Questions for expats in Central America

[seaboy4hire]

So here's the situation. I have a friend who is thinking about moving to CA. But there might be a snag that he isn't thinking about but I have, he is hiv positive but still quite healthy, so long as he takes his meds. So if he goes through with this what are the chances of say Belize or Costa Rica would make him take an hiv test or what would his chances of being allowed to take up residency being positive? I know that one can stay in the countries for 90 or so days leave for a few days and come back but he isn't wealthy and would need to work and as far as I know doesn't have the $200,000 plus at least for CR asks to open up a business.

 

Hugs,

Greg

[trilingual]

It should be easy enough to find out the answer to your questions by going to the websites of the embassies for the countries your friend is thinking about and looking for the descriptions of their requirements for retiree or permanent resident visas. I don't know what Belize and Costa Rica require, but in general I imagine their requirements aren't as stringent as the U.S.'s. I got a retiree visa in Brazil a few years ago and no medical examination was required. Just proof of sufficient retirement income (which was a bit of bureaucratic merry-go-round to get and then get notarized and then, in effect, have the notary verified). To be honest, I'd be less concerned about the medical exam and more about moving to a small country with not much gay life.

[Epigonos]

Why anybody would want to move to either Belize or Costa Rica totally escapes me. This is particularly true for a gay.

 

Belize, a former British colony, is extremely hot and humid most of the year and is right in the middle of the hurricane belt. It has very little infrastructure and little or no industry. The country manages to scrape by on ecotourism. The fact is the Brits were only too happy to grant the country independence as it relieved them of a huge financial burden.

 

Costa Rica is a very different situation. The central highland, which includes San Jose, the capital, has a very nice climate. Up until about twenty five years ago San Jose was a rather pretty colonial city with cobbled stone streets and thriving businesses. During those twenty central San Jose and been allowed to deteriorate into something of an urban slum with boarded up buildings and few real businesses. About the only thing in central San Jose that has been maintained is the old Opera House which is seen as a tourist attraction. While central San Jose was deteriorating the surrounding areas were being developed in the model of Walmart American. If somehow you were set down in one of these suburbs without knowing it was in Costa Rica you would swear you were in an American retirement community. Most of the residents of these communities are straight retired Midwestern Americans couples and there is certainly no gay scene in these suburbs.

 

Another thing to keep in mind when considering retirement in one of the smaller Latin American countries is that they are generally very socially conservative and Catholic. There is definitely a gay scene, in major cities and resorts, in Mexico, Brazil and Argentina but be very wary of most of the rest.

[seaboy4hire]

Why anybody would want to move to either Belize or Costa Rica totally escapes me. This is particularly true for a gay.

 

Belize, a former British colony, is extremely hot and humid most of the year and is right in the middle of the hurricane belt. It has very little infrastructure and little or no industry. The country manages to scrape by on ecotourism. The fact is the Brits were only too happy to grant the country independence as it relieved them of a huge financial burden.

 

Costa Rica is a very different situation. The central highland, which includes San Jose, the capital, has a very nice climate. Up until about twenty five years ago San Jose was a rather pretty colonial city with cobbled stone streets and thriving businesses. During those twenty central San Jose and been allowed to deteriorate into something of an urban slum with boarded up buildings and few real businesses. About the only thing in central San Jose that has been maintained is the old Opera House which is seen as a tourist attraction. While central San Jose was deteriorating the surrounding areas were being developed in the model of Walmart American. If somehow you were set down in one of these suburbs without knowing it was in Costa Rica you would swear you were in an American retirement community. Most of the residents of these communities are straight retired Midwestern Americans couples and there is certainly no gay scene in these suburbs.

 

Another thing to keep in mind when considering retirement in one of the smaller Latin American countries is that they are generally very socially conservative and Catholic. There is definitely a gay scene, in major cities and resorts, in Mexico, Brazil and Argentina but be very wary of most of the rest.

 

Being around a bunch of gays is not important to him. He prefers to have a few close friends rather than have a gaggle of acquaintances. Humidity doesn't bother him since he's lived in Chicago since he was a teen and had lived in NYC for a period of time as well. I did not think of the hurricanes though that hit Belize. I will bring that fact up to him. I don't think he would be up to dealing with that. I've just missed two while visiting both sides of Florida within the last few years and even though I missed them the down pour was not enjoyable. Uruguay is also on his list since it is close to BA but probably not close to the high cost of living. I am sure and I'd encourage him to visit Costa Rica and other places before he makes his choice. I thought that I'd pose my question here on the forums since there is such a wide world experience of guys who might have some experience in such moves. As for retirement he is far from the age of it and financial means to retire. He'd need to find work of some sorts. That is why I asked my question about residency figuring someone on here could answer, either publicly or could send me a private message. If one decides to send me a private message don't worry about me sharing your user name or real name.

 

Hugs,

Greg

[+ Topseed]

Living an expat life is a topic that's all over the Internet. Belize and Costa Rica are hot areas for expats due to their low cost of living; Panama and Uruguay also are on many lists. I suggest that your friend search Amazon for literature about expat living to first make sure that he's comfortable with the idea. Another site that focuses on expat life: http://internationalliving.com/publications/expat-advice/

[trilingual]

One issue that a prospective expat needs to consider if he's not among the well-heeled is the risk of currency fluctuations. It's easy to move to a country when the exchange rate is favorable to those with dollars, but these things tend to by cyclical and a person can suddenly find himself living in a country that's no longer really affordable. I speak from personal experience; I moved to Brazil when there was a very favorable exchange rate and it was very affordable. A few years later the dollar had gone into the toilet compared to the real and I had to give up the dream and return to the U.S. because the real had strengthened far beyond the worst-case-scenario budgets I had made before moving trying to anticipate a weaker dollar.

 

Panama and Ecuador have become popular expat retirement destinations because both countries have adopted the U.S. dollar as their national currencies, so there is no longer any risk of currency fluctuations. Your friend would have to check further, but both countries are less expensive, on the whole, than the U.S. And costs decrease if you don't care about living in the more-expensive capital city. Prospective expats also need to remember that Medicare doesn't work outside the U.S., so they will need local medical insurance (which can be pricey for older people) or a subscription to a medical evacuation service which can get them back to the U.S. in case of medical issues that require hospitalization. Once back in the U.S. they can access their Medicare benefits. Finally, future expats need to be prepared to make a real effort to learn the local language. Without being able to function in it, at least to a reasonable extent, it's very easy to become isolated and to be taken advantage of. You can't be sure that everyone will speak English, especially if you live in a smaller city or town.

[seaboy4hire]

Tri thanks for those tips. He is originally from Hungary (he moved to the states as a teen) so I don't think picking up a third language would be too hard for him since he is fluent in two already and knows a little bit of Spanish. I was thinking of putting Ecuador and Panama on his radar but I don't want to bog him down too much and cause him to go into information over load. But I will check those out on the side and help guide him.

[trilingual]

English is actually fairly widely spoken in Panama, thanks to it's long relationship with the U.S. (including having the former Canal Zone running across the middle of the country). Although most people are native Spanish-speakers, there's an English-speaking black minority descended from people from the Caribbean Islands who came to Panama at the time the Canal was built. In Ecuador I'm sure that there are numerous English-speakers in Quito, the capital. Cuenca, a smaller city in the highlands, seems to have become popular with expat retirees, so there would be an English-speaking community there. Ecuador isn't a very large country, so it's only a few hours by bus from Cuenca to Quito for metropolitan amenities. There are supposed to be some nice beaches along the Pacific Coast, but expats seem to prefer the "eternal spring" climate of the highlands rather than the equatorial steaminess of the coastal regions! But, chacun à son goût!