About larryp

Status:

Expatriate  

Gender:

Male

Currently Lives:

Citizen Of:

United States

Past Expat Posts:

Spain

Turkey

Greece

Italy

Germany

HR/Relo
Professional:

Provider of Expat-Related Services & Products

Some Forum Posts:

Ecuador: IESS Social Security Health Insurance:

You need to go to your local IESS office to get the specifics, although this program has been in existence for anyone with a RUC (including personal)...there may be some changes that you will only know upon checking and even then you may find some differing requirements in different offices...nothing is set in stone when policy or procedures change, everyone makes up their own minds what any change means in the government here. The 100% is paid as long as you use IESS facilities and doctors, including medications, however sometimes the IESS pharmacies do not have what you need and you have a choice to purchase yourself or wait on them to obtain it. The system is pretty darn good though from my personal experience, including major surgery and even though experiences vary I would strongly suggest you only listen to those that have had "actual" experiences with the system so the info is first hand since the procedures can be quite different than we are used to, like having to supply your own toilet paper, towels, utensils etc. Emergencies are treated differently than normal issues in many cases, but again that will or can differ depending on the facility..it is NOT all equal. The facilities in the larger cities are quite good..smaller towns not as much and the further out you go away from any facility you may find them pretty sparse. I can attest to Guayaquil and Bahia de Caraquez personally...perhaps others can give you some direction to their areas. The $70 per month is a drop in the bucket compared to most places for health care...the private insurers are good too and you can take different deductibles...and the differences that I can tell will be in the facilities not in the care or experience of the doctors, nor necessarily in the equipment either as the IESS has some of the best, at least in Guayaquil they did. Good luck and please share as to what happens with you so other expats can have that knowledge and info. larryp

Ecuador: R/E Property Ownership in Ecuador:

Yes tkemery, you can do it exactly as you are thinking. I have assisted clients in getting this done here in Ecuador and it is rather a simplistic process and not much more involved than personal ownership is, although you do have to have your LLC paperwork with a set of rules that state you can do that as the managing member and have your bylaws in order. Everything must be legally translated. Check with your legal and financial adviser in the states as to what your reporting and possible consequence might be both legally and tax wise. I think the self directed IRA is a great way to utilize your money prior to 59.5 to own real estate...but there are rules that you need to know and understand about usage of that real estate. Good luck and research the firms that will administrate this for you as there are now so many that do this. One of the best that has been doing this for years is Pensco but there are so many now. larryp P.S. If you would like the names of clients that have done this to get the facts directly from them I will ask them to contact you directly. In my opinion...there is absolutely NOTHING like getting the facts from those that have actually done what you are planning on doing.

Ecuador: IESS:

Yes I have and every business including individual needs to have a RUC and affiliate themselves with IESS. This is the law, although some do not follow it. larryp

Ecuador: Explain to me again about cell phones..:

Skype is great and free to other Skype users and you can get a USA phone number for all your friends and family, business associates etc. to call and the cost is minimal. You can also use to call any phone anywhere in the world for a cost. Then there is google voice and chat...which is .01 cents per minute to call any phone in North America and equally great rates all over the world...I use both of these methods and have always been pleased. With all the tech that is out there today, there is really no reason to NOT be able to be in touch unless you just can not get a signal for either cell phone or internet. larryp

Ecuador: Ok maybe a dumb question -:

If interested in making off-shore investments check into a self directed IRA. Great vehicle if you are not retirement age to take disbursements out of any retirement accounts you might have. Have done this with a couple clients and it works well. larryp

Ecuador: Visa Clarification -:

The 12-IX visa (180 day tourist) takes about 4 days to get so that should not be an issue for you. Lots of bad info on visas, process etc on the net...best to check with your attorney, facilitator of the ministry if you are doing it yourself. larryp

Ecuador: Taking money out of Ecuador:

The first part of your statement is somewhat confusing. You can take as much money as you wish out of the USA...you just have to report anything over $10,000 and you may or may not be allowed to take it depending, I suppose, however you can certainly transfer any amount at this time to Ecuador. If you try to take more out physically that you did not report and are caught then you do stand a chance of loosing it and being questioned pretty hard by the USA government. The reverse is taxed (meaning sending money OUT of Ecuador) at a straight 5%, unless under $2000 (last time I checked) but you are only allowed to transfer out twice in one month and they will be keeping an eye on that too. As far as I know there is no limit as long as you pay the 5%. Clients have transferred in much larger amounts and transferred out much larger amounts than the $10,000 you speak of. Hope that helps. larryp

Ecuador: Mahindra or other new vehicle?:

Great Walls are built quite well, since the motors, drive trains etc. are mostly Japanese, as in Mitsubishi or Toyota basically...its the bodies that are Chinese. I have had 2 Great Walls, one truck, one SUV for almost 3 years..put minimum 100K on each of them, with no real issues, but it is very important to keep them serviced regularly, especially on the coast...sand and salt are not particularly great for vehicles. If I can answer any questions about these vehicles from personal experience just let me know. larryp

Ecuador: Is a taser legal in Ecuador:

A taser is legal to carry in Ecuador. larryp

Ecuador: Noobie here with pet questions:

I live on the coast...sorry if I did not make that clear...I have no idea of the highlands or other areas that are different weather although it would seem that the colder weather would keep them down some. Maybe someone from the highlands or other areas can answer more definitively. larryp

Date Joined:

7/24/2012

Total Posts:

189

Posts/Day:

0.11