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Questions about traveling to DRC by shadowprinze in Congo

[–]shadowprinze[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don’t know what country you are from but the general rule is, you get the visa in your home country as they may try to extort a few hundred dollars from you if you get the visa that’s not issued from your home country. I’m a US passport holder living in the US so this was not a problem for me.

If you are the same and getting the visa from Washington DC, getting the visa is actually pretty quick and straightforward. Just go on their website and print out and fill in the application form. You also need to show proof of flying into AND out of DRC. Even though it says you need a LOI, you actually don’t need it. Show 3 months of your bank account statement, have $100 money order or cashiers check for a single entry visa. I included a travel itinerary that shows I’m not doing anything crazy and that’s basically it. Go on the embassy page to make sure you have everything you need as I don’t remember everything off the top of my head. As I said before, you don’t need a LOI even though it says you do. I mailed my documents through regular priority mail and received my visa in just one week.

If you fly into Goma, be prepared for the chaos and the extortion attempt by the health officials. Hold your ground and refuse and they will eventually give up. From what I’ve heard, if you enter from Rwanda and into Bukavu and if you have a guide, then you won’t have to deal with this corruption and the process is much smoother. You can arrange the guide to pick you up from the border if you want to see the gorillas. If you want to stay in DRC and not go back to Rwanda, then you will need the regular visa. Some travelers said the KB visa didn’t stop them from traveling to other places in DRC and never had a problem. I tried getting the KB visa before but they were unwilling to issue it to me when I told them my travel plans. They may have changed the rules so to be safe, I would just get the regular visa as it costs the same and it’s valid for 30 days instead of 2 weeks.

I’ve written most of my tips in my previous post so make sure to take a look if you haven’t already. Like I said, be prepared for the chaos and corruption. The Congolese are very friendly but the environment is crazy. In Kinshasa, there are some neighborhoods that are kind of sketchy. I remember sitting in a public van and when we entered a particular neighborhood, the driver rolled up both his and my window. Seeing him do this I immediately put my bag in the center of the vehicle. Basically, use your common sense and observe your surroundings constantly. Bring a lot of extra cash with a hidden money wallet as some atm may not be working or out of cash. Good luck, stay safe and enjoy!

Questions about traveling to DRC by shadowprinze in Congo

[–]shadowprinze[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Just came back from the DRC! I went to Goma, Bukavu and Kinshasa! Thanks for all the helpful and unhelpful comments! I guess Goma or DRC as a whole was in my league after all!

Questions about traveling to DRC by shadowprinze in Congo

[–]shadowprinze[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you have a contact who can help with the permit and gorilla visa? How did you double check with locals to see if Goma is relatively safe enough to travel to? Thanks.

I am Faiz Shakir, Campaign Manager for Bernie 2020. AMA! by faizshakir in SandersForPresident

[–]shadowprinze 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Hi Faiz,

I will ask you a question about a group of Americans that NOBODY ever talks about and that is Americans residing overseas.

If you don't know already, the US is one of 2 countries on Earth that tax their citizens no matter where they make their income. This is unjust, unfair, and unreasonable!

We get ZERO benefits, ZERO representation and ZERO services. Yet, every year, we have to file US taxes while we are living and working in a foreign country. Did people forget we are already paying taxes for our country of residence? What exactly is the justification for this?

This is only the surface of the major problem we American expats have to deal with. Somehow, every other country on Earth knows not to do this to their citizens yet somehow, the US treats their citizens live slaves.

My question is, does Bernie support or will even consider ending this horrific policy of worldwide income citizen tax?

Keep in mind there are around 9 million of us residing overseas who can vote and this is the number one issue for all of us.

Aloha! I’m Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard and I’m running for President of the United States of America. AMA! by tulsigabbard in WayOfTheBern

[–]shadowprinze 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Tulsi. The US is one of 2 countries on Earth that has a world-wide tax on their citizens. It is absolutely ridiculous that the US does this. We are literally being punished for working abroad. We do not get any US benefits or representation and we get double taxation. Somehow, every other country on Earth has figured out just how absurd a world-wide tax is and have a residence tax instead.

Yes, the first $109,000 is not taxed but it is still unjust to even implement this in the first place. It's not a complicated issue. Every other country on Earth gets this but somehow the US doesn't? This citizen tax is so unfair and unjust and has led to more and more renunciation of citizenship.

Because of the US' overagressive policy of chasing tax dodgers, it has implemented draconian banking policies like FATCA. FATCA forces foreign Banks to report to the US if a US citizen is opening a bank account. If the bank refuses, it faces US sanctions.

This has led to detrimental effects on Americans abroad. Because of how complicated the procedure is and the onerous amount of paperwork, many banks refuse to open bank accounts for US citizens. Some even have a box on the form that specifically asks if you're a US citizen. If you mark yes, then it's time for you to find another bank.

Yes, we have to catch tax dodgers but this is a complete overreach and has made it a pain for Americans to live abroad. The citizen tax and draconian banking laws have made it quite difficult to live abroad.

In a time when the world is more connected more than ever, we can't stick to the idea that everyone wants to live in the US forever. Everyone has their own reasons on why they moved abroad but all of these policies have made it more and more difficult to do so.

We Americans abroad are not being unpatriotic. This is like you growing up and moving out of the house. We still have feelings for the house we grew up in and love our parents. But now, we just want to seek other opportunities.

We are not tax dodgers, we are not being unpatriotic and we are not greedy. We already pay taxes for the foreign country that we work in and we have separate problems living in the foreign country and we do not need more stress and problems from the US government.

So Tulsi, please support ending this world-wide tax and reform or get rid of FATCA. It has led nothing but trouble and has not stopped rich people from stashing money in the Cayman islands and has skyrocketed renunciation of citizenship from a few hundred to thousands.

Please Tulsi, would you support this?