaker 2: savings mean so much to me. I have people that 801 00:36:31,440 --> 00:36:33,799 Speaker 2: I talk to that make twenty million dollars a year 802 00:36:33,840 --> 00:36:36,040 Speaker 2: that are like, Nope, not worth it to me. So 803 00:36:36,120 --> 00:36:38,520 Speaker 2: I don't love to give a dollar amount for that. 804 00:36:38,840 --> 00:36:40,920 Speaker 2: But what I will say. The question I always ask 805 00:36:41,080 --> 00:36:43,200 Speaker 2: is are you actually willing to move for at least 806 00:36:43,239 --> 00:36:46,160 Speaker 2: three years of your life? I get a lot of questions, Hey, 807 00:36:46,160 --> 00:36:48,719 Speaker 2: can I just VPN down? Oh? Can my wife and 808 00:36:48,800 --> 00:36:50,799 Speaker 2: kids stay back there? Oh? I want to maintain my 809 00:36:50,840 --> 00:36:52,520 Speaker 2: life in the US, and I want to go back 810 00:36:52,920 --> 00:36:55,600 Speaker 2: all the time and spend weekends in Puerto Rico. The 811 00:36:55,640 --> 00:36:57,279 Speaker 2: reality is is that you do need to move for 812 00:36:57,320 --> 00:36:58,880 Speaker 2: three years of your life. And if that is not 813 00:36:58,960 --> 00:37:02,040 Speaker 2: something that you'd even be willing to consider, then I 814 00:37:02,080 --> 00:37:05,080 Speaker 2: don't think this is the program for you. In terms 815 00:37:05,080 --> 00:37:08,600 Speaker 2: of who else this would fit for. I mean investors, entrepreneurs, 816 00:37:08,640 --> 00:37:11,719 Speaker 2: people that have a side hustle even right, people that 817 00:37:11,760 --> 00:37:14,319 Speaker 2: are w two workers that think that their employer will 818 00:37:14,320 --> 00:37:16,840 Speaker 2: be flexible. There are a lot of different ways that 819 00:37:16,880 --> 00:37:18,759 Speaker 2: you can kind of look at this. I don't think 820 00:37:18,800 --> 00:37:21,120 Speaker 2: there's a one size fit all model. Besides the fact 821 00:37:21,120 --> 00:37:24,479 Speaker 2: that everyone that moves down is actually willing to move 822 00:37:24,560 --> 00:37:27,640 Speaker 2: and commit to a life down there for usually about 823 00:37:27,680 --> 00:37:28,160 Speaker 2: three years. 824 00:37:28,440 --> 00:37:31,080 Speaker 1: Okay, a few more questions for you about Puerto Rico, 825 00:37:31,160 --> 00:37:33,279 Speaker 1: what it's like to live there, and kind of some 826 00:37:33,320 --> 00:37:35,080 Speaker 1: of those trade offs that people are going to experience 827 00:37:35,120 --> 00:37:36,839 Speaker 1: if they do say, yeah, I want to pay less 828 00:37:36,840 --> 00:37:38,680 Speaker 1: in tax, so I'm going to make this jump. We'll 829 00:37:38,719 --> 00:37:40,640 Speaker 1: get to a few more questions with Rachel right after this. 830 00:37:48,440 --> 00:37:50,680 Speaker 1: Right we're back from the break, still talking with Rachel 831 00:37:50,960 --> 00:37:55,160 Speaker 1: Ferris about acting your tax bill by moving, by leaving 832 00:37:55,239 --> 00:37:57,440 Speaker 1: where you live and all that you love to go 833 00:37:57,520 --> 00:38:00,880 Speaker 1: someplace for and a new Just kidding, I'm sure Puerto 834 00:38:00,960 --> 00:38:03,880 Speaker 1: Rico is I'm curious what is the XPAP population of 835 00:38:03,920 --> 00:38:06,960 Speaker 1: Puerto Rico now, Rachel, because like, are people going to 836 00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:10,040 Speaker 1: feel like they're running in similar circles with Mainlanders or 837 00:38:10,080 --> 00:38:13,200 Speaker 1: is it like what's the cultural shock of moving to 838 00:38:13,320 --> 00:38:14,719 Speaker 1: the island of Puerto Rico these days? 839 00:38:14,880 --> 00:38:16,480 Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I'm not going to sugarcoat it. It 840 00:38:16,520 --> 00:38:19,120 Speaker 2: is different in some ways. You can find community as 841 00:38:19,160 --> 00:38:22,120 Speaker 2: a fully English speaking people that feel like you're at home. 842 00:38:22,160 --> 00:38:23,960 Speaker 2: I know, I spend a good chunk of my year 843 00:38:24,000 --> 00:38:26,080 Speaker 2: down there, and when I go down there, besides the 844 00:38:26,160 --> 00:38:28,640 Speaker 2: nice speeches in the warm weather, I find that most 845 00:38:28,680 --> 00:38:30,960 Speaker 2: people I'm interacting with are very similar to the people 846 00:38:31,000 --> 00:38:34,000 Speaker 2: I'd be interacting with back in California. That being said, 847 00:38:34,000 --> 00:38:37,640 Speaker 2: when I leave those axpac communities it is predominantly Spanish 848 00:38:37,640 --> 00:38:39,279 Speaker 2: speaking and I'm not saying you need to learn to 849 00:38:39,320 --> 00:38:41,400 Speaker 2: speak Spanish. You can get by with English. Most people 850 00:38:41,480 --> 00:38:43,799 Speaker 2: know English. But again, it is a little bit of 851 00:38:43,840 --> 00:38:46,799 Speaker 2: a culture change where you're seeing menus in Spanish, you're 852 00:38:47,120 --> 00:38:49,760 Speaker 2: having to deal with, you know, getting your driver's license, 853 00:38:49,840 --> 00:38:52,120 Speaker 2: and you're having to deal with setting up utilities, and 854 00:38:52,160 --> 00:38:55,239 Speaker 2: sometimes they don't speak English, or sometimes the repair guide 855 00:38:55,239 --> 00:38:57,959 Speaker 2: doesn't speak English. Right. I found that most people don't 856 00:38:57,960 --> 00:39:00,719 Speaker 2: have huge issues with that. There are are very good 857 00:39:00,840 --> 00:39:03,440 Speaker 2: xpat communities that can refer you off to the best people. 858 00:39:03,560 --> 00:39:07,359 Speaker 2: So rather than finding some random handyman on Yelp, you 859 00:39:07,400 --> 00:39:09,120 Speaker 2: can talk to your neighbor and they're like, oh, we 860 00:39:09,200 --> 00:39:11,759 Speaker 2: use this guy all the time. He's super reliable, he's 861 00:39:11,800 --> 00:39:15,319 Speaker 2: easy to communicate with, boom, super easy. I would say 862 00:39:15,400 --> 00:39:17,239 Speaker 2: the big thing that I do notice for people though, 863 00:39:17,360 --> 00:39:21,040 Speaker 2: is one sometimes the quality of service is a little different. 864 00:39:21,120 --> 00:39:23,920 Speaker 2: So especially you know, girls like to get their nails done, 865 00:39:23,960 --> 00:39:25,400 Speaker 2: they get to like to get their hair done, might 866 00:39:25,400 --> 00:39:27,239 Speaker 2: get like to get their hair dyed. A lot of 867 00:39:27,239 --> 00:39:29,439 Speaker 2: people actually end up still going back to the US 868 00:39:29,480 --> 00:39:32,279 Speaker 2: for things like that just because they're used to kind 869 00:39:32,320 --> 00:39:36,479 Speaker 2: of a certain level of service. That being said, things 870 00:39:36,480 --> 00:39:39,160 Speaker 2: like dental and healthcare. It's decent down there. If you're 871 00:39:39,160 --> 00:39:41,520 Speaker 2: going to get a big surgery, I would say go 872 00:39:41,600 --> 00:39:43,600 Speaker 2: to the United States. Don't get the surgery done in 873 00:39:43,600 --> 00:39:46,920 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico. But if you're doing regular kind of screenings 874 00:39:46,920 --> 00:39:49,319 Speaker 2: and you just have your primary care doctor in Puerto Rico, 875 00:39:49,719 --> 00:39:52,000 Speaker 2: completely fine. Most of the people are actually trained in 876 00:39:52,040 --> 00:39:54,239 Speaker 2: the US and then they move down to Puerto Rico, 877 00:39:54,360 --> 00:39:56,719 Speaker 2: so you're getting a pretty high level of service. I 878 00:39:56,800 --> 00:39:59,520 Speaker 2: think the other big thing to mention is the electricity 879 00:39:59,560 --> 00:40:05,000 Speaker 2: grid that is always, always always in the news. Reality 880 00:40:05,120 --> 00:40:07,280 Speaker 2: is is that if you were coming down as an expat, 881 00:40:07,600 --> 00:40:09,440 Speaker 2: hopefully you have a certain amount of money to get 882 00:40:09,440 --> 00:40:12,680 Speaker 2: a place with a generator, you usually don't have any issues. 883 00:40:12,760 --> 00:40:15,480 Speaker 2: I personally have never had an issue with electricity at 884 00:40:15,480 --> 00:40:17,920 Speaker 2: my place. My building has a generator and it just 885 00:40:17,960 --> 00:40:20,279 Speaker 2: snaps on like that. The lights will go off for 886 00:40:20,320 --> 00:40:22,640 Speaker 2: like a half a second, and I've never had a 887 00:40:22,680 --> 00:40:25,160 Speaker 2: problem with it. I do know people that decide to 888 00:40:25,200 --> 00:40:28,520 Speaker 2: live in areas where maybe it's not the higher quality 889 00:40:28,560 --> 00:40:30,520 Speaker 2: of living. And I'm not talking about like the nice 890 00:40:30,560 --> 00:40:33,120 Speaker 2: areas of San Juan and Condato. I'm talking like they're 891 00:40:33,160 --> 00:40:35,439 Speaker 2: living Ring Cone by the beach in a little shack 892 00:40:35,480 --> 00:40:37,520 Speaker 2: because they want to serve all the time. Those people 893 00:40:37,560 --> 00:40:39,920 Speaker 2: tend to deal with those electricity issues a little. 894 00:40:39,760 --> 00:40:43,600 Speaker 1: Bit more, okay. And hurricanes, that's another issue that you 895 00:40:43,640 --> 00:40:46,439 Speaker 1: deal with when you live in Puerto Rico. How big 896 00:40:46,480 --> 00:40:48,520 Speaker 1: of a problem is that, because I would think that'd 897 00:40:48,560 --> 00:40:50,880 Speaker 1: be that could be a little little frightening to live 898 00:40:50,920 --> 00:40:52,000 Speaker 1: there during a hurricane season. 899 00:40:52,360 --> 00:40:55,319 Speaker 2: Yeah. So here's my hot tip, because I since I've 900 00:40:55,320 --> 00:40:58,600 Speaker 2: been living there, I actually have never experienced a legitimate hurricane. 901 00:40:58,840 --> 00:41:02,160 Speaker 2: Obviously a hurricane back in twenty twelve that just wiped 902 00:41:02,200 --> 00:41:05,160 Speaker 2: things out. My tip is what I do is if 903 00:41:05,200 --> 00:41:07,440 Speaker 2: I hear a little musing about a hurricane coming, I 904 00:41:07,480 --> 00:41:10,319 Speaker 2: book a refundable flight for every single day that week, 905 00:41:10,400 --> 00:41:13,000 Speaker 2: so Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday onwards. And if I don't 906 00:41:13,000 --> 00:41:15,480 Speaker 2: feel like I need to leave, refund the flight, Refund 907 00:41:15,480 --> 00:41:17,400 Speaker 2: the flight, refund the flight. If I do feel like 908 00:41:17,440 --> 00:41:19,560 Speaker 2: I need to leave, boom, I have a flight already 909 00:41:19,560 --> 00:41:22,160 Speaker 2: ready for me. There are some great airports in Puerto Rico, 910 00:41:22,440 --> 00:41:24,840 Speaker 2: very easy to get off island, and so that's what 911 00:41:24,920 --> 00:41:27,600 Speaker 2: I really suggest for most people. Again, if you're not 912 00:41:27,719 --> 00:41:29,560 Speaker 2: living right on the beach, you shouldn't have an issue 913 00:41:29,600 --> 00:41:32,320 Speaker 2: if you're living in a bigger building. My building is concrete, 914 00:41:32,480 --> 00:41:36,280 Speaker 2: nice new I have never worried about flooding or windows 915 00:41:36,280 --> 00:41:39,560 Speaker 2: being broken or things like that. Necessarily, if you're gonna 916 00:41:39,560 --> 00:41:42,080 Speaker 2: stand alone home shack right on the beach, yeah you 917 00:41:42,120 --> 00:41:44,160 Speaker 2: probably do have something to worry about. But a lot 918 00:41:44,200 --> 00:41:46,200 Speaker 2: of people end up traveling during that time, or if 919 00:41:46,200 --> 00:41:47,840 Speaker 2: they do need to stay on island, they do the 920 00:41:47,880 --> 00:41:51,520 Speaker 2: flight trick. Like I just mentioned, hurricane season is generally 921 00:41:51,560 --> 00:41:54,520 Speaker 2: through kind of late summer early fall, and so it's 922 00:41:54,600 --> 00:41:56,319 Speaker 2: kind of the perfect time to escape the heat of 923 00:41:56,360 --> 00:41:59,120 Speaker 2: Puerto Rico and go see family back in the US, 924 00:41:59,239 --> 00:42:01,239 Speaker 2: or go to Europe and travel for a bit, or 925 00:42:01,440 --> 00:42:03,839 Speaker 2: check out another place for the summer and enjoy your time. 926 00:42:04,480 --> 00:42:06,960 Speaker 2: A lot of people don't even live there during hurricane season, 927 00:42:07,000 --> 00:42:08,600 Speaker 2: so it's not something you need to worry about. 928 00:42:09,200 --> 00:42:13,359 Speaker 1: You mentioned the hospitality of the locals. But I've seen 929 00:42:13,440 --> 00:42:16,480 Speaker 1: too that there has been some pushback. Like I was 930 00:42:16,520 --> 00:42:18,879 Speaker 1: in Hawaii recently and I saw these signs up, these 931 00:42:18,880 --> 00:42:22,400 Speaker 1: like anti resort building signs. So even in you know, 932 00:42:22,960 --> 00:42:25,960 Speaker 1: the actual like United States, a state in the United States, 933 00:42:26,280 --> 00:42:29,640 Speaker 1: there are people who are against some of the forms 934 00:42:29,680 --> 00:42:32,200 Speaker 1: of tourism that happen, and they don't They don't want 935 00:42:32,239 --> 00:42:37,640 Speaker 1: to see maybe their precious local resources used by people 936 00:42:37,640 --> 00:42:40,680 Speaker 1: they don't perceive as locals. So I have seen some 937 00:42:40,760 --> 00:42:42,960 Speaker 1: of that pushback. What does that look like, what sort 938 00:42:43,000 --> 00:42:46,279 Speaker 1: of frustrations exist? And then how do people that you 939 00:42:46,960 --> 00:42:48,600 Speaker 1: have helped move down there deal with that? 940 00:42:49,040 --> 00:42:52,640 Speaker 2: Yeah, that's a really great question. Yeah, there obviously are 941 00:42:52,680 --> 00:42:54,799 Speaker 2: people that are discontent with it. I will say it's 942 00:42:54,880 --> 00:42:57,239 Speaker 2: less on the government side and sometimes more on the 943 00:42:57,280 --> 00:43:00,440 Speaker 2: actual people living their side. We don't see pro tests 944 00:43:00,520 --> 00:43:03,359 Speaker 2: or things like that. Within the communities. It's a lot 945 00:43:03,400 --> 00:43:06,880 Speaker 2: of times more discontent towards the actual politicians that have 946 00:43:06,920 --> 00:43:10,120 Speaker 2: put it in place, not necessarily against the foreigners who 947 00:43:10,120 --> 00:43:13,160 Speaker 2: are spending their money. Most people actually like the fact that, 948 00:43:13,480 --> 00:43:16,279 Speaker 2: you know, people are spending money in the economy. What 949 00:43:16,320 --> 00:43:18,640 Speaker 2: they don't like is that real estate prices are going 950 00:43:18,719 --> 00:43:21,120 Speaker 2: up in some of those more expat areas, and it's 951 00:43:21,160 --> 00:43:25,399 Speaker 2: pricing some people out, and that's really unfortunate. What I found, though, 952 00:43:25,440 --> 00:43:26,960 Speaker 2: is that the way that the government has kind of 953 00:43:26,960 --> 00:43:30,160 Speaker 2: circumvented this is that they actually require as part of 954 00:43:30,200 --> 00:43:33,000 Speaker 2: your decree to give ten thousand dollars every single year 955 00:43:33,160 --> 00:43:36,040 Speaker 2: to a Puerto Rican charity, and so that's really helped 956 00:43:36,120 --> 00:43:38,879 Speaker 2: kind of rebrand the idea of what ac sexety really 957 00:43:38,880 --> 00:43:42,239 Speaker 2: looks like. You're helping out local people. Five thousand dollars 958 00:43:42,280 --> 00:43:45,280 Speaker 2: of that actually needs to go to eradicating child poverty, 959 00:43:45,600 --> 00:43:48,040 Speaker 2: and so you're helping uplift the population in a lot 960 00:43:48,080 --> 00:43:51,279 Speaker 2: of wayte possible. They sometimes require people as part of 961 00:43:51,320 --> 00:43:53,720 Speaker 2: the decree to go to career fairs or to speak 962 00:43:53,920 --> 00:43:57,400 Speaker 2: on different boards, different appearances every single year to really 963 00:43:57,719 --> 00:44:01,000 Speaker 2: engage with the local community. Obviously there are still people 964 00:44:01,040 --> 00:44:04,000 Speaker 2: that never leave their little resort community, but as a whole, 965 00:44:04,480 --> 00:44:07,279 Speaker 2: I think especially in the areas with a lot of expats. Yes, 966 00:44:07,320 --> 00:44:10,080 Speaker 2: people are discontent with the housing prices and that there 967 00:44:10,120 --> 00:44:12,560 Speaker 2: are some unfair parts about sixty, but a lot of 968 00:44:12,560 --> 00:44:15,239 Speaker 2: people are very happy about the income coming in. And 969 00:44:15,320 --> 00:44:17,560 Speaker 2: one thing that the government actually did to make things 970 00:44:17,600 --> 00:44:19,840 Speaker 2: a little bit more equal is that they're now allowing 971 00:44:19,880 --> 00:44:24,080 Speaker 2: Puerto Rican residents that are local not necessarily ACT sixty participants, 972 00:44:24,120 --> 00:44:26,560 Speaker 2: to also take advantage of some of those tax rules, 973 00:44:26,800 --> 00:44:29,440 Speaker 2: so that four percent corporate income tax will now be 974 00:44:29,480 --> 00:44:32,880 Speaker 2: allowed to be applied for by local Puerto Ricans as well. Beforehand, 975 00:44:32,920 --> 00:44:35,479 Speaker 2: it was just reserved for expats and people moving down. 976 00:44:35,719 --> 00:44:37,600 Speaker 2: So they're trying to even the playing field a little 977 00:44:37,600 --> 00:44:39,920 Speaker 2: bit more now that they've gotten that money coming in. 978 00:44:40,040 --> 00:44:42,880 Speaker 2: So I think people are starting to look up at 979 00:44:42,960 --> 00:44:45,719 Speaker 2: least on a lot of those attitudes. And overall, I 980 00:44:45,719 --> 00:44:49,760 Speaker 2: mean it's brought multi hundreds of millions of dollars essentially 981 00:44:49,800 --> 00:44:52,520 Speaker 2: into the Puerto Rican economy that a lot of the 982 00:44:52,560 --> 00:44:57,320 Speaker 2: areas have improved multifold, especially in Dorado and the popular areas. 983 00:44:57,800 --> 00:45:00,200 Speaker 1: No, it makes sense. It makes sense as u as 984 00:45:00,200 --> 00:45:05,040 Speaker 1: an island. Who's that's trying to, you know, incentivize investment 985 00:45:05,360 --> 00:45:09,120 Speaker 1: and revitalization that bring people down even with those tax 986 00:45:09,280 --> 00:45:12,480 Speaker 1: benefits that they offer. That's the incentive, and then hopefully 987 00:45:12,480 --> 00:45:15,160 Speaker 1: those people stick around and they are doing good in 988 00:45:15,200 --> 00:45:18,200 Speaker 1: the community. I'm curious, what would you say to somebody 989 00:45:18,239 --> 00:45:23,520 Speaker 1: who's been listening and they're skeptical or they're like, it's 990 00:45:23,560 --> 00:45:26,600 Speaker 1: interesting and it's cool, but it sounds like maybe it's 991 00:45:26,640 --> 00:45:31,480 Speaker 1: for people with like yacht sort of money, or like 992 00:45:31,560 --> 00:45:33,880 Speaker 1: it's it's not for people like me. What would you 993 00:45:33,880 --> 00:45:34,600 Speaker 1: say to those people? 994 00:45:34,920 --> 00:45:37,880 Speaker 2: I think Act Sexety is a great example of understanding 995 00:45:37,880 --> 00:45:40,080 Speaker 2: the rules of the game. This used to be something 996 00:45:40,080 --> 00:45:42,680 Speaker 2: that was only accessible to the ultra high net worth 997 00:45:42,840 --> 00:45:45,480 Speaker 2: that were able to get this information, and slowly and 998 00:45:45,520 --> 00:45:48,400 Speaker 2: slowly it's starting to open up to more people. I 999 00:45:48,440 --> 00:45:51,560 Speaker 2: think that if you want to secure financial freedom for yourself, 1000 00:45:52,000 --> 00:45:54,040 Speaker 2: this is a great opportunity. You don't need to be 1001 00:45:54,080 --> 00:45:56,480 Speaker 2: making tens millions and hundreds of millions of dollars to 1002 00:45:56,480 --> 00:45:59,920 Speaker 2: take advantage of this. In reality, your decree will get approved, 1003 00:46:00,000 --> 00:46:02,640 Speaker 2: and even if you're only saving a couple tens of 1004 00:46:02,640 --> 00:46:05,000 Speaker 2: thousands of dollars a year, if that's worth it to 1005 00:46:05,000 --> 00:46:07,200 Speaker 2: you for a few years of your life, it's pretty 1006 00:46:07,200 --> 00:46:09,680 Speaker 2: easy to get down there. I would suggest reaching out 1007 00:46:09,719 --> 00:46:12,080 Speaker 2: to professionals like myself. A lot of us offer free 1008 00:46:12,080 --> 00:46:15,319 Speaker 2: consultations where we can talk you through what eligibility looks like. 1009 00:46:15,600 --> 00:46:18,319 Speaker 2: We can go through your previous tax returns and say, hey, 1010 00:46:18,360 --> 00:46:19,800 Speaker 2: this is the amount you would have saved in the 1011 00:46:19,880 --> 00:46:22,560 Speaker 2: last five years if you actually moved down. It'll give 1012 00:46:22,600 --> 00:46:25,240 Speaker 2: you a really great picture for it. And most people 1013 00:46:25,360 --> 00:46:28,040 Speaker 2: just want to inform people about the benefits of Puerto Rico, 1014 00:46:28,120 --> 00:46:30,880 Speaker 2: So reach out to any of the professionals hear about 1015 00:46:30,880 --> 00:46:33,279 Speaker 2: it and In reality, what you should understand is, yeah, 1016 00:46:33,360 --> 00:46:35,520 Speaker 2: a lot of the clients I do have are multimillionaires. 1017 00:46:35,680 --> 00:46:38,000 Speaker 2: I actually have a client right now that makes zero dollars. 1018 00:46:38,040 --> 00:46:40,959 Speaker 2: They're starting a new business. So there is a huge 1019 00:46:41,000 --> 00:46:43,440 Speaker 2: spectra of people moving down. It's just more about the 1020 00:46:43,480 --> 00:46:46,360 Speaker 2: attitude behind moving So don't be afraid if you're making 1021 00:46:46,640 --> 00:46:48,799 Speaker 2: one hundred, one hundred and fifty thousand dollars a year. 1022 00:46:48,960 --> 00:46:51,000 Speaker 2: If it's worth it to you, it's worth it to you, 1023 00:46:51,200 --> 00:46:54,800 Speaker 2: and it's easy to file through the process. Compliance is 1024 00:46:54,840 --> 00:46:56,520 Speaker 2: a little bit trickier, but if you are a one 1025 00:46:56,560 --> 00:46:59,360 Speaker 2: man operation you're just dealing with investments, you're going to 1026 00:46:59,400 --> 00:47:01,719 Speaker 2: be pretty simple. It gets more complicated in the fees 1027 00:47:01,760 --> 00:47:05,000 Speaker 2: get a lot heavier when you have multinational organizations and 1028 00:47:05,000 --> 00:47:07,839 Speaker 2: international entities and trusts in the States you're dealing with. 1029 00:47:08,120 --> 00:47:11,759 Speaker 2: If you're just Joshmo out of Ohio and you want 1030 00:47:11,760 --> 00:47:12,960 Speaker 2: to move down and you just have a lot of 1031 00:47:13,040 --> 00:47:15,040 Speaker 2: investments and you want to check it out, it's going 1032 00:47:15,080 --> 00:47:16,719 Speaker 2: to be a pretty easy process for you, and I 1033 00:47:16,719 --> 00:47:20,200 Speaker 2: wouldn't be overly concerned about qualifying your eligibility. 1034 00:47:20,360 --> 00:47:24,040 Speaker 1: Okay, Rachel, this has been an enlightening conversation. Thank you 1035 00:47:24,080 --> 00:47:26,560 Speaker 1: so much work. Can listeners find out more about you 1036 00:47:26,800 --> 00:47:27,760 Speaker 1: if they're curious? 1037 00:47:28,080 --> 00:47:31,480 Speaker 2: Yeah, definitely. So. I have an online education course at 1038 00:47:31,520 --> 00:47:35,160 Speaker 2: maximizewell dot com. It walks you through just the basics 1039 00:47:35,280 --> 00:47:37,560 Speaker 2: of what Act sixty compliance look like, how to file 1040 00:47:37,600 --> 00:47:40,720 Speaker 2: the application, how to look at compliance even after you apply. 1041 00:47:41,520 --> 00:47:44,040 Speaker 2: There's a free kind of little preview on there as 1042 00:47:44,040 --> 00:47:46,640 Speaker 2: well that you can look through. Alternatively, if you want 1043 00:47:46,640 --> 00:47:49,840 Speaker 2: to talk to me, my website is Rachel ferriscpa dot com. 1044 00:47:49,880 --> 00:47:53,160 Speaker 2: I offer free consultations to anyone who's looking to move down. 1045 00:47:53,480 --> 00:47:55,360 Speaker 2: You can read some of the articles on my website 1046 00:47:55,360 --> 00:47:57,520 Speaker 2: get a better picture for what Act sixty looks like, 1047 00:47:57,880 --> 00:47:59,279 Speaker 2: or you can just book a call with me and 1048 00:47:59,320 --> 00:48:00,880 Speaker 2: I'd be happy to talk you through everything. 1049 00:48:01,400 --> 00:48:05,600 Speaker 1: Awesome, Thank you, Rachel, appreciate it, of course, Thanks joll okay. 1050 00:48:05,600 --> 00:48:09,719 Speaker 1: So that was a fun conversation, and interestingly, it's one 1051 00:48:09,760 --> 00:48:13,800 Speaker 1: I debated a lot before inviting Rachel on the show 1052 00:48:13,920 --> 00:48:16,040 Speaker 1: because I was like, I don't know this is what 1053 00:48:16,160 --> 00:48:19,600 Speaker 1: this seems like one of those tax dodging strategies for 1054 00:48:19,760 --> 00:48:22,759 Speaker 1: multimillionaires sorts of sorts of things, and I know that 1055 00:48:22,760 --> 00:48:26,200 Speaker 1: the How To Money audience wants to be multimillionaire someday, 1056 00:48:26,239 --> 00:48:30,880 Speaker 1: But we're mostly normal people, right, offering advice for normal 1057 00:48:30,920 --> 00:48:33,160 Speaker 1: folks to be able to make progress with their personal 1058 00:48:33,200 --> 00:48:37,520 Speaker 1: finances on the margins and eventually achieve financial independence at 1059 00:48:37,600 --> 00:48:41,000 Speaker 1: vastly earlier rates than most people. But I think Rachel 1060 00:48:41,080 --> 00:48:42,920 Speaker 1: made a good point in there, and probably my big 1061 00:48:42,960 --> 00:48:46,160 Speaker 1: takeaway is that, yeah, it's really hard to set a 1062 00:48:46,160 --> 00:48:49,920 Speaker 1: guideline and say that a person needs to have a 1063 00:48:49,960 --> 00:48:53,080 Speaker 1: ten million dollar net worth or a one hundred thousand 1064 00:48:53,160 --> 00:48:55,880 Speaker 1: dollars salary. Well, that's not going to be enough saving. 1065 00:48:55,960 --> 00:48:59,920 Speaker 1: So so much of it depends on what your value've 1066 00:49:00,160 --> 00:49:02,680 Speaker 1: you ten thousand dollars and the trade off of moving 1067 00:49:02,680 --> 00:49:06,799 Speaker 1: elsewhere for years in order to realize tax savings. And 1068 00:49:06,880 --> 00:49:09,120 Speaker 1: so I thought this was actually one of the things 1069 00:49:09,120 --> 00:49:12,480 Speaker 1: that this highlighted for me this conversation was just the 1070 00:49:12,560 --> 00:49:17,480 Speaker 1: fact that when you look for tax savings or when 1071 00:49:17,520 --> 00:49:20,320 Speaker 1: you have an idea of this is what Rachel address 1072 00:49:20,400 --> 00:49:21,960 Speaker 1: kind of at the very in there of how the 1073 00:49:22,000 --> 00:49:25,040 Speaker 1: game works, it helps you wrap your mind around a 1074 00:49:25,080 --> 00:49:28,320 Speaker 1: little more and maybe you find tax savings in places 1075 00:49:28,640 --> 00:49:31,719 Speaker 1: that you didn't otherwise assume. So even even on the 1076 00:49:31,760 --> 00:49:35,919 Speaker 1: mainland United States. Right, there are tax benefits such as 1077 00:49:36,040 --> 00:49:39,160 Speaker 1: real estate professional status. If you are a real estate 1078 00:49:39,200 --> 00:49:42,280 Speaker 1: investor and you know more of your time is spent 1079 00:49:42,360 --> 00:49:44,680 Speaker 1: doing real estate than it is doing your day job, 1080 00:49:45,160 --> 00:49:47,480 Speaker 1: there are significant tax benefits you can receive, or there 1081 00:49:47,480 --> 00:49:50,560 Speaker 1: are opportunity zones for real estate investors. I mean, there's 1082 00:49:50,600 --> 00:49:56,560 Speaker 1: all sorts of different tax benefits that incentivize us to 1083 00:49:56,640 --> 00:50:00,160 Speaker 1: do different things. And this is just a really real 1084 00:50:00,360 --> 00:50:03,400 Speaker 1: big one, right, like big tax benefits for a big 1085 00:50:03,480 --> 00:50:08,239 Speaker 1: move in order to attract investment to an island that 1086 00:50:09,040 --> 00:50:12,600 Speaker 1: was under capitalized and that didn't have the sort of 1087 00:50:12,800 --> 00:50:15,919 Speaker 1: capital that it needed to get built up in Prive. 1088 00:50:16,040 --> 00:50:19,480 Speaker 1: And so I just I thought this was interesting. And 1089 00:50:20,120 --> 00:50:22,640 Speaker 1: my guess is that the vast majority of you aren't 1090 00:50:22,680 --> 00:50:26,400 Speaker 1: buying playing tickets and moving tomorrow. But I hope you 1091 00:50:26,480 --> 00:50:29,480 Speaker 1: found it at least enlightening and it got you thinking 1092 00:50:29,800 --> 00:50:32,759 Speaker 1: about what am I paying in taxes? And are there 1093 00:50:32,800 --> 00:50:35,360 Speaker 1: interesting ways that I can save that I hadn't thought about? 1094 00:50:35,640 --> 00:50:38,440 Speaker 1: And I don't know, maybe for a small handful of you, 1095 00:50:38,440 --> 00:50:41,680 Speaker 1: you might say, actually, I didn't realize that I could 1096 00:50:41,719 --> 00:50:45,320 Speaker 1: save so dang much and run my business from Puerto 1097 00:50:45,400 --> 00:50:47,360 Speaker 1: Rico and pay a heck of a lot less in 1098 00:50:47,440 --> 00:50:52,439 Speaker 1: tax or be an investor in Puerto Rico and save 1099 00:50:52,480 --> 00:50:55,160 Speaker 1: a lot. And maybe that piqued you're interested enough to 1100 00:50:55,160 --> 00:50:58,919 Speaker 1: look into it a little bit further. But definitely an 1101 00:50:59,080 --> 00:51:02,880 Speaker 1: interesting conversation. And while I'll be staying put, keeping my 1102 00:51:03,000 --> 00:51:06,320 Speaker 1: kids in their schools and staying close to friends and family, 1103 00:51:06,960 --> 00:51:09,000 Speaker 1: you might have other priorities. All Right, that's going to 1104 00:51:09,040 --> 00:51:11,960 Speaker 1: do it for this episode. I hope to see you 1105 00:51:12,000 --> 00:51:15,640 Speaker 1: back here on Friday for our Friday Flights, where we 1106 00:51:15,719 --> 00:51:18,359 Speaker 1: cover the news stories from this week and how they 1107 00:51:18,360 --> 00:51:22,920 Speaker 1: pertain to your personal finances. Until next time, Best Friend Out,