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Belize: Drive to Belize:
Hi Fred,
I did that same route in April, 2013. Had a great trip.
Here are the instructions that we followed. Link below.
We crossed at the Border just outside town - off Bob Bullock Loop (Route 20) World Trade Bridge - it was 11am and the place was empty. No lines, no waiting, no inspections, just paid the fees and went through.
Exception to the route below - we stopped at Matehuala and spent the first night at the Las Palmas Midway Inn on route 57. Nice place, pool, restaurant and bar on site( which is great after a long days drive), gated compound, park you car next to your cabin and they accept dogs.
Second night we stopped in Orizaba, then day 3 we headed for Palenque to see the archeological sites and spent a few days there before touring the Yucatan.
Driving through Mexico - suggested routes - procedures at the border:
http://www.yucatanliving.com/destinations/driving-through-mexico-to-yucatan.htm
You can get your Mexican Car Insurance at Sanbourn in Laredo.
http://www.sanbornsinsurance.com/
Have a great trip - we did.
Belize: Sanctuary Belize:
Anybody who is interested in SB, should read this article.
If nothing else, if you are planning to invest, you should be award of the controversy that surrounds the project.
http://getoutofdebt.org/52655/sanctuary-belize-andis-pukke-todd-cook-peter-baker
At least when you visit, you can ask the right questions.
Belize: Banking & Business:
URL for some of the Belize Banks:
Opening a Belize Bank account :
Atlantic Bank: http://www.atlabank.com/
ScotiaBank: http://www.scotiabank.com/bz/cda/index/0,,LIDen,00.html
Belize Bank; http://www.belizebank.com/
List of Belize Credit Unions: https://www.centralbank.org.bz/financial-system/regulated-institutions/credit-unions
URL's - for residency options:
QRP Information and Requirements - http://www.belizeretirement.org/pdf/brip.pdf
Belize Requirements for Permanent Residence
http://www.belmopancityonline.com/belize-requirements-for-permanent-residence.aspx
Additional info on residency: http://www.belizenorth.com/lan_permres.htm
Belize Importation and Customs : http://www.customs.gov.bz/customs_duties.html cars - trailers, household items, duty schedules and procedures
Work permits are done through your local Dept of Labour.
If you know the area that you will be living, the addresses are easy to find.
You must be in the country for six months before you are eligible to apply. Once you are here, you can go to the local office and they will give you a list of requirements. These seem to change frequently. Depending on the amount of your investment and type of business, will determine how quickly things happen for you , but expect several months, at least from the Corozal office.
Belize: will it work?:
http://www.belizeinvest.org.bz/business-set-up/immigration-and-employment-compliance/
Here is a link for information for entry into Belize and work permits. You don't have to use an expeditor, you can and should do it yourself, but you do have to be resident in Belize for 6 months before you can apply for a work permit. The application is made through the local Dept of labour.
As far as menus etc, you should go to visit the area that you want to set up. You may find that specific ingredients are not available in that area - and you might find that you have to make arrangement to have things flown in from Mexico or the US. You also might want to go and negotiate with the local food distributors.
As much as you may want to plan ahead, you might get frustrated when you have to change your plans, and probably more than once.
It might be more practical to just come here with an open mind - look around - and see what you can accomplish using what materials and services that already exist, and see what short comings you can over come by being creative. Be flexible with your plans. Make sure you are well covered financially, as you will find that setting up a business will probably have hidden costs that you are not anticipating. But with those issues covered and a willingness on your part to work within the system and adapt, you will most likely be successful. Good luck and enjoy your recognizance trip.
Belize: Importing a vehicle into Belize:
Shipping company options:
Hyde Shipping
Florida Contact:
Hyde Shipping Corp.
10025 NW 116th Way, Suite 2
Medley, FL 33178
(305) 913-4933
Caribbean Shipping Agency (CSA)
115 Albert Street
Belize City, Belize
Tel:
(501) 227-7396
(501) 227-3015
(501) 227-5443
Fax:
(501) 227-7681
E-mail:
info@csabelize.com
Belize Shipping Company
Door to door shipping from Houston, California, and the entire East Coast to Belize. Phone 646 241 2967
Website http://www.belizeshippingcompany.com https://www.facebook.com/pages/Belize-Shipping-Company/132092183482321
The cost of shipping a car back to the USA (Port Everglades) was $1100 - that included shipping - import agent and export agent.
There are second hand car dealers that send vehicles from Houston regularly - maybe a Houston trucking company could give you a better rate.
Belize: MOVING QUESTIONS:
Websites for Belize Information:
Belize Government Portal - downloadable forms etc- http://www.belize.gov.bz
QRP - Program Explained
http://www.belizeretirement.org/pdf/brip.pdf
Belize Requirements for Permanent Residence
http://www.belmopancityonline.com/belize-requirements-for-permanent-residence.aspx
Additional info on residency: http://www.belizenorth.com/lan_permres.htm
Belize Customs : http://www.customs.gov.bz/customs_duties.html cars - trailers, household items, duty schedules and procedures
Embassy of Belize in Washington DC; http://www.embassyofbelize.org
Belize High Commission in London - FAQ’s residency, land etc: http://www.belizehighcommission.com/faq.htm
Import of pets - BAHA - http://www.baha.bz/
When Driving - Import Pets into Mexico - instructions in English - http://www.aphis.usda.gov/regulations/vs/iregs/animals/animal_mexico.shtml
Driving through Mexico - suggested routes - procedures at the border:
http://www.yucatanliving.com/destinations/driving-through-mexico-to-yucatan.htm
Mexican Car Insurance
http://www.sanbornsinsurance.com/
Opening a Belize Bank account ;
Atlantic Bank: http://www.atlabank.com/
ScotiaBank: http://www.scotiabank.com/bz/cda/index/0,,LIDen,00.html
Belize Bank; http://www.belizebank.com/
List of Belize Credit Unions: https://www.centralbank.org.bz/financial-system/regulated-institutions/credit-unions
Processing of new vehicles registration
http://belizecitycouncil.org/procedures-of-traffic-department
Additional Belize Car information:
http://www.belmopancityonline.com/belize-car.aspx
Belize Car Insurance
http://www.atlanticinsurancebz.com/
Belize Forums for Expats
FaceBook - Belize Expats
The Belize Forum
http://www.belizeforum.com/belize/ubbthreads.php?ubb=cfrm
Expat - Blog
http://www.expat-blog.com/forum/viewforum.php?id=226
Belize: the real Belize:
It is not very difficult to experience the real Belize.
There are very few areas where you could separate yourself from it. There are several up market resorts, but no Disney World areas.
Instead of staying at one of them, try renting and efficiency apt or cottage for a month or so, near a town that you feel may suit your personal preferences, ie
Beach = Placencia or SanPedro or Hopkins. Water with no beaches = Corozal or Punta Gorda
Inland mountain/hills = Santa Elena/San Ingacio
Once here, get out and walk the streets, talk to the people. Everybody is so friendly.
Find out where the expats meet, there are usually informal gatherings in each town on various afternoons or evenings. They will point of in the right direction with local info and if you need questions answered, they will help.
In Corozal for example- expats get together to play darts at the JamRock every Wednesday and Saturday afternoon.
In San Ignacio, they meet on Friday evening at Hoodies - not sure if it is every week.
Then go shopping in the local shops and the market, try cooking meals at home, instead of eating out. But do try some of the roadside BBQ chicken, don't always eat at the hotel if you do stay at one. Try the taco stands.
Just get out and enjoy it.
I'm sure you will have a great time.
Belize: shipping to Belize:
Hi Sheila,
Do you have any idea which part of Belize you are moving to - there is some local storage places in Corozal, but it won't do you any good if you are moving to Placencia for example. Also, long term storage in hot humid conditions may not work well on all items. Upholstered furniture gets moldy, some electronics may not survive.
As for the vehicle, what make and year is it? The Toyota dealer in Belize city is great with Toyotas - we had a 2012 Prius serviced there - but it is totally the wrong car for Belize, for other reasons.
With more specific information, we can give you better answers.
Belize: "SOS" for retirment in Belize:
Khariton
The cost of living in Belize is just like anywhere else - it depends on the lifestyle you want to maintain here. If you want to maintain a purely US lifestyle, then it will be expensive. But if you can adapt to the local lifestyle, it can be less expensive than the USA.
Most people end up with a mix of the 2.
You can eat at a roadside chicken BBQ for BZ$8 a meal - or have a 1st class meal for BZ$60 or more. You can buy fresh fruit or vegetables at the market - BZ$20 will buy a whole bag of them, but if you want a US$3 bag of pretzels it will cost about BZ12 a bag.
Your utility bill could be a low as BZ$80 - but it could also be as high as BZ$800 if you use air conditioning all day and night.
Internet ranges from about BZ$25 for 124Kbps to BZ$700 for 8Mbps. or you could use the Smart dongle where you get a data package. Both BTL and Smart have extensive website that explain their packages and plans.
You can find rentals in your price range - but you should probably plan to rent something for a month, then spend that month looking for a more permanent arrangement. Seabreeze, Mayan and Tony's all have efficiency type apts. You find out about the deals, by getting to know people and walking the neighbourhoods. Unlike Placencia, Corozal is spread out and you will need a car to live in many places - or you will have to depend on a taxi - so that will limit your choices. Cars are expensive here - and so is gas.
When you enter the country you are given a 30 visitors permit. You then have to renew it every month. Generally, if you want to stay here permanently, you can come in under the QRP program or you can apply for permanent residence after 12 months. The visitors permit fee is BZ$50 per person for the first 6 months and BZ$100 after that. You pay monthly.
One misconception that people have about Corozal is that because it is on the water that there are beaches here. There are no beaches in Corozal. There is a retaining wall that separates the city from the bay. There are a few areas where you can climb down to go swimming - the kids do it. But it may not be what you expect.
Do your searches on the internet - there are photographs and blogs of people who have moved here on-line for you to read and get a feel for what life is like here.
But before you move down, come and spend 6 months here. Or if you can't manage a few months, at least spend a month here.
This is a great place, but it is not for everybody.
Belize: Selling my 2002 Ford Escape:
If you bring the car into Belize, you will be required to pay the duty on it. Sometimes the customs will allow you to bring in the vehicle for a month or two, but the car will be stamped into your passport. You would have to import it and pay the duty before you can sell it.
The duty can be as high as 57.5% of the value. Unless you have full documentation about the value - they usually value it for you. In most cases, customs show it to be well in excess of the actual value. (You would have to look up the exact % duty in the Belize import documents that customs has online).
There will also be customs broker fees.
There is another way, but it ends up being more expensive. You can bring the car in temporarily on a bond. (If they allow you to - many people are told that they must do a straight importation - with no option for a bond).
The bond will cost about US$400 + a few hundred $'s in broker fees. The car can be here for a maximum 3 month bond period, and can stay while you are in the country. You can then find a buyer. You would still have to import the car and pay the duty, before they could take transfer of the vehicle. But you might be able to get the buyer to pay for it.
You would not get back the value of the bond or any fees.
Even if you try to pre-sell the car before you bring it into Belize, or sell it to another foreigner from Mexico, you would have to import it first in order for the buyer to be able to transfer the title on the vehicle.
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