Ons vir jou... Wat nou?

When starting a job in a new county there are a few things you would wish you would have known sooner. This is also true for the people who join after you, and they might come with a few questions. So that is why we have dedicated this episode to covering some of the questions and answers your new colleagues from abroad might ask you. We will cover the following FAQs:

• “Gemeente” / City council appointment
• Open a bank account
• Public transport
• Medical aid
• Municipal Taxes to take note of: Riool, afval etc. 30% ruling application
• Driver’s licence
• Common insurances in The Netherlands

In this episode Eduan caught up with Danelle Labuschagne from FFG Global.

Danelle is a Tax and Financial Emigration expert.

During the episode we spoke about the VERY HOT TOPIC of "Financial emigration".

• Financial Emigration in South Africa is a formal process, governed by SARS, where you stop your tax residency in South Africa
• This is necessary if your intention is not to return to South Africa.
• You have to formally let SARS know that your intention is to reside abroad in order to get out of the South African tax net. A mere emigration or cease of residency does not result in financial emigration.
• It is important to determine possible CGT implications that financial emigration might entail.
• There is a R1,25m exemption for expats working abroad. But even with this exemption, an annual income tax return needs to be submitted to SARS, which will include all income (local and foreign) in the taxable income calculation.
• Your Financial Emigration can be backdated.
• Stay tax compliant and consider financial emigration if that is the right route for you.

Contact details:

• Website: http://ffg.global/
  
• Email Danelle directly: info@georgeca.za
• Whatsapp her @ +27 60 974 4659

In this episode the manne from the Onsvirjoupodcast sat around the microphone for an adventurous chat with Marilize Morren.

Marilize lives in the Western Cape (South Africa) and is therefor technically not an expat. However she recently did what most expats can only dream of doing.
She quite her job and used the Workaway platform to travel South East Asia while volunteering and getting first hand exposure to various cultures and different ways of life.
This adventure was also a way to help her understand where her strengths and passions lie so she can choose the best career and life path going forward.

In het own words:

“A few months ago, I resigned from my corporate job to go on a 3-month solo-traveling adventure in South-East Asia to volunteer at various NGOs, through WorkAway.

WorkAway made it easy to get connected to the projects I was interested in. I could make an impact, whilst getting a very authentic traveling experience and exposure to the culture of each country.

I started my journey at an ethical elephant sanctuary (no bathing, feeding, or touching), the Somboon Legacy Foundation in Thailand. For my second month, I traveled up to Laos, to a town called Luang Prabang where I did tourism/ marketing for a farm-to-table and community empowerment organisation, the Mekong Svan. During my final month of traveling, I visited Bali and Java in Indonesia, to gain exposure to teaching.”

Eduan recently caught up with Andrew and Lizette Watts.

The Watts family (Andrew, Liz, and their daughter Emma) currently live in Italy and is in pursuit of a simpler and meaningful life in the Italian countryside.

They traded in the hustle and bustle of city-life and corporate jobs in South Africa, for an 'adventurous slow-life' in Emilia Romagna.

During the episode you'll hear how the Italian dream came about in the first place.

Liz and Andrew also share stories about Emma's Italian language skills, their vegetable garden, their interesting parking solution during the winter, and they tell us about the wonderful 'Nona' who took them under her 'Italian-kitchen wing' so to speak.

You'll also realise that like most things in life this adventure also has a few hurdles and hoops that the Watts family need to jump through and navigate from time to time (for example the Italian language and the visum/visa that they need to renew each year).

Tune in, sit back and relax as you listen to their inspirational story :-)

Ps. The Watts family has a dream of opening a B&B soon in the Italian countryside. Watch this space! And be sure to follow them on:

Welcome back to season 3 of Ons vir jou.

In this season - Bits & Bobs - we will look into a variety of topics ranging from passport colours, to being a business owner aboard and everything in-between.

In this Episode we look back at the past 6 months and we take a closer look at our passports.

We are excited to be back, and look forward to talking about all things expat again.

SAFFA INDEX: Nescafe Coffee

We are at the end of Season 2 of Ons vir jou…Wat nou?

Join us as we look back and wrap up Season 2 - Ubuntu Tips and Tricks in this episode. We take a look into each episode and highlight the topics that might be worth while to go and have a listen to if you haven’t done so yet.

We are steaming towards the end of an action-packed season two “Ubuntu Tips and Tricks”.

In this week’s episode all three the Saffa-manne sit down around a ‘virtual’ table conversation with well-traveled and across the globe settler, Jaco Meyer.

Tune in and listen how Jaco takes you through his “ping-pong” globe hopper of a journey all the way from Nelspruit to Taiwan, Oman, Canada and more..

Jaco shares his tips and tricks in areas such as language barriers, settling in quickly and his well-respected boerewors and biltong recipes.

Warra boytjie! Jaco, thanks for the great conversation and sharing your expat story with us. All the best and the Canadian summer is awaiting around the corner.

SAFFA Index:  Starbucks

In this episode the SAFFA-manne head back to their “moedertaal” and host a very special guest Wereldwyd.co.za an initiative of Afriforum.

Wereldwyd is die ideale platform vir elke Suid-Afrikaner wat tans in die buiteland woon, maar graag steeds in voeling met sy geboorteland wil bly en juis daarom het ons met Sue-Ann opgevang om meer inligting te bekom oor verskillende aspekte wat die platform bied. Aspekte wat die volgende insluit:

- Blogs van ervaring en meer inligting oor Suid-Afrikaners tans in die buiteland

- Nuus gebeure uit die buiteland soos vertolk deur Suid-Afrikaners

- Vermaak (kykgenot, leesgenot ens.)

- Die sogenaamde Wereldgids waar jy rondrits op ‘n wereldkaart opsoek na Suid Afrikaanse bedrywe en bedrywighede in sekere lande

- Die “Kom huis toe” veldtog en Wereldwyd se bystand daartoe

Sit terug en geniet hierdie fantastiese Afrikaanse episode saam die ouens.

SAFFA Index:  Kleuterskool

Episode 7: Financial Emigration, Tax residency and more and more.

Ons Vir Jou Podcast were fortunate to welcome two specialists from Tax Consulting South Africa in the virtual studio for this podcast episode.

Victoria Lancefield - General Manager of the Financial Emigration business unit and Marisa Jacobs - Head of the Africorp Treasury business unit.

Sit back, relax and have a listen to some of the following topics during the episode:

1. The various options to break tax residency ties with South Africa.
2. General misconceptions with regards to tax residency, financial emigration and our tax responsibilities towards SARS as expats.
3. Various laws, rules, limits and thresholds etc. when it comes to:

• Your worldwide income,
• General tax responsibilities, and
• Sending money to and from South Africa

We are dedicating episode 6 and 7 to personal finance topics that are relevant to us as expats.

As an expat there are heaps of relevant personal finance aspects to consider in your new country of choice. Some of the most important things to pay attention probably include:

- Saving and investing for your pension in your new country
- Tax incentives when investing for ones pension - EPISODE 7
- Transferring money to and from South Africa - EPISODE 6
- Your South African Tax status - EPISODE 7
- Financial emigration from South Africa - EPISODE 7
- Selecting a bank and opening a bank account
- Income tax rates
- Income protection and long term insurance etc.

Episode 6 turned out to be predominantly focused on Pension and how we can potentially use the tax incentives that the government offers to our advantage when investing and saving towards our pension.

CJ and Corrie took control of the episode and directed most of their questions at Eduan (not because Eduan is an expert by any stretch of the imagination, but purely because between the three hosts he genuinely finds this topic very interesting!)

That being said, nothing said on this episode (or any episode for that matter) should be taken as advice. Please consult a financial advisor in the country where you find yourself to get accurate and reliable information on which you can act and take advantage of any pension system that is in place in that country.

The conversation is predominantly focused towards the Dutch pension system (because the hosts live in The Netherlands). But Eduan believes that most pension systems around the world are fundamentally based on the same recipe :

a. Structure:1. Government; 2 Employer; 3 Individual.
b. Tax incentives for the investor (with various limits)
c. Control / restrictions over which asset classes you may invest in
d. Control over access to the money (normally you can only access your pension funds after reaching a certain age) .

In this episode Eduan and Corrie are talking to 2 friends; Luzahn in the Netherlands and Jean-ria in the Caymens to discuss their experience of Giving birth abroad.

We look into what their biggest concerns were, we look into the costs and hear some great tips for first timers…

We also discuss how they managed the gap of not having family and the support structures in place that would normally be there when living in your own country.

SAFFA INDEX – Pampers premium

CJ and Eduan caught up with Ralf from Expat Mortgages and Cherene from Expat Property Brokers recently.

Both are experts in their field and in the Dutch property market.

Buying a house or property as an expat in a foreign country (or in your new home country) can be a daunting experience. But in The Netherlands this could potentially turn into a very pleasant experience if you have Expat Property Brokers and Expat Mortgages in your corner of the ring.

Welcome Back

Welcome back to Ons vir jou wat nou and welcome to the kick-off of our brand-new season. Season 2 – Ubuntu Tips and Tricks.

We are back from our Autumn break and ready to discuss more first world problems and hopefully a few solutions.

CJ has been in South Africa again, Eduan ran further than humanly possible, and Corrie started a new job.

We will take a quick look back at season 1 and discuss what you can expect from season 2.

In season 2 we will deep dive into a few specific topics that might help you on your expat journey, regardless of the phase you are in.

Some of the topics we will cover in season 2 are:

· Best countries to immigrate to and why
· Moving to a new country with kids
· Buying a house in a new country

Season 2 - Episode 1: Costly mistakes to avoid
In this episode we are looking into costly mistakes to avoid. We have a lot of very good real-life examples of mistakes that expats around the world have made such as:

· Taxi paid with wrong amount
· Immigration agents charging too much
· Taking the wrong furniture to the wrong country

Sit back, relax and enjoy!!!

We have all heard the saying "you (we) can always come back"

In reality this is not always so straight forward for most Saffa expats who leaves South Africa's borders for an opportunity and a life elsewhere in the world. Whether it is the new job or career, new friends or perhaps a new 'familiarity', the option to move back to SA holds it's own challenges after a few years abroad!

In die "bonus" episode vang Eduan met Stephan Swannepoel op. Stephan (of soos daar na hom verwys word, Swannies) en sy vrou Elsabe het in 2018 Ierland toe getrek.

Hulle het die Iere en die land self onsettend baie geniet! Hulle het gewoeker terwyl hul oorsee was en voordeel gevat uit goedkoop vlugkaartjies om 'n klompie lande te sien regoor Europa!

Die verskil met Swannies hul kom wel in toe hul hul Expat journey beeindig het (op 'n baie positiewe noot en met 'n pro-aktiewe besluit) met die keuse om terug te trek Suid Afrika toe laat in 2021.

Hulle het die besluit en skuif gemaak met die oortuiging dat hul graag in Suid Afrika wil woon. Ierland was baie goed vir hulle en hulle is daar weg sonder om enige brue te brand. Inteendeel, Swannies is oortuig dat die deure altyd vir hul oopstaan daar

Swannies deel ook in die epsiode 'n paar ander adminastratiewe 'tips' om in ag te neem voor mens op die vliegtuig klim terug Suid Afrika toe. Laastens deel hy 'n kragtige lewenswaarheid: "don't follow the trend"

Gooi 'n Whisky. Sit terug. luister. En geniet

All good things come to an end.

In this last episode of Season 1 – Die Groot Trek, we look back on the season and the journey of immigration. We also have a chat to a new guest living in London and look into what you can expect in Season 2 of Ons Vir Jou.

In our conversation with Nadia (our guest) we talk about her reason for moving abroad, what she enjoys most about living outside of SA and the adjustments and challenge she faced during this process.

Shout out: To Jaco, one of our listeners and a look into some of his experiences and views.

The topics we covered in Season 1:

- Ek wil trek - First Thoughts
- Waarheen nou – Which Country
- Papierwerk – Ducks in a row
- Hier gaan ek – Time to leave
- Gearriveer – I have arrived
- Voete vind – Settling in
- Aanpassings – What I miss

In the next season of Ons Vir Jou we will take a deep dive into some of the topics we touched on in Season 1. We will look into things like: Costly mistakes to avoid, Best countries to immigrate to and why, Requirements to enter each country, Personal finances in your new country, Moving to a new country with kids, Giving birth in your new country and buying property.

A big thank you to all of our listeners in 23 countries around the world for listening and for being part of this journey with us.

Remember: Home is not a place, it’s a feeling…

SAFFA INDEX – Ribeye Steak

Moving abroad is tricky, emotional and in the best of circumstances it involves a lot of administration. But imagine having to take your first ‘expat-steps’ during the Covid-19 pandemic. This being to the USA - a country well known for its strict visa rules and regulations. To add to the complexity of the matter, imagine having to fly out just 2-days after your daughter is born…

Expat life is amazing and can be a very rewarding step that you take in your life. But as every expat can tell you there are unique challenges around every corner of the journey.

In this episode Corrie and Eduan had the privilege to catch-up with Jacqe Jansen van Vuuren. Jacqe is a South African (and now officially an expat). He is chemical engineer and works in the nuclear energy industry. He is on his way to New Mexico, USA. But currently finds himself sitting in the Bahamas waiting for his visa interview at the consulate later this month.

In this episode you’ll notice that it is only Corrie and Eduan behind the microphones. CJ is on a well-deserved break in Curacao (probably sipping cocktails and playing golf all day).

During the discussion with Jacqe we covered (amongst other things) some of the following:

- Who is he and where does he come from?

- What led him/them to the choice of moving abroad.

- Why the USA?

- What challenges did he face from an administrative and documents point of view? (Visa applications, flights, negative covid tests, interim transfer visas etc...)

- Emotional side of the move. Especially having to temporarily leave his wife and two kids behind.

- Jacqe has been in the Bahamas for +- 2/3 weeks now and is waiting to enter the USA. What has he been up to during the last few weeks in the Bahamas? What are some of the unfamiliar aspects that come to mind?

- How will he approach the next 4 to 6 months. What are some of the interim milestones?

- Any advice for other listeners?

In this week’s episode the saffa-manne share their experiences and top 5 things to get in place upon arrival in your new country.

1. Registration with the administrator’s office.

2. Open a bank account.

3. Figure out your method of transportation & how you will get from point A to B.

4. Put on your “tekke” and get acquainted with the surrounding area.

5. Get involved and accepted by the community {not an immediate priority but essential to break the loneliness}.

In this episode we look at the price of a Covid Test in the SAFFA INDEX.

Episode 1: Ek wil trek – First Thoughts

Welcome to the very first Episode of “Ons vir Jou… Wat nou?” - Ek wil trek – First Thoughts.

It’s estimated that 3% of all South Africans are currently preparing to emigrate or have already begun the process of emigration.

In season 1 we will investigate all the phases of Emigration. Today we kick off with step number 1, where we will discuss the first step “Ek wil trek” – First Thoughts. We will look into the reasons and motivation of wanting to make the move.

Top 10 reasons for leaving sunny SA:

1.            Improved safety and security
2.            Better future for children
3.            No confidence in the future of your country of origin. 
4.            Government’s affirmative action policy
5.            Deterioration in social services
6.            Decline in your quality of life
7.            Decline in living standards
8.            Higher earnings potential
9.            Prospect for professional
10.          Lower taxation rates

Interesting facts: