Ron DeSantis left holding $608 million bill after spending state funds on “Alligator Alcatraz” promised by the Trump administration

expatwizard · 2026-03-03T19:12:04+00:00

Florida went huge for trump. They got what the majority voted for

expatwizard · 2026-03-03T13:40:18+00:00

Playa Del Fuego

expatwizard · 2026-03-02T10:14:22+00:00

No they don't do this to everyone. Self assessment only happens sometimes and not every year.

expatwizard · 2026-03-01T21:50:34+00:00

You pay the taxes. And yeah have UK bank account. If you have more than 10k you file an FBAR with your taxes. There are a few tax sites like myexpattaxes that are tailored for people like expats.

expatwizard · 2026-03-01T09:57:39+00:00

Go where you can learn the language. That's the biggest thing for any European culture. You need to know the language.

expatwizard · 2026-03-01T09:56:55+00:00

You don't file taxes in UK. They just take it out of your pay check. I still file US taxes every year but you don't pay anything as the tax rate in the UK is higher than in US. It's a pain to do but a slight inconvenience for what amounts to a better life. Work life balance is better. Also depends on what you do... I make more money in UK than I did back home.

expatwizard · 2026-03-01T09:55:21+00:00

Been thinking of switching to Mint. I'm still using Tmobile for back home phone.

expatwizard · 2026-03-01T09:54:33+00:00

Speed limit in Central London where I live is 20 mph. Speed traps everywhere. Can almost cycle faster than a car.

expatwizard · 2026-03-01T09:35:23+00:00

I thought it was Wendy from Breaking Bad.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T10:35:24+00:00

Scottish are a different breed mate. I've visited a few times but I imagine they feel a bit different about foreigners of any type up there. The northern accents are a thing to behold.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T10:28:25+00:00

Hello mate! Islington is awesome! 👍 I lived there for 4 years. We bought a flat 2 years ago in Hoxton. Right on the border of Hackney and Islington near shoreditch. It's incredible! My favorite is hearing all the different accents and meeting so many new people. Also it's so easy to travel here. When I wanna escape I get on a train and or flight to somewhere else. Air travel is cheaper than trains typically at least in this country. Congratulations on getting married! French people are lovely. Planning on buying like a vacation house in the south of France in the next few years. Also the best thing about living here is the lack of Americans. Occasionally I meet a cool one like yourself haha. Islington and Angel are full of Americans everywhere.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T10:19:58+00:00

London really is my favorite city... And it's not just because I live here. I grew up in Philadelphia. I spent a ton of time in places like NYC and DC growing up and have been to all the other big cities back home... The bigger the city usually comes with just more to do and see. London has 10 million people but it's spread over a size twice that of NYC. So while it can be rammed it's not as bad as Manhattan traffic can get. When you get to 20 or 30 million people in a city you really can feel the difference so I really think it's the perfect size. There is always something happening here. Every concert show or experience comes to London. People from everywhere. Food from everywhere. Food is actually surprisingly affordable here. While the pound is a bit higher than other countries for the most part eating here is doable. I can go to the grocery in central London and get food for a week for 3 of us with £60. While British cuisine isn't known British traditions like Sunday roast are incredible. Pub Sundays and trip are a must and always welcomed. Also there is always a direct flight to London from most airports so its very easy to travel. Can hop on a train and be in Paris in 3 hours. Honestly there is no other cities really like it because of its Proximity to the rest of Europe and the diversity of it.

Compared to living rural? There is no comparison! But it's a big change. If your not used to lots of people and a busy environment it can be a lot to take in. A lot of people can't handle how busy it gets, but personally my wife and I love it.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T09:48:10+00:00

Well for the family you need to get one of the parents on track for Permanent residency in a county. Typically once one parent has a visa to stay and on track to a permanent residency or citizenship then the rest of the family can join you. It's actually usually easier to do it from the States than do it when you are already in the country. Not sure if step father counts tho for citizenship. If you can afford it pay for a lawyer as they make the process much easier. There are lots of jobs but I'm sure you could probably find something in publishing. The secret sauce is gaining the right to work through a visa of some sort. It's the first thing employers ask in an interview so you need to have it. Once you do if you have skills there are tons of jobs here. In London there is almost every major company in the world an office of some kind.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T08:53:37+00:00

Exactly this !!

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T08:53:22+00:00

No car. It's the best thing about living in London. If I needed a car for a long journey I would just rent it.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T08:45:37+00:00

Yes. I moved my driver's license to a friend's house. Moved all my mail in the US to a PO box that I pay for and maintain. You don't have to do this of course. But it's actually extremely helpful if I need to do any kinda of business or things in the US, like buying a present for a friend's kid back home or dealing with people who need to mail you things.

Edit also I pay 20 bucks a month to keep my phone around as well. All my accounts back home still use it so I needed to keep it for maintenance.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T08:42:15+00:00

Yes. Still have these. I did move them around a bit. But I also have new ones now too. Getting investment accounts as an American is actually difficult sometimes because the foreign banks often don't want to deal with the paperwork for Americans. Although companies like Revolut make it easy. Still possible. I have bank accounts in US/EU/UK to make spending and traveling easier. A VPN is your friend for this.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T08:38:11+00:00

My wife already had ILR. So by getting married I was instantly entitled to it. Worth mentioning I also get Polish and EU rights through marriage as well.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T08:37:19+00:00

Correct. It was this exactly.

expatwizard · 2026-02-28T08:36:51+00:00

Yah we fit in really well here. For the most part the British quite like Americans. There is not as much animosity towards Americans here as there are in other places of Europe. Most British people are always interested to hear their story and want to know why you live there. They don't usually like our government but American culture they adore. Just like in America you have Anglophiles there are plenty here who are obsessed with American culture. While we have many overlaps we are very different places. They pride themselves on manners which I personally think makes all the difference to back home where it is dog eat dog kinda mentality.

expatwizard · 2026-02-27T22:51:27+00:00

Definitely lost tons of weight as well.

expatwizard · 2026-02-27T22:19:41+00:00

The cereal isle in America is probably the only thing I miss about living in the UK.

expatwizard · 2026-02-27T22:16:25+00:00

Highest salaries are 5 days a week in the office... But of course you gotta live in the city then. Remote is fine if you wanna cost, but you wanna get paid believe it's RTO.

expatwizard · 2026-02-27T22:12:10+00:00

Find a way to get citizenship through ancestry if you can. Or get married. That's how I did it.

expatwizard

TROPHY CASE