# U.S. Address while aborad



## rodiy2k

Can someone who has experienced this already please help?

Without going into the total story, we plan to expatriate to Malaysia; unfortunately we live in California and understand it’s one of the hardest states to sever your state tax liability with even if you live abroad unless you sever virtually all ties such as California bank and brokerage accounts, driver’s license, voter registration, associations and any property ties.

We’ll be selling our house and leaving shortly thereafter. Like most, we intend to keep our bank accounts with a lot of U.S. cash and to make bill payments,, order merchandise online etc. We must also keep our investment accounts which will have all our retirement assets for future use (we intend to use all the house sale proceeds for the first 10 years of retirement as income since we’ll be retiring before we have access to our pensions, 401Ks or IRA’s) We also need an address for U.S. credit cards.

I was under the understanding that a mail forwarding service like EarthClass can provide a physical street address since that is preferable to just a P.O. box and also it’s required to submit a change of address for most bank brokerage and credit card accounts. We intend to submit changes of address to all the relevant parties before leaving the US and utilizing whatever services they offer once in Malaysia

For tax purposes, however, we’re told that keeping California as the new address will subject us to a California tax return even if we live abroad due to an obvious “intent to return” (the bank accounts etc). If we were to utilize a Miami street address instead of California, can that then be considered our U.S. physical address? I’ve read that establishing residency in a state with no tax can circumvent the need to file state returns in your old home state, at least until you have any California sourced income (we will eventually have that from company pensions but not for 7 or 8 years). One of the other mail companies told me it is illegal to use a mail forwarding address as a residency but what else would you use if you need a physical U.S. address once you live abroad? (Excluding property ownership which we have no intention of doing)

I am confused. Thanks to everyone


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## Bevdeforges

I'll second what BBCWatcher has said. I actually did move overseas from California and I simply sent change of address forms to each of my banks, credit card companies, etc. Only had one small problem concerning California taxes, because I was unable to sell my house there until several months after I had moved to Germany - but ultimately it involved filing a non-resident California tax return.

You actually don't need a US address for credit cards and such. Just send them the change of address and let them deal with it. I have heard that Wells Fargo Bank won't maintain accounts for overseas residents. Well, that's their loss. If that turns out to be true, you should probably switch your accounts before you move and get on with it.

Don't know the laws for Malaysia, but your US drivers license is normally only good for at most a year in a foreign country. You'll have to get a local license (or exchange your license, if that's possible). And you can continue to vote from your last address before leaving the US with no consequences on your voting rights. Just remember to register at the beginning of each year in which there is a federal election. (You can only vote from overseas for President, Senator and Congressional Rep. - which is logical anyhow.)

You will continue to file US tax returns - forever - but that's not really that difficult once you get used to it all. You'll pay taxes on withdrawals from your IRA and/or 401K just like you would have if you stayed in the US, but for other sources of income, you can offset any taxes due with credits for taxes paid in Malaysia (again, no idea how their taxation system works). And you'll have to declare any foreign bank accounts you set up to the Treasury Department. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## rodiy2k

Bevdeforges said:


> I'll second what BBCWatcher has said. I actually did move overseas from California and I simply sent change of address forms to each of my banks, credit card companies, etc. Only had one small problem concerning California taxes, because I was unable to sell my house there until several months after I had moved to Germany - but ultimately it involved filing a non-resident California tax return.
> 
> You actually don't need a US address for credit cards and such. Just send them the change of address and let them deal with it. I have heard that Wells Fargo Bank won't maintain accounts for overseas residents. Well, that's their loss. If that turns out to be true, you should probably switch your accounts before you move and get on with it.
> 
> Don't know the laws for Malaysia, but your US drivers license is normally only good for at most a year in a foreign country. You'll have to get a local license (or exchange your license, if that's possible). And you can continue to vote from your last address before leaving the US with no consequences on your voting rights. Just remember to register at the beginning of each year in which there is a federal election. (You can only vote from overseas for President, Senator and Congressional Rep. - which is logical anyhow.)
> 
> You will continue to file US tax returns - forever - but that's not really that difficult once you get used to it all. You'll pay taxes on withdrawals from your IRA and/or 401K just like you would have if you stayed in the US, but for other sources of income, you can offset any taxes due with credits for taxes paid in Malaysia (again, no idea how their taxation system works). And you'll have to declare any foreign bank accounts you set up to the Treasury Department.
> Cheers,
> Bev


Hi Bev
Thanks for the replies and information. As it turns out, I called TD Ameritrade and they said as long as you don't reside ina country on their restricted list (probably Cuba, Iraq, etc) you can maintain all existing accounts and perform any function you would in the US online. I suppose you wouldn't want to use a U.S. mailing address with an instituition that will provide tax information to the IRS (like 1099 forms) while simultaneously filing returns with a foreign address. I know credit card companies don't generally care; we would probably have to open an account with a card that charges no foreign transaction fees; I'm told Capital One and Pentagon Federal have such cards.

That leaves only U.S. bank accounts; I suppose the "too big to fails" banks shouldn't have an issue maintaining foreign addresses?

I filed US tax returns for the 6 years my Canadian wife and I lived in Canada so know all about that; way too complicated so we paid someone (and still do now due to my wife's Canadian tax-sheltered accounts and our Candian Bank account that we still maintain in Canada for when we go to see relatives). 

I suppose the biggest issue becomes the Calfornia non-resident tax return. Would you recommend filing one even if our expat tax specialist abroad does not recommend it or say it's required? Others have told me that California pursues back taxes on expats harder than any state and that Homeland Security can detain you upn entereing the US even if you had no idea of the liability.

Drivers license: We are up for automatic renewal in 2016 and that will be good for 5 years; you usually need a current one to get a local or international license so we'd probably just let it lapse. Not sure if I'd continue to vote anyway; do you stay registered in your last state forever even if you don't vote for many years?

Thanks for the advice


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## Bevdeforges

rodiy2k said:


> I suppose you wouldn't want to use a U.S. mailing address with an instituition that will provide tax information to the IRS (like 1099 forms) while simultaneously filing returns with a foreign address.


I'm not sure that would cause any particular problem - but it seems silly to maintain a US address just to receive 1099's.


> I know credit card companies don't generally care; we would probably have to open an account with a card that charges no foreign transaction fees; I'm told Capital One and Pentagon Federal have such cards.


There may not be foreign transaction fees, but there will most likely be some form of currency exchange fees. Keep a US credit card, but get a local one for where you're living to avoid the currency exchange issues.



> That leaves only U.S. bank accounts; I suppose the "too big to fails" banks shouldn't have an issue maintaining foreign addresses?


Actually, you may find it easier with smaller banks. Wells Fargo is the only one I've heard about to date that doesn't seem to want to maintain depositors with foreign addresses. 



> I suppose the biggest issue becomes the Calfornia non-resident tax return. Would you recommend filing one even if our expat tax specialist abroad does not recommend it or say it's required? Others have told me that California pursues back taxes on expats harder than any state and that Homeland Security can detain you upn entereing the US even if you had no idea of the liability.


Nonsense. The only California NR return you should file is for the year that you move overseas - to close out your California residency. (Or, if like me, you don't sell your house in California until the year after you move out of the US.)



> Drivers license: We are up for automatic renewal in 2016 and that will be good for 5 years; you usually need a current one to get a local or international license so we'd probably just let it lapse. Not sure if I'd continue to vote anyway; do you stay registered in your last state forever even if you don't vote for many years?


Check the license laws for Malaysia - usually you can only drive on your foreign license for a limited period (up to maybe a year) once you become resident. On the voting, no, I don't vote back there anymore, either. For some folks it's a big deal.
Cheers,
Bev


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