About bickmed

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Some Forum Posts:

Colombia: International Trip Cancelation / Interuption insurance for Colombian Expats:

I use www.worldnomads.com They are unique in that you can start your insurance after you have left the country(not applicable for your situation), and I have claimed with them before and they were prompt and professional. Whatever you do, do not use Assist Card - they are diabolical.

Colombia: GNB Freezing Transfers due to Forumla 160:

Reference the link below, has anyone else had problems with this bank (or another) not releasing funds due to not having a Formula 160? If so, how did you resolve it. I now know of another foreigner, with the same bank, and exact same problem, not having his funds released. He has been back and forth to DIAN with no resolution so far. I do my transfers via Alianza and have not had an issue (so far). http://www.expatexchange.com/expat/index.cfm?tpcid=3407017&dbname=ee&frmid=190&forumid=0&shared=N&skey=Bank%20transfer%20dian

Colombia: TAX OR NO TAX?:

Relying on Colombian tax agents is hardly a great strategy either, unless you perchance find a very good one. Most of them know very little about the tax system as it relates to expats (tax residents and non-residents) and you usually end up show them the information gleamed by perusing forums exactly like this. I tried 7 or 8 firms in Medellin, including ones that 'cater' to foreigners and they were pretty much all clueless on quite a number of areas, and had to be shown the tax ruling to 'agree' on a particular point. Do as much personal research as you can is my advice, read the forums , filter out what is accurate by cross referencing etc and, if a tax agent in Colombia ever tells you anything - have them back up what they say by showing you the ruling.

Colombia: Dental implants:

About 4 years ago I paid 1,500,000 for an implant at Implante in La Frontera - service was very good; that cost included all follow-ups etc.

Colombia: Buying land in taganga - dangerous or extremely dangeours?:

I know a Brit who bought land in Taganga about 8 years ago. He intended to open a hostel. It was a nightmare for him, besides probably a poor location. He built a house, could not get it to work, and then had a nightmare trying to sell (title issues). He sold in the end, however lost a fair bit of money, and probably a few years due to stress. I would say be very careful; it is not a place I would ever consider (even if I did not think it was an absolutely horrible place with zero redeeming features).

Colombia: Does Colombia tax VA Compensation Benefits?:

Good news,however tax opinions are only a guide, and the tax department will make a final decision (should for eg a tax audit ever be completed). I know plenty of people who have faced fines and back fee for taxes that their accountants had advised they didn't need to pay or did not apply to them. I am certainly not saying that this is the situation in the above - just that I am very wary of accountants rulings and advice, especially in Colombia where I have not had good experiences with tax accountants having a clue. I always ask now to see the actual legislation / law that is applicable to try and make sure the accountant is correct. Not helping further, is that often DIAN seems to be equally clueless when trying to clarify issues.

Colombia: EPS, are you sure you have the correct affiliation?:

Thank you for sharing - we are assessing if Colombia is a viable place to continue living.

Colombia: Taxation of assets held outside Colombia:

''When I checked the threshold in late 2016 -- and based on the floating exchange rate -- the threshold was $388,000 US. '' This refers to assets applicable to a wealth tax, as opposed to what would be incorporated into any taxable income tax. I also read that the wealth tax has been scrapped under the reform, however cannot find the article where I read that.

Colombia: buying a car:

I thought classic cars had a largish following - the Medellin car parade each year is full of them; we have a family in our building that maintains one, and in Rio Negro I see them driving around on occasion.

Colombia: Car Rental:

We hired a 4 door Hyundai, 1.5 lt, a few years ago, before owning our car, from Medellin for a few days. The price was 130,000 pesos per day and included comprehensive insurance as well as SOAT. They would have provided longer term costs if required. The vehicle inspection was pretty thorough, and you could add on extras such as GPS etc. Requirements were a valid drivers licence, entry visa in passport, payment and C/C details on file.

Date Joined:

8/19/2015

Total Posts:

128

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0.21